Moving is a big step and it can be scary. If you don’t know much about the location you are moving to, you could end up in a high crime area, or have to deal with a multitude of other problems. This is why it’s always a good idea to perform the proper research before committing to a move. Below are some things you should do to research a neighborhood you are considering moving to.
Expense and Standard of Living
One thing you should consider is how expensive it is to move to the new neighborhood. Obviously, home prices will be a significant part of this. However, other expenses also come into play. Property taxes, for example, can be much higher in some areas. Standard of living may be higher as well. This means you could be forced to pay more for groceries, gas, utilities, restaurant food, and many other things.
Make sure you can afford to live in a neighborhood. However, keep in mind that things like home prices being too low could be indicative of other serious problems.
Crime
As previously mentioned, just because an area is cheap doesn’t mean you should live there. One good reason why is there could be a high crime-rate. Do the research necessary to find out what the crime rate is and what kind of crime if any is reported in that neighborhood.
You also shouldn’t necessarily take the internet’s word for it, many realtors may not want to admit that certain areas are worse than other or are unsafe for families in general. Do a drive-through of the neighborhood if needed to make that determination.
Schools
Another big consideration for many families is schools and education. Even if you don’t have kids now, you may in the future. Definitely take the quality of the schools in the area into consideration when deciding whether or not a neighborhood is a good fit for you. If academic performance is high at a school, it offers plenty to students in regards to facilities and extracurricular activities and parents speak highly of it, it might be a good choice.
Apps
There are plenty of smart phone apps that can help you make the determination of whether or not a neighborhood will work for you. Home selling apps like Homecodec can help you track house prices, while crime apps can help you check to see if criminals, gangs, or sexual predators are a problem in certain area.
If you still have questions about a neighborhood at the end of the day, ask an local expert. Real estate agents not only help buy and sell homes, they’re area experts. If you want to know what the locals are like, the best place to get a pizza and true neighborhood home prices, then reach out to an agent nearby. For an expert on Southern California, talk to a First Team agent.
Email us at clientservices@firstteam.com
Call us at 888-870-1142
This guest post is written by Brooke Chaplan, a freelance writer and blogger. She lives and works out of her home in Los Lunas, New Mexico. She loves the outdoors and spends most her time hiking, biking and gardening. Brooke is available via Twitter @BrookeChaplan.
