Choosing a good neighborhood to live in is important for you and your family. If you have kids, the neighborhood your children grow up in will influence them. The neighborhood in which a person lives impacts their mental and physical health. In children, it affects their capacity for success in adult life. Even if you don’t have children or don’t plan on having any, it’s still important to pick a good place to live in. There are many other things to consider, perhaps some things that you haven’t even thought about. Here’s a list to help you.
Safety and security
The first thing you need to look at in a neighborhood is its safety. Look at the crime statistics in the neighborhood, or ask the people already living there. Check the street lighting. Are they enough to light the streets at night?
You may be planning on installing a home CCTV system anyway, but you still need to make sure that the neighborhood as a whole is safe. Do children play outside during the day? This is usually indicative of the safety of a neighborhood.
You might also ask if the community has a neighborhood watch. This indicates that the members of the community are working together to keep the area safe.
Proximity to essential establishments and services
Clinics and hospitals: Medical care is important to any person regardless of their age. Having a clinic or a hospital close enough to home will give you a sense of ease and security.
Law offices or homeowners’ association attorneys: We try our best to avoid them, but sometimes accidents and disputes happen, and you need to be equipped with a lawyer. In particular, it’s good to have a lawyer for bicycle accidents, car accidents, and neighborhood disputes within reach. Ideally, these wouldn’t happen in the first place, but it’s better to be prepared. Even the best neighborhoods are not immune to accidents and disputes.
Proximity to good schools
Even without kids or plans to have them, homes situated near good schools usually go for a higher resale value. If colleges are among the schools in the area, the homes may also be more affordable to appeal to students on a budget.
There is one possible downside to living close to schools — depending on how close exactly. Students, especially high school and college students, tend to make noisy neighbors. Again, this depends on what schools are in your area and how close you are to the places that the students frequent and live in.
Trees and green spaces
Living in an area with plenty of trees and green spaces is always a good idea. Not only are trees good for your physical health by producing cleaner air, people who live in areas with trees reportedly have better mental health than those who don’t. Walking along green spaces can reduce anxiety and improve focus and cognitive ability. Trees also provide shade and lower the city temperature.
Friendly neighbors
Of course, you’d want to live in a place where the neighbors are nice people. They make up the community and are a significant factor in your sense of acceptance, safety, security during your time there. You and your family would be miserable if you lived in a neighborhood where people made you feel unwelcome and unwanted.
Walkability
An area is walkable when it has many essential and non-essential establishments situated within walking distance of the residential area. It also refers to how safe it is for pedestrians and bikers to walk and ride their bicycles in the area This involves the area’s pedestrian design, such as the proximity of buildings and parking lots to the streets, and having lanes designated for pedestrians and bicyclists. Walkable neighborhoods have public spaces such as parks.
Public transportation
Even if you plan on driving yourself to your destinations, it’s good to have a neighborhood that supports or has its own public transport system. Public transport is a more affordable option of travel and is better for the environment. Choose a neighborhood that is close to public transport systems.
Amenities
You and your family will need places to go to in your free time. Be it the swimming pool, a shopping mall, movie theater, or gym. Public spaces offer you a place to spend your time of leisure. It also gives you opportunities to spend time with your family and meet other members of the community.
Choosing a good place to live is of the utmost importance for you and your family. In the present moment, it will impact your well-being. And down the line, it may have a substantial influence on your children’s success in their adult life. You’ll know a neighborhood is a good bet for you when it is safe, of a reasonable distance to essential and non-essential establishments, has many trees and green spaces, and has a community of people who are kind and welcoming.
