system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
ELI5: Why do abandoned houses fall apart structurally?
gpt
Basically, because abandoned houses lack residents/caretakers to maintain and protect them. When an occupied house develops a leak, or a tree branch falls through the roof, or termites infest it, or it suffers minor fire damage, the owners fix it. An abandoned property, conversely, is simply victim to the vagaries of time and nature. 

Similarly, homeless people, vandals, and thieves are less likely to intrude and damage/take from a house with residents. If someone lives there, you’d worry about getting shot/arrested/etc. if you broke in.