University Heights, OH Property Crime Rates and Maps
University Heights is a city of 13,600 in Cuyahoga County, about 8 miles east of downtown Cleveland · Updated November 2026
How common is property crime in University Heights?
University Heights earns an A- for property crime, safer than the neighborhoods where 50% of Americans live. Theft makes up 69% of it. Burglary, the crime most likely to reach into a home, grades A+, and vehicle theft grades A-.
A-
Property crime CrimeGrade™
Safety score 826 of 1,000About as much property crime as the typical US neighborhoodi What this means
50% of Americans live in neighborhoods with more property crime than University Heights as a whole, and 50% in neighborhoods with less. The typical US neighborhood has a property crime safety score of 823, a CrimeGrade™ of A-. University Heights scores 826.
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 Heights, OH at ISP Reports.
Who this page is for: homeowners and renters in University Heights, 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 Heights
Acts of vandalism are uncommon. University Heights has acts of vandalism at less than half the US rate: 2.0 a year per 1,000 residents, against 5.5 nationally.
Where property crime is lowest and highest in University Heights
Every part of University Heights where people live grades A or B for property crime on the national scale. Property crime grades across University Heights run from A to B.
100%
A or B 100%
Share of residents, by the property crime CrimeGrade™ of the area they live in.
Is property crime going up in University Heights?
Reported property crime in University Heights has fallen 43% since 2019. Burglaries, thefts and vehicle thefts went from about 19 to 11 a year per 1,000 residents (US: 18). In 2024 alone, property crime rose 96%.
Property crime, change since 2019
University HeightsUnited States
Source: crime reports to the FBI from the police department that serves University Heights. The charts follow crimes per resident.
Data table
Year
Property, University Heights
Property, US
2016
+25%
+15%
2017
+20%
+12%
2018
-9%
+4%
2019
+0%
+0%
2020
-37%
-8%
2021
-54%
-10%
2022
-56%
-6%
2023
-71%
-7%
2024
-43%
-15%
Property crime rates and types in University Heights
CrimeGrade™ estimates University Heights has about 12 reported property crimes a year for every 1,000 residents, 49% less than the US as a whole and 43% less than Ohio.
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 Heights, about 69% of the total, followed by vandalism and vehicle theft.
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 University Heights
University Heights has its own police department, and these figures come from its reports, 2022 to 2024.
Crime
Most often at
Busiest time
Vandalism
Homes (44%)
Morning (6 am to noon)
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 Heights and nearby cities
University Heights has more property crime than 5 of its 9 nearest cities. Pepper Pike and Lyndhurst have the least property crime nearby.
Nearest first, with each place's distance from University Heights. Beside each property crime CrimeGrade™ is its safety score, from 0 to 1,000 (higher is safer).
Compared with cities of similar size and density, University Heights has more property crime than 59% of them.
Night lighting, parking lots and walkability in University Heights
Among the traits that tend to go with property crime, two set University Heights apart: it has 0.5 parking-lot spaces per resident, against 2.0 nationally, and a Walk Grade of C- (29 of 100) on BestNeighborhood, against 21 for the US as a whole. Even so, 61% of residents in University Heights live in car-dependent areas, where most errands take a car. Places with little parking-lot space tend to report less theft; here theft sits near the national middle.
Lit at nightSatellite images show which neighborhoods are lit at night, a sign of busy streets and businesses. Brightly lit places tend to report more theft and vandalism.100% where people liveUS: 78%Higher than for 92% of US city residents
Parking lotsBig lots at stores, offices and apartment complexes. Places with more lot space tend to report more theft.0.5 spaces per residentUS: 2.0Lower than for 91% of US city residents
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.C- (29 of 100)US: 21Higher than for 80% of US city residents
Show all 6
JobsJobs draw daytime crowds. Places with many jobs tend to report more theft.26 for every 100 residentsUS: 45Lower than for 78% of US city residents
Residents in dense blocksBlocks of 10,000 or more people per square mile. Dense neighborhoods tend to report more car theft.36% of residentsUS: 24%Higher than for 73% of US city residents
Stores and restaurantsShops and restaurants draw crowds and parked cars. Places with many stores tend to report more theft.8.4 per 1,000 residentsUS: 10.5Lower than for 69% of US city residents
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 Heights
Property crime costs University Heights about $1.1 million a year, or $80 per resident and about $225 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 the cost breaks down
Pain and suffering add little to the cost of property crime, so this is close to its full cost.
Crime
Cost a year
Per resident
Burglary
$73,000
$5
Theft
$590,000
$43
Vehicle theft
$230,000
$17
Arson
$6,600
under $1
Vandalism
$190,000
$14
Total
$1.1 million
$80
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. University Heights is the other kind of example: few people work in, shop in or visit it, so its crime per resident looks lower than its CrimeGrade™ suggests.
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
Published research on what crime costs victims and communities
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.
