FORNEY, Texas — Take a stroll down Lawnview Drive in Forney’s Gateway Parks subdivision, and it’s easy to see why families like Joseph Scherck chose the neighborhood.

“Quiet, school was great when we moved here… those were all reasons that attracted us out to Forney,” Scherck said.

But recently, that peace has been harder to find. “Crime has gone up substantially,” he said.

Residents say police lights and constant calls for service have replaced the tranquility that once defined the area. And neighbor Wes Themor said his experience was just as unsettling.

“My car was broken into the first night… my neighbor’s car got stolen… a couple months in, gunshots,” he said.

Both Scherck and Themor believe they know what’s behind the shift: a surge in investor-owned rental properties, which t

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