{"id":23210,"date":"2020-01-30T15:07:57","date_gmt":"2020-01-30T23:07:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.spokeo.com\/compass\/?p=23210"},"modified":"2022-04-13T12:25:08","modified_gmt":"2022-04-13T20:25:08","slug":"house-hunting-online-how-to-tell-if-a-neighborhood-is-safe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.spokeo.com\/compass\/house-hunting-online-how-to-tell-if-a-neighborhood-is-safe\/","title":{"rendered":"House Hunting Online: How to Tell If a Neighborhood Is Safe"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The internet puts your dream house as close as your mobile phone. Just a few taps and you\u2019ll find a ton of creative home-buying solutions right at your fingertips. But do you know how to tell if a neighborhood is safe?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Zillow is one of the most popular real estate sites. But after hunting and pecking through scores of listings, you wonder how you can get a better feel for the neighborhood you\u2019re considering. After all, there\u2019s more to finding a place to live than surfing the best home-buying apps.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is it a good place to live? Are there sidewalks? Will your neighbors be decent people?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You know from experience that many houses look great in the photos. Pictures can\u2019t tell you what it would be like to live in that dream house, though. Beyond Zillow, here are several sites and apps that can help you discover the right fit from the comfort of your living-room sofa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How Does the Neighborhood Look?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

How difficult is it to house-hunt in a city you\u2019ve never been to? With today\u2019s technology, not very. If your employer wants to know if you\u2019d consider relocating to Indianapolis, you can take a virtual tour on Google Maps<\/a> without ever leaving your office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Using Street View, you can zoom in to neighborhoods and even to individual addresses. You\u2019ll discover green spaces and see whether the streets have crosswalks. Would you like to fence the yard for greater security? The Area Calculator lets you measure the perimeter or even the distance between houses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s also Google Earth<\/a>, which lets you zoom out to the surrounding area. Where is the nearest fire station? Are you too close to the high school stadium for comfort? Are there busy streets or intersections nearby?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How Walkable Is the Neighborhood?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Not everyone can live among the wonderful, walkable streets of New York City or San Francisco. But if you\u2019re like most people<\/a>, even those located in the \u2019burbs, you\u2019d prefer to live in a neighborhood with sidewalks and places to go on foot. It\u2019s great to be able to leave your car in the garage for a short stroll to the grocery store, coffee shop and other amenities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Using WalkScore<\/a>, you simply enter the address and it returns a number. With a score of 90 or above, you can be assured that you won\u2019t need your car for most of your daily errands. The app also provides a map of the surrounding area with the locations of nearby businesses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Of course, you\u2019ll want to know if you\u2019re safe <\/a>walking in the neighborhood, as well. With WalkScore\u2019s Crime Grade, an A rating means you are less likely to be affected by crime at the address entered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Can I Buy a Home That\u2019s Not for Sale?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

You spot the perfect home in the right neighborhood. The problem? The house doesn\u2019t appear to be for sale. You can still check it out, though. According to the National Association of Realtors<\/a>, 49 percent of people who sell their homes themselves do not actively market it. So if you see something you like, you have nothing to lose by doing a reverse address search<\/a>. Use Spokeo<\/a> to get the owner\u2019s name, phone number, age, marital status \u2014 everything you need to make contact.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But before you pick up the phone, you\u2019ll want to arm yourself with all of the information you\u2019d need to be sure about making an offer \u2014 including if the neighborhood of your dream house is safe. It may not be possible to walk the streets, talk to the people who live there and check out the neighborhood hangouts. But here\u2019s what you can do:<\/p>\n\n\n\n