When you think about your dream home, are you seeing the house, or the neighborhood it's in?
It's easy to get caught up in bedroom and bathroom counts when you're shopping for a new home, but the biggest choice you're going to make in the process is of course the ‘where’ question. So how do you find the home that's going to be the perfect fit for your whole lifestyle?
Here are three of my favorite tips to see if an area or a particular area is right for you: Check out the basic stats.
What is the median sale price of homes in a given neighborhood? How do the local and nearby schools perform? What amenities are nearby? How popular is the neighborhood in today's market?
See what the neighbors are doing.
Get a sense of local activities, and see if it looks like a place with frequent block-parties or if people may keep more to themselves.
Learn the traffic patterns.
Knowing that you're close to the highway or a public transportation center is one thing. You should find out if there are frequent jams at key commuting times, or if a nearby farmers' market limits road access during weekends. You may also want to consider how much parking is available, both for yourself and for when you want to entertain.
Give me a call anytime you'd like to discuss which neighborhoods you're considering. I love to talk about local real estate issues and market conditions you should consider as you're building your home buying plan.