Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Deciding on where you want to live for years is one of the most important lifestyle and financial decisions you will ever make. Who will know more about the neighborhood than the next door neighbor?
What if they just moved in the previous week???
When you buy a house, there are no guarantees of perfection or even that you won't be annoyed by something. The best thing you can do is hire an excellent, experienced buyers' agent and do your own research.
You also need common sense.
No way would I rent my house out to a "prospective buyer." It's not a good idea for many reasons.
When you buy a house, there are no guarantees of perfection or even that you won't be annoyed by something.
And even if things are wonderful after you move in, there's no guarantee they'll stay that way. Your lovely neighbor could move and be replaced by the Neighbor from Hell at any time. Likewise, a house can develop a serious problem without much warning.
There's a level of risk involved in home ownership that simply can't be avoided.
OP- If you feel comfortable and your agent says ok then go ahead and ask if you make an offer. The worst thing they can say is "no". We said "no" when we were asked the same question during our last home sale. (We actually said no freaken way....not going to happen...those people are dreaming...we are not Enterprise/Hertz rentals or an apartment bldg. Our agent was nice and just said no to the buyers.) Its really no big deal to ask. As you can see from all the replies, don't count on them saying yes.
I have to laugh a little because I think you've been reading this titled thread on here...
You could more than likely find all that out by parking on the street during the week and you can do that for free. If you are fine with the house and are only interested in finding out if the neightborhood is right for you then visit it during the week and weekends. If you are for sure that this deal is going to take place then knock on some doors and let the locals know you are considering buying in their area. I don't know anyone that has tried that but I bet it could not hurt to bad. It is also a great way to get to know your neighbors.
One time I rang the doorbell of the next door neighbor and said I was seriously looking at the house next door and wondered if they could tell me about the neighborhood and if there were any noise from dogs. He was extremely unfriendly and slammed the door in my face! I did not buy the house but told that to the real estate agent who passed it on to the owners of house. If I were the owner I would bribe the next door neighbors to be nicer!
Sounds like a good neighbor. I wouldn't want my neighbors giving out any info to a random stranger that rings the doorbell. You could be a thief casing the neighborhood or phishing or who knows what.
There's no real upside to letting you stay for a week, every home has something wrong and why would they give you a week to decide you don't want to buy it. You can try to rent it for 6 months at the going market rate, that might work.
Deciding on where you want to live for years is one of the most important lifestyle and financial decisions you will ever make. Who will know more about the neighborhood than the next door neighbor?
The problem with this is that it may very well be the neighbor you are asking this question of is the one with the barking dog, shoots off guns in the backyard and has wild parties until 4 in the morning.
The problem with this is that it may very well be the neighbor you are asking this question of is the one with the barking dog, shoots off guns in the backyard and has wild parties until 4 in the morning.
That's why it's best to ask more than one neighbor, but I'm of the mindset that I see someone ringing my bell and I won't answer because I think they are religious wackos or trying to sell something.
That's why it's best to ask more than one neighbor, but I'm of the mindset that I see someone ringing my bell and I won't answer because I think they are religious wackos or trying to sell something.
The worst thing you can do is not answer. If it's someone going to try to break into your house, that's the signal they are waiting for telling them no one is home.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
