February 02, 2017
Grossed out? Philadelphia has been ranked one of the most critter-ridden cities in the nation according to one recent study.
Realtor.com, a website aimed to help homeowners and renters, published its list of "Critter Cities: America's Top 10 Towns for Pest Infestations" Monday and ranked Philly at No. 5 – a top spot that's not exactly worth bragging about.
The website, which considers data from the American Housing Survey, Orkin, Terminix and Hartz Pet Products & Supplies, says that 18 percent of Philly households have seen rats, while 7 percent have had cockroaches. The site points out that Philly's row homes make it easier for critters to migrate from home to home.
Philly was also guilty for having bedbugs and termites, according to the list.
“Philadelphia also has [had] a very unseasonably warm winter this year, so the rats are growing more than usual,” Dannis Warf, from Royal Pest Control, said in the report.
The title really isn't anything new for Philadelphians. Data from the U.S. Census Bureau said the City of Brotherly Love was the most rodent-infested in the nation in mid-January while Orkin named Philly one of the most bedbug-infested cities in January.
Houston, Texas, was the most pest-infested city in the nation and had rats in 8 percent of its households, while a whopping 38 percent had cockroaches, according to the site.
Check out Realtor.com's full list here.
