University District, Seattle, WA Property Crime Rates and Maps
University District is a neighborhood of 33,600 residents in Seattle, about 4 miles north of downtown · Updated November 2026
How common is property crime in University District?
Property crime is high in University District: an F, with more property crime than the neighborhoods where 95% of Americans live. Theft makes up 46% of it. Burglary, the crime most likely to reach into a home, grades F, and vehicle theft grades F. Seattle as a whole grades F for property crime.
F
Property crime CrimeGrade™
Safety score 0 of 1,000More property crime than nearly all US neighborhoodsi What this means
5% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more property crime than University District as a whole, and 95% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a property crime safety score of 823, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. University District scores 0.
Crime is concentrated in a small share of places, so most neighborhoods score high on the 0 to 1,000 scale. That is why a score in the 800s can still mean more property crime than most US neighborhoods.
How to read the map: each area's color compares its property crime with the homes, parked cars and people there, on one national scale, from green for the least to red for the most. Each area gets its own color, so a busy shopping center can show red while the homes beside it stay green. The interactive maps load faster on a strong connection. Compare high speed internet in University District, Seattle, WA at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in University District in Seattle, and anyone thinking about buying or renting a home there.
Business and enterprise customers: this free map shows neighborhood areas. CrimeGrade™ business reports map crime at about 66-meter detail and estimate it for one address and type of business. See business reports
What stands out about property crime in University District
Burglaries run high. University District has burglaries at more than triple the US rate: 16.7 a year per 1,000 residents, against 2.4 nationally.
Car thefts happen on streets and sidewalks far more often than nationally. In Seattle as a whole, 49% of reported car thefts happen on streets and sidewalks, against 27% nationally.
How University District compares within Seattle
High property crime is widespread across University District: 87% of residents live in areas graded D or F, and the rest in areas graded C. Property crime grades across University District run from C- to F.
13%87%
C 13%D or F 87%
Share of residents, by the property crime CrimeGrade™ of the area they live in.
University District has less property crime than 22 of the 67 neighborhoods in Seattle. It covers much of the University District, Wedgwood, and Ravenna areas.
Is property crime going up in Seattle?
Reported property crime in Seattle as a whole peaked in 2022 and has fallen 13% since, back near its 2019 level. Burglaries, thefts and vehicle thefts went from about 50 to 49 a year per 1,000 residents (US: 18). Property crime changed little from 2023 to 2024.
Property crime, change since 2019
SeattleUnited States
Source: crime reports to the FBI from the police departments that serve Seattle. The charts follow crimes per resident.
Data table
Year
Property, Seattle
Property, US
2016
+9%
+15%
2017
+4%
+12%
2018
+4%
+4%
2019
+0%
+0%
2020
+3%
-8%
2021
+11%
-10%
2022
+13%
-6%
2023
+0%
-7%
2024
-2%
-15%
Property crime rates and types in University District
CrimeGrade™ estimates University District has about 68 reported property crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, about triple the rate for the US as a whole and 16% more than Seattle as a whole.
All property crime
Burglary
Vehicle theft
Reported crimes a year, per 1,000 residents. Property crime here includes vandalism, which the FBI's property crime rate leaves out.
Theft is the most common property crime in University District, about 46% of the total, followed by burglary and vandalism.
Each CrimeGrade™ here compares a property crime with what it affects: homes for burglary and arson, parked cars for vehicle theft, people and parking for theft, homes and businesses for vandalism. Rates count crimes per 1,000 residents.
Select a crime's name to see its map above. CrimeGrade™ business reports map each crime at about 66-meter detail.
Where and when property crime happens in Seattle
The Seattle Police Department polices University District; these figures cover Seattle as a whole, 2022 to 2024.
In Seattle as a whole, 47% of burglaries hit homes, against 57% nationally.
Crime
Most often at
Busiest time
Burglary
Homes (47%)
Night (midnight to 6 am)
Car theft
Streets and sidewalks (49%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Theft from cars
Streets and sidewalks (33%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Vandalism
Homes (31%)
Evening (6 pm to midnight)
Shares of the crimes reported to police, 2022 to 2024. Reports with no time recorded are left out of the times.
Property crime in University District and nearby neighborhoods
University District has less property crime than 5 of its 10 nearest neighborhoods.
Nearest first, with each place's distance from University District. Beside each property crime CrimeGrade™ is its safety score, from 0 to 1,000 (higher is safer).
Compared with neighborhoods of similar size and density, University District has more property crime than 79% of them.
Transit, empty homes and walkability in University District
Among the traits that tend to go with property crime, two set University District apart: it has 150 buses and trains an hour at the evening rush, where most Americans have none nearby, and 15.3% of its homes standing empty, against 7.1% nationally. It also combines many jobs with busy transit: places with both tend to report more theft than places with only one of them, and it runs high here.
Transit serviceBuses and trains an hour at the evening rush. Places with busy transit tend to report more theft. BestNeighborhood's Transit Grade for University District: B+ (64 of 100).150 trips an hourUS: noneHigher than for 99% of residents of US city neighborhoods
Empty homesSeasonal and vacation homes are left out. Places with many empty homes tend to report more burglary, vandalism and arson.15.3% of homesUS: 7.1%Higher than for 94% of residents of US city neighborhoods
Walk GradeBestNeighborhood's grade for getting through daily life on foot, traced along real walking routes to shops, schools and parks. Walkable places tend to report more theft. 81% of residents here live in walkable areas.A (82 of 100)US: 21Higher than for 85% of residents of US city neighborhoods
Show all 4
JobsJobs draw daytime crowds. Places with many jobs tend to report more theft.108 for every 100 residentsUS: 45Higher than for 89% of residents of US city neighborhoods
These traits tend to go with more or less crime; none of them causes it on its own. Sources: Census job counts and housing figures, OpenStreetMap and Overture business listings, CrimeGrade™ parking estimates, NASA night-light imagery, US Forest Service tree cover, EPA transit data and BestNeighborhood's Walk Grade.
What property crime costs University District
Property crime costs University District about $18 million a year, or $531 per resident and about $1,502 per household: the value of what is stolen or damaged, plus the police, courts and prisons that respond.
Cost of property crime per resident, per year
How CrimeGrade™ works
The property crime CrimeGrade™ covers burglary, theft, car theft, arson and vandalism, from A+ for the least crime to F for the most, on one scale for the whole country.
It weighs each property crime against what it affects: homes for burglary and arson, parked cars for car theft, and the people and parking around stores for theft.
The rates on this page count crimes for every 1,000 people who live here, the way police departments report them.
Comparisons with US neighborhoods use the Census Bureau's block groups, small areas of about 1,400 residents, and count the people who live in each. The figures count crimes reported to police; many crimes, shoplifting above all, never are. Behind the grades, CrimeGrade™ tested 21,607 factors from 125 data families. For business owners, paid CrimeGrade™ location reports estimate crime at a single address for each type of business.
Where the numbers come from
Crime reports that police departments file with the FBI
State crime records and city crime data, where they are published
These are estimates of reported crime for whole areas, not a record of what happened on any one street. CrimeGrade™ updates them once a year and provides them free and without guarantee. Check local sources before you rely on them for a decision.
