CHOOSING A SAFE PLACE TO LIVE
hoosing a relatively safe neighborhood to live in doesn’t mean you need to spend a fortune and auction off everything off on eBay. If you haven’t decided on your new home yet, it’s wise to know the general safety of the area you plan to call your new home. Most of the times, asking your real estate agent about safety won’t help you much because a lot of the jurisdictions makes it illegal for them to comment on safety as it is a “personal perception” as they say it.
While it’s usually safe to assume that the affluent neighborhoods are usually the safe ones, it doesn’t necessarily mean that all of the homes in those communities are outrageously expensive. Sure, you’ll probably find those 8-digit mansions, but you will most likely find apartments and townhouses within a very close proximity.
On the contrary, you may also notice that some of the very expensive homes in city center aren’t necessarily the safest at times. That’s why we can’t stress enough how important it is to start your research by looking at some sort of a crime map when looking for a new home.
Crime Map
Crime maps, as the name suggests, show you fairly precise locations of where (and what types of) crimes occur and are usually accurate to the block.
Take a look at a crime map from Spotcrime for Boston, MA for example at:
https://spotcrime.com/ma/boston
And you’ll get the gist of how the system works.
Every jurisdiction (whether it be a city or a county) has a different system they report to or use to map crimes. While one map may show crimes for one city, it won’t necessarily show crimes of the adjacent city. It’s important to know that especially if you are in a metropolis where many towns and cities are adjoined within a few mile radius.
The best way to search for a crime map for your area would be to do a search with the specific city name with the words “crime map” and then zoom in to the area surrounding your prospective home.
Go See the Area for Yourself
We highly recommend you to go see the physical home and the surrounding area yourself. No real estate agency or property management advertises its properties showing the ugliest parts of their neighborhood or telling you how miserable the home is. Looking at photos online of your new home might give you a decent idea of what to expect, but the images alone won’t be enough to judge if you’re going to be comfortable living in that home and community.
Your friends and your “mother’s uncle’s daughter-in-law’s ex-neighbor’s fiance’s brothers” could tell you all about how wonderful their neighborhoods are, but their feeling safe after spending years, decades, or even a lifetime in that particular neighborhood does not equate to your feeling safe in that same neighborhood. The real estate agents do have a point when they say that safety is a personal perception.
Go stay with your friends, relatives, or that “mother’s uncle’s daughter-in-law’s ex-neighbor’s fiance’s brother” for your first few days in the new city before signing your rental agreement. In the United States, it can be extremely difficult and expensive to break a lease that you have already signed into even if you haven’t started living there. Simply finding another tenant usually will not get rid of the hefty penalties, and don’t even think about renting out an apartment you’ve rented to someone else because that’s typically illegal in most states.
If you don’t know anyone that you can stay within your new city, go stay at a hotel or a short-term rental like Airbnb even if it is just for the first couple of days.
To really get a feel of the safety, go around the neighborhood of your prospective home during both day and night. What seems like a friendly area during the day could have a completely different feel at night. Also, if you are going to wander around somewhere at night, and especially at a place you’re not very familiar with, we highly suggest you to drive around or at the very least, walk with someone else.
Ask Your Future Neighbors
Yes, yes, we know. We did mention only a few paragraphs ago that someone else’s idea of safety is not necessarily yours. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t ask others though. By asking different people who live in the community you are trying to become a part of, you will get the general sense of what it’s like to be in that neighborhood.
If you are planning to live in an apartment complex, don’t hesitate to ask the current residents you pass by during your tour of how they like it living there. If the apartment community has major issues that you should know about, they will be the people to give you unbiased opinions. Again, leasing agent aren’t going to describe how notoriously dangerous their property is. You’ll also get to know the people who could possibly become your new neighbors.
If you plan to live in a single family home and can’t find any neighbors walking around, go to a local grocery store and ask people with different backgrounds on how they feel about the neighborhood. Assuming that most people do their grocery shopping close to home, it’s probably fair to say that the majority of customers in any supermarket at any given time lives in that area. In the list of people you will ask around, make sure to ask a few parents at the store with their kids because they are the ones who really tend to look into safety especially if they are raising small children.
To Sum It Up
Start by searching around for basic information of the areas you want to live in online, access a crime map and understand the good, not so good, and avoid-at-all-costs areas of the city you will live in. Keep in mind that every city has its safe and dangerous parts, and here in the U.S., that distinction can come in patches or by simply crossing a street.
If you find an ideal location but it doesn’t have the best public transportation system, say a peaceful suburb that also has reasonable cost of living, make sure to read our article on how to survive without a car AND public transportation.
Definitely do your homework because safety is no joke when you’re moving to a new country – let alone a new city. You’ll thank us later, so you’re welcome.
No comments:
Post a Comment