Buying a Home in a New Neighborhood? Make This Key Move First

Some people grow up in certain neighborhoods and decide to live there as adults because they like the idea of being familiar with their surroundings and knowing what to expect. But that may not be feasible for you. It certainly wasn't feasible for me. 

I grew up in Brooklyn, New York. When my parents bought the house I lived in as a child, I'm pretty sure they spent less than $100,000 to buy it. These days, their home is worth exponentially more than that because property values in Brooklyn have appreciated tremendously through the years, to the point where the median sale price of a Brooklyn home was recently $900,000, as per Redfin.

Because I knew that buying a home in Brooklyn as an adult wouldn't be feasible -- partly because I couldn't swing such a high mortgage payment and partly because I needed more space -- I moved to a suburban area instead. And I know many people who similarly did not end up living in the neighborhoods or towns they grew up in due to affordability issues.

But if you're going to take a chance on a new neighborhood, it's important to do your research. And that doesn't just mean reading statistics online.

It's important to talk to your would-be neighbors

There are different sites that allow you to pull up important information about a neighborhood you're thinking of buying in. You can use Zillow, for example, to track home values, and you can use Niche to get school district ratings, which may be very important to you if you have kids.

But those numbers won't tell you the whole story. And they also won't necessarily tell you how pleasant -- or unpleasant -- your life will be if you move to a given neighborhood. That's why a better idea is to talk to the people who would conceivably be your new neighbors and get the inside scoop.

In my town, for example, the schools are highly rated, and that's something parents looking to buy here might appreciate. But what most parents don't realize is that our town offers very little in the way of bus transport, so getting children to and from school can be a hassle. Plus, there's also a glaring lack of parking. My children and I actually walk over a mile to school every morning partly for the exercise, but partly to avoid the hassle of dealing with limited parking and ridiculous traffic. 

The issues with bussing and parking, however, are ones you generally won't know about unless you talk to people from my town. And that's why it's important to have those conversations before trying to buy in that area. That way, you know what you're signing up for. 

It's not just a matter of money

It's important to buy a home in a neighborhood that works for you financially. In my case, since the neighborhood I grew up in was out of reach, I had to pivot. But it's also essential to find a neighborhood that lends to a nice quality of life. 

I'm not saying I live a miserable existence because of the transportation situation at our schools. But had I known that before moving here, would I maybe have considered a different town? It's possible. 

That's why your best bet is to talk to actual people who live in the neighborhood you might want to buy in. Walk around and stop people on the streets who seem approachable. Or go online, see if there's a neighborhood Facebook group you can join, and introduce yourself as someone who's looking for information as a prospective buyer.

Any given neighborhood is apt to have its pros and cons. But it's important to know what those are before committing to living there.