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Your house hunting trip does not just involve looking for the perfect home at the perfect price. It also includes finding satisfaction in a combination of requirements, such as the neighborhood and the local community. Before you start your trip, you will want to organize your thoughts around your wants and needs for what lies outside the walls of the house, as well as what is inside.
Make a List:
Decide what characteristics are important to you in a new neighborhood. To help, think about your old neighborhood and the things you liked and disliked about it. Areas to consider are:
- Commuting time to your employer
- Schooling quality and education rates
- Community demographics (age, education, lifestyle)
- Community institutions that you feel are significant to either be close to or distanced from (e.g., places of worship, shopping centers, public transportation, entertainment)
- Population density and area type (urban, suburban, rural)
- Crime rates
What to Do:
Once you have your requirements and desires for your neighborhood down, you will need to get an idea of which neighborhoods can fulfill all or most of these. If you are using an agent, you should indicate your preferences. Then, when you go to visit houses, make sure that you walk around the streets and drive around the local area (You may want to do this with and then without your agent, when you can focus specifically on the neighborhood on your own). In addition, take a couple of test drives to your job to see what the commute will be like. When you attend open houses, talk to the neighbors, and ask them about the people, schools and other amenities in the area. You also may want to buy some local newspapers or even check if the town or city has a website, to find current information on the local government, community happenings, construction projects, educational news, recent town board meetings, new legislation, etc.
Other Resources that may help:
- Call the Board of Education and ask about graduation rates, SAT scores and college attendance percentages.
- Check with the Real Estate section of the newspaper to compare property values in the neighborhood as well as number of recent sales, which may help indicate the popularity of the area.
- Call the Local Police Department and inquire about area crime statistics.
Ask yourself the following questions:
- Do you like the way the neighborhood looks?
- Does it feel safe both during the day and at night?
- Is there too much traffic or too much noise?
- Do you see signs of people improving or remodeling their homes?
- Are the business districts run-down or new and upgraded?
Stay Organized and Together:
House and neighborhood hunting takes time and patience. The key to keeping yourself together is to plan ahead, give yourself time to think everything over, and keep your thoughts about everything that you see organized. Keep notes, take pictures, and make files for all the neighborhoods and houses that you visit .so you will not get confused or forget later on. Hopefully, you will find the perfect balance both in and around your new home.
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