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

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."