“When The Restrooms Have Blue Lights”: Netizens Share 30 Ways To Identify Bad Neighborhoods

If you have to play the "Was that fireworks or gunshots?" game in any month of the year besides July.

Edit: Specifically in the city, you'll find this sort of thing all over rural areas.

An adult man on a child's bmx bike slowly riding in the middle of the street.

In my neighborhood someone posted on nextdoor that they woke up to someone standing over their bed then 2 days later someone else posted that a dude was walking around the street naked asking strangers if they wanted to touch his weewee oh and car theft is so common that I no longer lock my car because it's financially smarter for me to let them have a look around than to pay for any more broken windows I might be in a bad neighborhood

Lots of dollar stores, payday loan and title loan places. No or few actual grocery stores.

Ghetto Diamonds

See broken shards of glass in the parking lot? Those are from thieves crow-barring your car windows, not bad driving.

When you ask a cop for directions cause your lost and he tells you the way but to drive very fast and to not stop at red lights.
(We were lost in Camden NJ after a concert)

Pairs of tennis shoes thrown over the electrical lines

when the restrooms in businesses have black/blue lights to make it difficult to find your vein.

Random shopping carts on the side of the road.

There's a baby hanging out on a street corner at 3AM.

pizza places won't deliver to your house/apartment/neighborhood

boost mobile next to a check cashing place

It's the middle of the afternoon on a weekday and people are just hanging out on porches and yards, just walking around. It's a neighborhood with a lot of unemployment. If you are looking to rent or buy, visit in the middle of the work day and at night to see what it's like.

The businesses just outside the residential area are pay day loan operations, rent-to-own furniture, rent-to-own wheels

When the 1 decent human being there flat out tells you its a bad area and you should leave.

The cats are afraid of you, and run away when you get closer.

In a good neighborhood, the cats stay put, and give you superior looks.

Bars/bulletproof glass on gas station windows, and they don't let anyone in the store past a certain time, you can only walk up to the window.

If you're getting more of a confused look rather than a smile from strangers

Indoor furniture outside

The weight of the bathroom key. My family stopped for a bathroom break in The Wire era baltimore. My dad had to carry the car rim keychain over to the bathroom for my sister.