Crop house awareness for rental providers

How rental providers can identify a potential crop (cannabis) house, and how to report a renter that is growing drugs on your property.

Rental safety information

Advice for rental providers regarding potential crop houses, (or cannabis grow houses).

Identify a potential crop house

Some indicators include:

• blinds stay closed
• windows blacked out
• excess external wiring or cables
• items at the door or in the yard do not move
• lawns are overgrown
• occupants are rarely seen.

Property features of a crop house

Typical property features include:

• adjoining garage with internal access to the house
• located in medium density suburbs
• located in multicultural suburbs where residents are less likely to report crime
• no CCTV on neighbouring houses.

Identify false rental applications

Advice to verify the authenticity of an application:

• look for inconsistent information, such as moving their family, but the application shows no children
• look for newly created and false looking email addresses, like FirstNameLastName156@ gmail.com
• verify current residential and employer address on a map
• look up the phone number of the applicant’s employer and do call the number provided by applicant
• check that the ABN on payslips matches the company name using tools such are the ABN Lookup
• call the applicant’s phone to make sure it is connected
• view actual identification or document or ensure document copies have been certified by a police officer.

Conduct regular inspections

Regular inspections can help you quickly identify a crop house:

• be aware of strange smells (cannabis, fresh paint, bleach)
• check the resident matches the applicant’s photo identification.
• check for common household items kitchen and bathroom cupboards, such as plates and toothbrushes.
• check there are clothes in bedroom cupboards, and that they match the occupant ages, such as children's clothes in a young rental family
• record vehicle licence plate numbers
• record whether the house has CCTV, for example outdoor cameras or a doorbell camera.

What to do if you suspect there is a crop house

No issue is too small to report.

Report a potential crop house

In an emergency, to report a crime in progress, or for immediate police attendance, call Triple Zero (000).

For non-emergencies, call the Police Assistance Line on 131 444, or report online at Police Assistance Line and Online Reporting.

You can report anonymously to Crime Stoppers by making an online report, or by calling 1800 333 000.