New Home Hunting!

[sporky_rat]

So, I'm hunting a new home. Let's all share ideas and tips on finding yourself a new burrow!

-Check the police. Here, I can call the non-emergency number and say, 'Dearest Copper, how often have you had to visit this area for break-ins, robberies and other crime?' and they can tell me!

-Visit the neighborhood you're thinking about, both during the day and at night. Is it noisy? Dangerous looking? Streetlights in good repair? Sidewalks, even? Are the people friendly around the area? For example, several of the places I'm looking are what are considered the slightly dodgy areas, but they're full of older retirees and college students these days, not the dodgy folk who moved to SE Burg.

-Find out who your electricity/gas/water would be with and get ideas on what it would cost.

-Make sure you've made sure that you can fit your moving vehicle in the driveway or parking lot. Yeah, I made that mistake once. Never again.

-Craigslist, if possible. They have pictures sometimes!


Anyone else?

Comments

[grammarwoman]

Tour your prospective house in bad weather. See if there are large puddles in the lawn, how slippery the driveway is, or if there are bad leaks inside, like the roof or basement.

[azurelunatic]

One of my friends pointed me at http://spotcrime.com/ which takes public crime data and mashes it together with Google Maps, very usefully for me.

Compile lists of things you do and don't want in something, organized in at least a vague semblance of priority -- requirements, dealbreakers, preferences. This should be in a format where it's easy to tote around and modify as needed. I suggest Google Docs, but I suggest Google Docs for a lot of things. Excel might also work, or even one's favorite word processor.

[haruka]

Thanks for that link!

[beachlass]

I have kids, so I checked the schools' standardized tests results. There was a 30 point difference in the results, and I asked the realtor to only show me houses in the higher scoring school catchment area.

(Of course, standardized testing is problematic, in Ontario it can be really skewed by ESL students, for example.)

But yeah, schools.

And when I was actually looking at houses, the friend accompanying me has a really sensitive mold allergy, and our area has seasonal basement flooding - I ruled out any houses that bothered her allergy.

[beatrice_otter]

Even if you don't have kids, checking the school districts is a good thing--it affects the resale value of the home.

If You're Buying

[kathmandu]

For buying in neighborhoods where there is or may be a HomeOwners' Association, it is important to get an idea of how restrictive or micromanaging the HOA is. I took notes when someone on a different board suggested checking how uniform or diverse local yards were.

They wrote:

"When we were house hunting, part of my research was to walk the neighborhood. Were there reasonable additions (decks, sun rooms, garden sheds)? Yes, indicating that the HoA doesn't prevent these. Similarly I saw children's play equipment, vegetable gardens, and yes, clothes lines. I suspect that ten minutes spent walking any neighborhood would give a pretty good indication of the nature of the HoA."

[beatrice_otter]

Find a GOOD home inspector (ask friends, real estate agents, etc.) and get the house inspected. It's a good investment.

[primsong]

Check to be sure basic services are available in the area - especially some type of grocery store. If you're snowed in or lacking transport for a while, a grocery within reasonable walking distance is a huge bonus. Consider whether any of the nearby businesses/schools/etc. may generate noise and whether that would be an issue for you. (we have a high school nearby with very loud football game announcements/cheering/marching band, for instance - we don't mind, but have heard others complain. Likewise a golf course in the area hosts amplified rock concerts on occasion which irritate their neighbors.)

Also give thought to whether it is under a flight path, as the constant airplane noise can be a detriment to some.

[dorothean]

If you drive, check out the traffic around your potential location, especially during rush hours.

I live about ten miles from my job and have a 20-minute commute. I've realized since moving in that I could have lived several miles closer, but then instead of taking the interstate I would have had to take the state highway, and the 5 pm traffic is so bad on that that my commute would be more like 30 minutes.

*cue people in the Los Angeles area laughing at me*

[partialtruths]

Actually, I might need similar tips as well in near future.

I'd visit a local pub to get a feel of the local community (for non-UK, some other local watering hole?).

Also if you can find out who owns it (in UK it's done through Land Registry, I'm not sure about the US), sometimes it's a good idea to cut out the middle man and deal directly with the owner of the place.

[haruka]

I'm getting my house ready to move now (although the actual MOVE might be next year; I don't have enough money to make all the necessary improvements at once, so I'm taking it slowly.) One of the best resources I found is here: http://www.movers-edge.com/ especially their 101 best moving tips. :)

[green_grrl]

How close is it to where you work/go to school? How close is it to bus/transit? Even if you have a car, a breakdown or accident can leave you without. If you usually drive, how is rush hour traffic?

As you said, how are sidewalks and street lighting? Similarly, are there good parks, stores, etc. within walking distance? Is it bike friendly?

Living in a student area, I can tell you there will be loud parties at least a couple of times a year. When you talk to the cops, ask them about local noise ordinances and how they balance neighbors' complaints with 2 a.m. drunken revels. Still, for me it's totally worth it for the walk-bike friendly area, cool shops/cafes, and the walking commute to work (since I work at the U).

[alphaviolet]

Check about public transit, coffee shop/restaurant availability, gas stations and/or regular snow plowing.

Check about whether or not there are pedestrians and/or bicyclists. And whether people go outside at night.

Check whether or not it is in a flood zone. (This is important.)

Finding out about issues with drug dealers would also be useful, but I'm not sure how to do that (other than observing/asking people).

[risha]

When I suddenly had to move several states away in just a couple of weeks (for a new job), I found Google Maps surprisingly useful. Not just for the street view feature, though I did use it to check out potential houses, but for the My Maps feature. There, I found maps annotated by actual locals, which gave me hints on what were considered the best neighborhoods and which were overpriced, areas to avoid, good places to shop and eat, which parks were nice, etc.