What do home buyers look for in a neighborhood? The National Association of REALTORS® polled recent home buyers regarding what they were looking for in how to choose a neighborhood. These results are rolled up across all demographics. Some of the results were surprising, while others were pretty predictable. This list should inspire you to think about what ultimately is most important to you in your home search. Try our checklist to help you define your wants and needs.
Quality of Neighborhood
61% of respondents said that quality of neighborhood was the most important factor when choosing a neighborhood. No matter where they ended up, this was the winner.
Convenient to Job
43% of respondents said that convenience to their job was of utmost importance. We generally hear buyers request a commute time of 15 minutes or less.
Overall Affordability
39% said that overall affordability was most important when deciding on a neighborhood. This makes sense as 39% of home buyers were first-time homebuyers.
Convenient to Friends and Family
35% of respondents were focused on the social aspects of life. These people moved to communities based on who was already living there.
Design of Neighborhood
26% of people polled chose the design of the neighborhood as being important. Fans of master planned communities fell into this category.
Convenient to Shopping
25% of respondents stated that convenience to shopping was their primary factor in choosing a neighborhood. This one surprised us as we hear schools being a higher priority most of the time.
Quality of School District
25% of people chose the quality of school district as their main focus when choosing a neighborhood. It is not surprising that resort and retirement communities often rank this a low factor.
Convenient to Schools
22% of people cited closeness to schools as being very important. This makes sense, especially for large families.
Convenient to Arts & Entertainment
19% of respondents said that being close to arts and entertainment was of primary concern to them. Not surprising only 8% of rural communities felt that this was important.
Convenient to Parks & Recreation
18% of people responding wanted to be close to parks and recreation while 29% of resort communities felt this was important.
Availability of Larger Lots and Acreage
16% of people focused on larger lots and acreage. 45% of rural respondents felt that this was important while only 4% of resort community people listed this as a factor.
Convenient to Health Facilities
Only 10% of people felt that being close to doctors and hospitals were important while 9% of rural people felt that this was a priority.
Home in a planned community
8% of people surveyed were looking for a home in an established community and 29% of resort community residents felt that this was of primary importance.
Convenient to Public Transportation
6% of people listed public transportation as their primary focus while 21% of urban dwellers felt that this was a priority.
Convenient to Airport
Only 5% of respondents listed being close to an airport as their primary concern, while 14% of resort residents felt this was important.
