Are You THAT Neighbor?

Are you the neighbor everyone wants to move away from?  When you purchase a new home it is usually hit or miss if you will move next to good neighbors or bad neighbors.  There is no way of knowing unless you know someone who lives in the neighborhood that can fill you in with all the neighborhood details .  If you are thinking about putting an offer on a home,  its good to visit the property several times, at different times of the day and different days of the week to see what the neighborhood is like.  Is there highway noise you weren't aware of, is there a train a few miles away you didn't think about,  does the high school football field lights shine in your backyard, is it a high crime area, are there broken down and rusted cars in the drive way, does the neighbors have frequent parties/gatherings, is there loud noisy traffic around the corner or busy restaurants in the area. If you have an opportunity to visit the property at different times of the day you might get to meet the neighbors and ask them some questions to see what their opinion of the neighborhood is.   If you are driving by and see lots of clutter, uncut lawns, deferred maintenance, or run down properties keep this in mind, as these could be your future neighbors. 

Growing up we lived next to the neighbor that everyone dreads.  He called the cops for every little thing.  If our backdoor screen slammed from the wind,  he would call the cops or if there was motorcycle driving down the block revving their engine, the cops where called.  The entire block knew him and what to expect.  It got to the point where the cops would not show up when he called.  The cops told him if he called again on a non emergency situation he could face jail time for calling with a false alarm.  Eventually the neighbor stopped calling the cops and the neighborhood was quite.   My family has moved several times over the years and we have had great neighbors ever since.  Our current neighborhood doesn't have a home owner association with all the neighborhood restrictions, but it seems like all the neighbors compete for the best lawn, best curb appeal and the most up-to-date house, which makes it an even better neighborhood to live in.  You get lucky every once in a while.  On the other hand you could have your next door neighbor calling the city on every violation, making your life harder.  Unfortunately I hear about these people all the time.  To avoid neighbors, move as far out in the country as you can- problem solved!