{"id":374,"date":"2018-07-18T07:21:36","date_gmt":"2018-07-18T07:21:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.renthop.com\/content-manager\/?post_type=studies&#038;p=9002"},"modified":"2018-07-18T16:27:40","modified_gmt":"2018-07-18T16:27:40","slug":"chicago-rat-complaints-continue-to-grow","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.renthop.com\/research\/chicago-rat-complaints-continue-to-grow\/","title":{"rendered":"Chicago&#8217;s Rat Complaints Continue to Grow"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Chicago <a href=\"https:\/\/www.huffingtonpost.com\/reboot-illinois\/pest-company-says-chicago_b_6015800.html\">ranks #1<\/a> as the \u201crat capital\u201d in the country. The abundance of garbage and buildings in The Windy City makes it a great location for these rats to seek shelter and food for survival. The presence of these furry critters poses a threat to city dwellers due to the fact that they are capable of spreading diseases and cause allergic reactions to humans and animals.<\/p>\n<p>Last year, we saw a total of <b>50,963 rat complaints<\/b>. Compared to 2014 (32,855), the number of rat complaints in 2017 increased 55.1%. Furthermore, in the first half of 2018 (from January to June), there were already 13,753 rat complaints lodged to Chicago\u2019s 311. We\u2019ve collected a subset of data of 2017\u2019s rat complaints made to <a href=\"https:\/\/data.cityofchicago.org\/Service-Requests\/311-Service-Requests-Rodent-Baiting\/97t6-zrhs\">Chicago\u2019s 311<\/a> to find out more about which neighborhoods and locations have it the worst and if there have been areas with higher rat sightings over the years.<\/p>\n<h5><b>Here are the Key Findings from the Study:<\/b><\/h5>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>In 2017, <b>Chicago<\/b> tops the list with the most number of rat complaints compared among other cities including Boston, New York City and Washington DC <strong><a href=\"#citiesrats\">(fig. 1)<\/a><\/strong>.\n<li>When comparing the number of complaints per 100,000 residents, Chicago topped the list with 1876.09 complaints per 100,000 residents <strong><a href=\"#citiesratstable\">(fig. 2)<\/a><\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li><b>Logan Square, Englewood, and West Ridge are the top 3 complaint neighborhoods <strong><a href=\"#chicagoratsmap\">(fig. 3)<\/a><\/strong><\/b>.<\/li>\n<li>Most of the neighborhoods with a higher concentration of rat complaints coincide with the neighborhoods with a <b>higher concentration of dog poop!<\/b><\/li>\n<li>Neighborhoods in <b>Downtown Chicago<\/b> such as <b>The Loop, Gold Coast, and River North <\/b>have much <b>fewer rat complaints<\/b> than the other neighborhoods <strong><a href=\"#chicagoratsmap\">(fig. 3)<\/a><\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li><b>Printers Row, Riverdale, <\/b>and<b> Oakland <\/b>are the neighborhoods with the lowest volume of rat complaints <strong><a href=\"#chicagoratstable\">(fig. 4)<\/a><\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li>There seem to be a <b>weak correlation<\/b> between the rat complaint counts and median rents in Chicago <strong><a href=\"#chicagoratsassociation\">(fig. 5)<\/a><\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li>Top 3 rat complaint addresses include <b>6931 S Campbell Ave, <\/b>followed by <b>1548 W Edgewater Ave<\/b>, and <b>6225 N Kenmore Ave<\/b> <strong><a href=\"#chicagoratsaddresses\">(fig. 6)<\/a><\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li>From 2014 to 2017, there was an increase in the number of rat complaints with a <b>surge in 2016 <\/b><strong><a href=\"#chicagoratsyears\">(fig. 7)<\/a><\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>We first take a look at the number of rat complaints among the 4 major cities in 2017. Rat complaints consist of mice infestation, rat activity and rodent inspection and treatment in <b>New York City, Chicago, Boston <\/b>and <b>Washington DC<\/b>.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h5><b>Rat Complaints by Cities, 2017<\/b><\/h5>\n<h5 style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><a name=\"citiesrats\"><\/a>Figure 1<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong> Comparing 311 Rat Complaints in 2017 by Major Cities<\/strong><\/p>\n<div style=\"width: 90%; height: 500px; position: relative; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;\" align=\"center\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.renthop.com\/content-manager\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Rat_Complaints_by_Major_Cities_in_2017_export.html\" width=\"100%\" height=\"100%\" frameborder=\"0\"><span data-mce-type=\"bookmark\" style=\"display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;\" class=\"mce_SELRES_start\">\ufeff<\/span><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">From the overview, among the cities, <\/span><b>Chicago has the greatest number of total rat complaints all year round<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, followed by New York City, Washington DC and then Boston. The gap in the total number of rat complaints in 2017 between New York City and Chicago is significantly vast, with the difference in rat complaints between these cities ranging roughly between 56.5% to 66.1%. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While this comparison reveals that Chicago leads the number of rat complaints among the other cities, it does not take into account the population of each city. To rank fairly, we <\/span><b><i>normalized<\/i><\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> complaints by city population according to the most recent <a href=\"https:\/\/factfinder.census.gov\/faces\/nav\/jsf\/pages\/community_facts.xhtml\">Census data available<\/a>. Hypothetically, cities with denser populations might have more complaints. This allows us to <\/span><b>fairly<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> compare one city to another because one would assume that a city with denser population will also have more complaints, and this will correct that.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h5 style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><a name=\"citiesratstable\"><\/a>Figure 2<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong> Comparing 311 Rat Complaints in 2017 in Major Cities by Normalized Complaints<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"tg-wrap\" style=\"max-width: 800px; margin-right: auto; margin-left: auto;\">\n<table style=\"border-collapse: collapse; border-spacing: 0px; margin: 0px auto; border: 0px solid #aaaaaa; height: 300px; width: 700px;\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<th style=\"font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; padding: 10px 5px; overflow: hidden; word-break: normal; color: #fff; background-color: #92151a; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; border: 0px solid #aaa;\">City<\/th>\n<th style=\"font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; padding: 10px 5px; overflow: hidden; word-break: normal; color: #fff; background-color: #92151a; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; border: 0px solid #aaa;\">Number of Complaints<\/th>\n<th style=\"font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; padding: 10px 5px; overflow: hidden; word-break: normal; color: #fff; background-color: #92151a; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; border: 0px solid #aaa;\">Complaints Per 100,000 Residents<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; padding: 10px 3px; overflow: hidden; word-break: normal; color: #333; background-color: #fff; font-weight: bold; vertical-align: top; border: 0px solid #aaa; text-align: center;\">Chicago<\/td>\n<td style=\"font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; padding: 10px 3px; overflow: hidden; word-break: normal; color: #333; background-color: #ffffff; text-align: center; vertical-align: top; border: 0px solid #aaa;\">50,963<\/td>\n<td style=\"font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; padding: 10px 3px; overflow: hidden; word-break: normal; color: #333; background-color: #ffffff; text-align: center; vertical-align: top; border: 0px solid #aaa;\">1876.09<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; padding: 10px 5px; overflow: hidden; word-break: normal; color: #333; background-color: #fff; font-weight: bold; vertical-align: top; border: 0px solid #aaa; text-align: center;\">Washington DC<\/td>\n<td style=\"font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; padding: 10px 5px; overflow: hidden; word-break: normal; color: #333; background-color: #ffffff; text-align: center; vertical-align: top; border: 0px solid #aaa;\">5,036<\/td>\n<td style=\"font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; padding: 10px 5px; overflow: hidden; word-break: normal; color: #333; background-color: #ffffff; text-align: center; vertical-align: top; border: 0px solid #aaa;\">725.68<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; padding: 10px 5px; overflow: hidden; word-break: normal; color: #333; background-color: #fff; font-weight: bold; vertical-align: top; border: 0px solid #aaa; text-align: center;\">Boston<\/td>\n<td style=\"font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; padding: 10px 5px; overflow: hidden; word-break: normal; color: #333; background-color: #ffffff; text-align: center; vertical-align: top; border: 0px solid #aaa;\">2,488<\/td>\n<td style=\"font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; padding: 10px 5px; overflow: hidden; word-break: normal; color: #333; background-color: #ffffff; text-align: center; vertical-align: top; border: 0px solid #aaa;\">363.16<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; padding: 10px 5px; overflow: hidden; word-break: normal; color: #333; background-color: #fff; font-weight: bold; vertical-align: top; border: 0px solid #aaa; text-align: center;\">New York City<\/td>\n<td style=\"font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; padding: 10px 5px; overflow: hidden; word-break: normal; color: #333; background-color: #fff; text-align: center; vertical-align: top; border: 0px solid #aaa;\">19,152<\/td>\n<td style=\"font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; padding: 10px 5px; overflow: hidden; word-break: normal; color: #333; background-color: #ffffff; text-align: center; vertical-align: top; border: 0px solid #aaa;\">222.11<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<p style=\"font-size: 11px; text-align: center;\"><em><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Rat complaints in 2017 by cities sorted in descending order according to complaints per 100,000 residents.<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">By calculating complaints per 100,000 residents, we\u2019re surprised to find that as one of the most populous state, New York City actually ranks behind Chicago and the other cities in terms of the number of rat complaints. Chicago still tops the list as the city with the most number of complaints per 100,000 residents. However, Washington DC follows behind Chicago, followed by Boston and then New York City.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With a better sense of the number of rat complaints among these cities, we\u2019re curious about which neighborhoods have the highest concentration of rat complaints. We\u2019ve looked at the most recent data from 2017 and created an interactive map to visualize the trends by first geocoding the exact longitudes and latitudes of the incidents to their respective neighborhoods.<\/span><\/p>\n<h5><b>Which Chicago Neighborhoods had the Most Rat Complaints in 2017?<\/b><\/h5>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h5 style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><a name=\"chicagoratsmap\"><\/a>Figure 3<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong> Chicago Rat Complaints 2017 Interactive Visualization by Neighborhoods (With Median Rents)<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><button onClick =\"embedPopup()\" class=\"button button1\" style=\"display: block; margin: 0 auto;\">Get the code to embed this interactive map!<\/button><br \/>\n<script>\nfunction embedPopup() {\n    alert('<iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.renthop.com\/content-manager\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/chicago_rat_map.html\" width=\"90%\" height=\"500px\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe>');\n}\n<\/script><\/p>\n<div style=\"width: 90%; height: 700px; position: relative; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;\" align=\"center\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.renthop.com\/content-manager\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/chicago_rat_map.html\" width=\"100%\" height=\"100%\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p style=\"font-size: 11px; text-align: center;\"><em>Full data for the number of rodent complaints in 2017 is sourced from the <a href=\"https:\/\/data.cityofchicago.org\/Service-Requests\/311-Service-Requests-Rodent-Baiting\/97t6-zrhs\">Chicago Data Portal site<\/a>. Exact latitude-longitude coordinates at each incident location were geocoded to corresponding neighborhoods.<br \/>\nMedian Rents are calculated using RentHop Data from January 2016 to March 2018. This year\u2019s data includes complaints made from January 1, 2017 \u2013 December 31, 2017.<br \/>\nHover over the map for more information on each neighborhood.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h5 style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><a name=\"chicagoratstable\"><\/a>Figure 4<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong> Comparison of Chicago Rat Complaints 2017 by Median Rents &amp; Neighborhoods<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<div style=\"width: 100%; height: 900px; position: relative; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;\" align=\"center\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.renthop.com\/content-manager\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/chicago_rats_neighborhood_table.html\" width=\"100%\" height=\"100%\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Taking a look at the above map and table, we noticed <\/span><b>Logan Square (2,448 complaints)<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, <\/span><b>Englewood (2,276 complaints)<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and <\/span><b>West Ridge (2,167 complaints) <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">all appear in the darkest red. These are the neighborhoods which have the highest volume of rat complaints. Several other neighborhoods also highlighted in dark red shades include <\/span><b>Lake View (1,785 complaints), Washington Heights (1,560 complaints), Austin (1,455 complaints) and Clearing (1,435 complaints)<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. All of these neighborhoods have the highest volume of rat complaints and counts of premises baited. On the other hand, the majority of the neighborhoods in downtown Chicago, such as <\/span><b>the Loop, Streeterville, River North, and Gold Coast <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">also had rat complaints but they are <\/span><b>covered in much lighter shades of red<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>An interesting finding is that neighborhoods with higher complaints coincide with the neighborhoods in which <a href=\"https:\/\/www.renthop.com\/studies\/chicago\/chicagos-dog-poop-problems-2017\">high concentrations of poop complaints<\/a>. This is most likely due to the fact that rats are attracted by dog poop as a food source, especially in the city.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">From the map, we also observed that the top 3 least rat-infested neighborhoods are <\/span><b>Museum Campus (0 complaints), Millenium Park (1 complaint) and Greektown (2 complaints)<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. However, these neighborhoods are more parks than residential areas. Looking at the top 3 least rat complaint residential neighborhoods, we find that they are <\/span><b>Printers Row (3 complaints), Riverdale (8 complaints) and Oakland (11 complaints)<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. 1-bedroom median rents in the neighborhoods with the highest number of complaints seem to lie within a moderate range between $900 to $1,500. Is it possible that neighborhoods with a lower number of rat complaints are those with higher median rents?<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h5><b>Association of Rat Complaints vs 1-Bedroom Median Rents<\/b><\/h5>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h5 style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><a name=\"chicagoratsassociation\"><\/a>Figure 5<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>Chicago Rat Complaints vs Median Rents<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-9066 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.renthop.com\/content-manager\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/chicago_rat_association_plot.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"1321\" height=\"411\" \/><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When looking at the plot of rat complaint counts versus median rents, with median rents as the independent variable, we can see a trend where neighborhoods with higher rat complaint counts are also the neighborhoods with lower 1-bedroom median rents. However, when measuring the correlation coefficient between median rents and rat complaint counts, we discovered that the variables follow a <\/span><b>weak<\/b> <b>negative correlation with a value of -0.24<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. This indicates that the rat complaint counts and median rents might be associated, however, it is to be taken with a pinch of salt. Neighborhood amenities, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.renthop.com\/studies\/chicago\/save-on-rent-by-adding-a-little-time-to-your-daily-l-commute\">distance from the L train stops<\/a> and ease of accessibility to commute to downtown Chicago might also have an impact on the median rents.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h5><b>Where Are the Exact Locations of the Most Complained Buildings?<\/b><\/h5>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h5 style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><a name=\"chicagoratsaddresses\"><\/a>Figure 6<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>Chicago Rat Complaints Top Addresses, 2017<\/strong><\/p>\n<div style=\"width: 100%; height: 900px; position: relative; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;\" align=\"center\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.renthop.com\/content-manager\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/chicago_rat_addresses_interactive_table.html\" width=\"100%\" height=\"100%\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Since rat complaints from the same address within the same day may point to the same rat incident in that location, it makes sense to group and look at unique complaints according to repeated calls from their respective addresses. The table above lists the most complained about addresses in 2017, sorted by <\/span><b>unique complaint counts, accompanied by raw complaint counts<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. From the table, we see that the most notorious number of rat complaints came from <\/span><b>6931 S Campbell Ave (35 unique complaints), Lithuanian Plaza, <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">followed by<\/span> <b>1548 W Edgewater Ave<\/b><b> (33 unique complaints), Edgewater, <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">and then<\/span><b> 6225 N Kenmore Ave (30 unique complaints), Edgewater Beach<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The number of rat complaints all over in Chicago is worrying, no wonder Chicago is touted as the \u201crattiest\u201d city in the country. Most importantly, rat complaints have seen a spike, especially during the summer.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h5><b>Have there been any changes in the number of rat complaints over the years?<\/b><\/h5>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>We\u2019ve also investigated the rat complaint counts over the years from Chicago\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/data.cityofchicago.org\/Service-Requests\/311-Service-Requests-Rodent-Baiting\/97t6-zrhs\">311 data from Chicago Data Portal<\/a> over the years<b><i> from<\/i><\/b> <b><i>2014 to 2017<\/i><\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<h5 style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><a name=\"chicagoratsyears\"><\/a>Figure 7<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>Chicago Rat Complaints Yearly Comparison<\/strong><\/p>\n<div style=\"width: 90%; height: 500px; position: relative; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;\" align=\"center\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.renthop.com\/content-manager\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Chicago_Rat_Complaint_Comparison_by_Years_2014_-_2017_export.html\" width=\"100%\" height=\"100%\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The rat complaints in Chicago increase every year. In addition, we also discovered that there was a <\/span><b>jump in the number of rat complaints from 2015 to 2016<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, likely due to <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/abc7chicago.com\/news\/chicago-rat-complaints-on-the-rise-after-mild-winter\/1973348\/\">milder winters<\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and an increased awareness of the problem. The surge in rat complaints in 2016 has led to an increased amount of city efforts poured into decimating these vermin through <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.chicagotribune.com\/news\/local\/politics\/ct-rahm-emanuel-chicago-rats-dry-ice-met-0921-20160920-story.html\">dry ice<\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. <\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Moreover, we also noticed that the rat complaints started soaring from April onwards till July, before dipping towards the end of the year in December, most probably due to <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.renthop.com\/studies\/nyc\/rats-continue-to-thrive-in-new-york-city-especially-during-summer#seasonrats\">seasonal changes<\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> such as milder winters and warmer summers which may have affected the rat activity level in the city.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h5><b>What can I do to curb or avoid rat infestations?<\/b><\/h5>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you frequently find yourself seeing these furry creatures scurrying around your building or neighborhood, you should first call 311 or visit <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cityofchicago.org\/city\/en\/depts\/311.html\">the online portal for creating complaints<\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, which allows you to make complaints, anonymously if you wish. An inspector from the Chicago HPD will come to check the building for violations, usually within a few days.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To further prevent these pests from populating in your area, remember to always securely tie and discard your garbage properly into a can with a lid. Rats love to thrive in places with food and leftovers. You wouldn\u2019t want them to get access to such things so easily. In addition, you could also get rid of your garbage close to the garbage pickup truck\u2019s arrival time at your building. This will significantly reduce the number of garbage bags left outside your building and it will also leave more space for any additional garbage the following day. Other than that, make sure that you make your living space as undesirable as possible even to deter even the most ambitious rats.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Regardless, be consistent.<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> While these tips may seem easy to follow, but to practice them consistently requires consistent effort and commitment.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you\u2019re in the market for a new apartment or were just influenced to move because of this study, be sure to check out our extensive selection of <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.renthop.com\/chicago-il\/apartments-for-rent\">Chicago Apartment for Rent<\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<style>\n.button1 {box-shadow: 0 0 0 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.2), 0 0 0 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.19);}\n.button {   background-color: #92151a; border: none; color: #ffffff; padding: 5px 15px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; display: inline-block; font-size: 14px; \n font-weight: heavy; margin:4px 2px; cursor: pointer; -webkit-transition-duration: 0.4s; transition-duration: 0.4s;}\n<\/style>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Chicago ranks #1 as the \u201crat capital\u201d in the country. The abundance of garbage and buildings in The Windy City makes it a great location for these rats to seek shelter and food for survival. The presence of these furry critters poses a threat to city dwellers due to the fact that they are capable [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":381,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"yes","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[9],"class_list":{"0":"post-374","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-neighborhood-living","8":"tag-9"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v22.4 (Yoast SEO v23.7) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Chicago&#039;s Rat Complaints Continue to Grow - Real Estate Data &amp; Research<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.renthop.com\/research\/chicago-rat-complaints-continue-to-grow\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Chicago&#039;s Rat Complaints Continue to Grow\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Chicago ranks #1 as the \u201crat capital\u201d in the country. The abundance of garbage and buildings in The Windy City makes it a great location for these rats to seek shelter and food for survival. 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