Do You View The Neighborhood Before Buying A House In Charlotte, NC?

Do You View the Neighborhood before making a purchase on a house? This sounds like a simple question; but in reality it is not that easy. As a Realtor I am bound by certain code of ethics. I cannot guide a person to one neighborhood or another. I also cannot comment on a specific neighborhood as being safe or unsafe, bad or good... What one person idea of good is another one might think is bad. However; one thing I recommend to all my buyers; is to drive around through the neighborhood and look around. Look to see how people keep their homes, are the yards cut? is the trash receptacle out in open view? Are there a lot of children playing in the area? is it loud or quiet? The easiest way to do this is to travel to the areas on different days and at different times of the day to see what is like out there. For example, I had a client looking at a town home that she thought was in a quiet neighborhood. We looked at the house in the late morning on a weekday when all the children were in school. I told her to come back after schools got out and drive around. Also, come out on the weekend and at night. Then you will be able to get a better idea of what really is going on in the neighborhood and how it is like on a regular basis. In this case she found out that the neighbor worked on cars after work in his driveway and blasted music to later hours of the days. Also there was a lot of children running around and playing in the street in front of the unit she was looking to purchase...Working a split shift this was not an ideal situation for her to get sleep...It did not fit her needs in what she was looking for in a neighborhood. Had I not recommended she drive around on different days and times she would have never known until after she moved in and would have been miserable.... Take the time to check out the neighborhood first. Especially if you are not familiar with the area. What about your commute time and distance? Is the commute manageable for you? is it longer than you anticipated? For some people these are thing that make a difference in buying a house... he largest purchase you will make in your lifetime. Ensure you are making the right decision for you. Just because the house and the price are right; does not mean the area is right for you. Dave diCecco Realtor/Broker www.davedicecco.com