Home Loans and Finding the Ideal Neighborhood

A home loan is used to buy a home that is more than four walls and a roof.  What’s outside of the home is also critically important to your home’s overall feel and your lifestyle.  A good match between your family and your neighborhood is worth more than a “perfect” house.  What good is a terrific home if you feel uncomfortable the moment you walk out the front door?  The ideal neighborhood is very personal decision, but here are a few areas to consider:

Community Association

If there is a community association a good place to start is to take a look at the minutes from the community association.  Is the association active?  What issues have been brought up and hopefully resolved?  Is there anything still pending that shows signs of what the neighborhood, and neighbors, might entail?

Local Newspapers

Local newspapers carry a wealth of information on neighborhood activities, crime reports and housing sales.  Subscribe to the local newspaper.  Read the editorials and learn what columnists are writing about.  What is the focus of the community and what is newsworthy?  The classified section of the newspaper will also give a home buyer a feel for housing prices and the number of homes on the market.  Local newspapers can also provide information on distressed home sales such as foreclosures as well as local mortgage lender ads and local mortgage rates juts to use as a comparative guide.

Local Hang-outs

Find the local hang-outs or malls and strip malls and see what people are talking about.  How close are the neighbors to each other?  Is the feel of the community close-knit?  Distant yet professional?  Local shopping areas and dining areas can give a feel for the work force composition as well.

Sidewalks and Parks

Are there sidewalks in the neighborhood?  Communities with sidewalks are often more active and social as there is more space for outdoor activities.  Local parks can tell something about the composition of the neighborhood.  Parks are also nice amenities to have nearby for both children and dog owners.  This is especially important for children.

Neighborhood Visits

Visit the neighborhood multiple times to see what you can find out.  Come by at night, during the day, in the morning and on the weekend.  Are there many retirees? Plenty of moms with babies?  Young children playing outside?  Maybe a large proportion of teenagers that appear to loiter at the neighborhood stores.

Read the Map

Find a good map of the area to determine where the local libraries, courthouses, post offices and other public buildings are located.  Are they nearby?  How often do you visit those establishments?  Also drive around to find your local bank, supermarket and other stores you visit frequently.

Schools

Arrange a tour of the local schools, especially those your child will be attending.  Peek through windows to see how the teachers are teaching and check out the artwork on the walls.  Research test scores and find other information such as veteran teachers and student ratios.  Look for school ranking information online.  Top school districts are frequently used by real estate agents as driver to steer home buyers.  On the other hand, average or standard school districts do not appear to be an impediment to home sales. 

Drill the Neighbors

Speak with the neighbors, but ask them real questions about traffic, noise, and crime. Ask for their feeling on certain projects you’ve read about and try and read between the lines.  Remember, you’ll be living next door to these people – do they strike you as the kind of people you’ll enjoy spending time with?  Some neighbors have problems with recent development, fences, boisterous neighbors and more.

Visit City Hall

City Hall will have a variety of information about zoning, new construction and plans for future development in the area.  Many buyers pay a premium for house lot overlooking vacant space only to find out later it is privately held and soon to be developed.  At some local zoning meetings you will frequently hear about complaints on pending projects over site views.  Had the home buyer known the restrictions and possible changes to adjacent properties they wouldn’t have these complaints.  Zoning information may also be important for those home buyers that intent on obtaining a mortgage loan to add on significantly to the existing structure.

Real Estate Information

Your real estate agent can help you find information about homes in the area and how quickly they sell.  Do homes move quickly?  Is one neighborhood more desirable than another?  Why?

Tax Assessment

The tax assessor website has a plethora of information including structural and land values, structure condition, and recent sales in the area.  Tax rates on real estate have not be a boost or detriment to home sales recently, but it is hard to believe that real estate taxes are not going to eventually impact home buyer’s decision on where to buy a home.

Crime Rates

The local papers often cover crime statistics and it can’t hurt to visit the local police station and research online to find local crime statistics and rates.  Potential home buyers may also want to check out websites to find registered sex offenders in the area.

Emotional Quota

Finally, evaluate the neighborhood based on your overall feeling.  Does it feel right or is it just okay?  Spend enough time poking around to really get a grasp of how the community comes together or stays apart.  Then decide if this is the right feel for you. 

A new home is a big commitment the mortgage loan and monthly mortgage payment is a big, long term commitment.  Do your research on the houses and the neighborhood, buying a home as if you are buying a new shirt may turn into a costly mistake.  And never skimp on researching the mortgage loan and mortgage rates.