Checking the Neighborhood
Contents: Neighborhood Checklist Neighborhood Problems
If you are moving into a neighborhood, you should add the neighborhood itself to another checklist. The neighborhood plays an important part into your overall satisfaction with your purchase, especialy over a long period of time. You can avoid long term problems with a few early investigations. Your realtor should be able to help you most of these.
Neighborhood Checklist
Does the nighborhood have a set of covenents - If yes, BE SURE TO READ THEM! General feeling on the neighborhood - Nice Place to Live? Quality of other homes and Yards Good public services (i.e., police, fire department) Road quality Sidewalks, bike lanes Street Lighting Parking, other than your driveway Noise Level - if possible check at night and weekends How are the public schools in the area that your children would attend? Convience to work Convience to Church Convience to shopping centers and resturants Public Transportation Child care services Medical facilities Convience to parks, playgrounds, swimming, tennis courts, etc Closeness to friends or relatives Other children near your children's ages If possible, talk to some of the neighbors - are you comfortable with them?
Neighborhood Problems
Decreasing sales prices of homes Lots of families moving away Heavy traffic or noise Litter or pollution Factories or heavy industry Businesses closing down? Vacant houses or buildings? Increasing crime or vandalism?