I once found a web site that showed police/criminal activity per type of offense in just about every city in the US.

When bisecting the historical comps you can see what trend is rising, falling, crested and descending or taking off. because when you flip, your a housing fortune teller.

Question is:  is there something/some ways to turn over the bad apples to rebuild its reputation; or should the local police be notified? 

Also, give the police department a call if you are looking at a particular neighborhood/street in either town. 

Most will just throw them away, but really aggressive groups will drop them off at the nearest police station.

A writ of execution may be needed (essentially a judgment) to "seize" the car before you can do anything else.Contact a local attorney that is familiar with the abandoned property laws in your area, discuss your options, and then go forward from there.Dave, you were correct.after several months of dealing with the MVA and local Town Court, I finally was able to narrow down the exact process on how to dispose or re-title this abandoned car:1) if you happen to know how to track down the last owner of the vehicle, send him/her a registered letter asking either to come to pick up the vehicle, or to sign the title over to you2) if you do not get a reply, call the police as suggested by @Dale Hensley .

I'd send a link but the BP police keep knocking me down when I do that :-)

Call your lawyer first, but you should probably go straight to the police.

I won't re-hash all of it, but I will say I have both high cash value life insurance polices and a self-directed 401k. 

Do your homework on the specific areas, check the school districts, check to see crime, call the local police or building department and ask about that specific street (they shouldn't tell you anything but sometimes they do!).