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TravelingGal

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So as some of you know, I''ve been casually househunting. One came up that looked great, but was next to a school.

I thought maybe it wouldn''t be so bad, but my main concern was the traffic in the morning. Well, it wasn''t an elementary school....it was a MIDDLE school! I went on the school''s website and that school bell rings TWENTY TWO times a day at least! Needless to say, er....no. Not going to do that.

I found this list of undesirable locations. Would you consider living next to any of these? Just a question for fun. Because apparently there is a buyer out there for every home...

Locations are considered undesirable if they are near:

Main thoroughfares with a lot of traffic
Railroad tracks
Commercial properties
Industrial properties
Apartment buildings
Utility structures such as waste, electrical or nuclear power plants
Cemeteries
Noise pollution from nearby airports or freeways
Garbage, landfills and recycling
Schools
Government housing or government buildings
Sports arenas
Wind pollution such as odors from neighboring farms or factories


I would say no to them all myself, but found on my searches that a lot of people don''t have an issue with cemeteries. Interesting.

What else do you consider a bad location?
 

princesss

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I was actually about to say that cemeteries are great neighbours! BF lived in an apartment that looked into a cemetery, and his parents live directly behind one. No crazy parties. Very quiet. Really, fairly ideal. Other than being, you know, dead.
 

KimberlyH

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I lived across the street from an elementary school for years, never again. Parents parked their cars in front of our driveway constantly, then got out to pick their kids up leaving us stranded, and getting out of the driveway, when it wasn''t blocked, was a nightmare too. The bells weren''t bad, it was the traffic.

I would not live on a very busy street, but I would live within blocks of one.

The rest of your list, in most circumstances my answer would be no, but there are exceptions to every rule.

A place I thought I wouldn''t like to live but ended up not minding, was across the street from a major hospital. My apt. was on the street behind the hospital, and while the ambulances and such were noisy, it was one of my favorite places to have lived and it didn''t bother me.
 

MichelleCarmen

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One other to add to your list is high-voltage power lines. They''re horribly ugly and they buzz too!
 

ahappygirl

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Before we bought any home, we check out local county web site - I won''t knowlingly live near a registered sex offender.

We fell in love with a beautiful, restored Victorian house, about 120 yrs old, oh- it was light-filled, airy, and oh! there were THREE level three (violent most likely to reoffend) sex offenders within a 4 block radius. Deal breaker. We have a child.
 

iluvcarats

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We live on a golf course. Our street backs up to an old country club (that we don''t belong to) and we don''t play golf.
While the view is nice, the golfers constantly searching for their golf balls in our yard without asking permission is not.
Especially when the kids are outside playing.
Luckily where I live, the weather only permits 7 or 8 months of golf per year.
 

Feralpenchant

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I would NEVER live next to a paper factory. OMG. THE SMELLLLLL!!!
 

fieryred33143

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Date: 4/20/2009 3:30:45 PM
Author:TravelingGal


Main thoroughfares with a lot of traffic
Railroad tracks
Commercial properties
Industrial properties
Apartment buildings
Utility structures such as waste, electrical or nuclear power plants
Cemeteries
Noise pollution from nearby airports or freeways
Garbage, landfills and recycling
Schools
Government housing or government buildings
Sports arenas
Wind pollution such as odors from neighboring farms or factories
The four I highlighted above I absolutely won't do. My exit is the same exit for the Dolphin Stadium even though I live further North. It is an absolute nightmare on nights with games.

Other than that, I won't live anywhere in Miami that requires me to make a left with no *traffic light. There are a lot of communities that are beautiful around here but if you get stuck in traffic and need to make a left, you can be stuck for a good 15 minutes or so. Traffic lights to exit are really important to me
3.gif


Also-night clubs. When we moved into our condo, we didn't realize that one of the busiest nightclubs in our area is literally within walking distance. On the weekends, we had to deal with people parking their cars on the grass surrounding our community. It doesn't seem like a big deal but I found out part of our association fees goes towards the cleanup guys that are there on Saturday and Sunday mornings to pick up their garbage left from the evening. That should be an expense the night club picks up, not us
38.gif
38.gif
 

CNOS128

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Date: 4/20/2009 3:30:45 PM
Author:TravelingGal
Locations are considered undesirable if they are near:


Main thoroughfares with a lot of traffic
Railroad tracks
Commercial properties
Industrial properties
Apartment buildings
Utility structures such as waste, electrical or nuclear power plants
Cemeteries
Noise pollution from nearby airports or freeways
Garbage, landfills and recycling
Schools
Government housing or government buildings
Sports arenas
Wind pollution such as odors from neighboring farms or factories


As a resident of NYC, I find this kind of weird.

Anyway, I would never (again) live near a highway. It''s not the noise as much as the filth that bothers me.
My parents live down the block from an elementary/middle school, but most people don''t drive to pick up their kids and it''s a parochial school so the little one are really well-behaved - in their house/backyard you wouldn''t know the school was there at all.

I wouldn''t want to leave near a doughnut or cupcake place, because I have NO self-control.
 

oobiecoo

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I''ve lived right next to or near railroad tracks several times and you honestly get used to the noise and it won''t wake you up or anything after a little while. If you see them as an "eye sore" then I guess thats different.

Baseball/Soccer Field!!- This kind of goes with sports arenas but I''m talking more about the little ones next to parks. People think they can park wherever they want and the lights attract unneccessary bugs and they''re noisy. *humph*

Churches can cause alot of extra traffic and parking problems also.

In Texas, near the DFW area, there are a lot of really random drills set up for natural gas. They take up a fairly small area so they can put them almost anywhere including near neighborhoods... the lights are SUPER bright at night so I wouldn''t want to live near one.
 

february2003bride

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Date: 4/20/2009 4:00:35 PM
Author: ahappygirl
Before we bought any home, we check out local county web site - I won''t knowlingly live near a registered sex offender.

We fell in love with a beautiful, restored Victorian house, about 120 yrs old, oh- it was light-filled, airy, and oh! there were THREE level three (violent most likely to reoffend) sex offenders within a 4 block radius. Deal breaker. We have a child.
Big ditto to this, but you can''t control if one moves into your neighborhood!

A woman down the street from us (about 2 blocks back) was having a hard time paying the mortgage on her house (a $1+M McMansion) so she rented out her 4 extra rooms which is strictly against HOA regulations. One room she rented out too was to a sex offender, who had raped his step-daughter over the period of 5 years. The daughter finally told her mother, and the man fled the country to Europe. He came back a few years later and got arrested within days of returning. He pled guilty, served his time, was released and was on strict probation about how close he could live to a school, park, day care, etc. A neighbor of ours was doing a sex offender check and found this guy and registered himself at that address. Several neighbors called our local Sheriff''s department who contacted his parole officer. The PO came out, saw that he lived RIGHT next to our neighborhood park and across the street from the elementary school. He had 30 days to move, and he did. The kicker in this store? The owner of the home stated DATING this guy (that''s how our neighbors found out the extensive details on this story) and he was still coming around but not "living" there. She finally had to foreclose on her home, but it was quite an ordeal but the positive was that it really solidified our neighborhood watch!

TGal- pretty much everything on your list I agree with except schools. We''re in the middle of a boundary issue in our area and I wish we lived we lived right acorss the street from our elementary school that we love. But our school does not have an outside bell to hear every 45 minutes!
 

E B

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My mom lives next to an elementary school and to be honest, it's a PITA. Cars line the street in front of her house (sometimes blocking her driveway!) to pick their children up from school five days a week, and the entire street is one-way during school hours.

I grew up with a railroad track behind my house and it didn't bother me a bit. It was fun to explore, and the train came by so infrequently the noise wasn't an issue. When it did come by, it was just for a minute or so, and always during the day (that I can remember, anyway!)

The rest of your list I agree with. In the same neighborhood my mom currently lives in (next to the school), several houses were built on TOP of an old cemetary. Apparently, certain homeowners were NOT happy after discovering this.
 

Sabine

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I currently live within blocks of railroad tracks, 3 apartment complexes, a water treatment plant, a chocolate factory, a high school, a few hotels, a shopping center, a major hospital, a major concert/sports arena, and a major amusement park (haha, gold star if you can name my town!). I have to say, the things that really bother me are the chocolate factory (we really do smell chocolate, and often, it smells bad, as if it is burning!) and the water treatment plant. We don''t smell the water treatment plant all the time, but when we do smell it, it is terrible (smells like sewage) and it permeates everywhere!

During the summer, when there are major concerts, traffic can get bad (especially if it''s a concert that is huge that I forgot about), but if you hear about the concerts on the radio, it''s easy enough to take an alternate route. Same with the amusement park. There are times when traffic will be bad right around it, but those times are predictable and easy to avoid unless I''m going to the park. Traffic due to the other things hasn''t been bad, and although I do wake up sometimes to the train in the middle of the night, I''ve gotten very used to it.
 

purrfectpear

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I''m curious about those who are bothered with a cemetery.

If you actually believe there could be ghosts, then what makes you think they couldn''t travel a mile or so?
20.gif
 

TravelingGal

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Date: 4/20/2009 5:06:44 PM
Author: purrfectpear
I''m curious about those who are bothered with a cemetery.

If you actually believe there could be ghosts, then what makes you think they couldn''t travel a mile or so?
20.gif
I have no problem with living next to a cemetery in theory. But others do, and that can impact the resale of the house for sure.

Also, (I''m on a believer, but again, lots are), living near cemeteries is a huge no no when it comes to Feng Shui.
 

joflier

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Date: 4/20/2009 4:11:07 PM
Author: Feralpenchant
I would NEVER live next to a paper factory. OMG. THE SMELLLLLL!!!
I live in an area with multiple paper mills. And for some reason, my section of town just doesn''t smell. It all blows the other direction, so it doesn''t bother me much at all. Plus you just get used to it. I''m also about a block from railroad tracks, and they don''t bother me either. If they were right in my backyard, I wouldn''t like it, but there is something about an occasional train noise that I like. They always go around the same times each day/night. I like routines, so for some reason, I find that to be nice. But there are some factories in the area. Not close, but I can hear this low range buzzing from about 4am-mid afternoon. No idea what it is, but it really bugs me. If I wake up sometime while that''s going, I often can''t fall back asleep. So I''ve gotten a box fan and turn that on, and that seems to do the trick.
 

joflier

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Date: 4/20/2009 5:08:48 PM
Author: TravelingGal

Date: 4/20/2009 5:06:44 PM
Author: purrfectpear
I''m curious about those who are bothered with a cemetery.

If you actually believe there could be ghosts, then what makes you think they couldn''t travel a mile or so?
20.gif
I have no problem with living next to a cemetery in theory. But others do, and that can impact the resale of the house for sure.

Also, (I''m on a believer, but again, lots are), living near cemeteries is a huge no no when it comes to Feng Shui.
I''d love to live by a cemetery. I like to keep to myself, so I''m sure I couldn''t find any better neighbors than that! Although I''d be in trouble if I needed to borrow a cup of sugar though!
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Steel

Ideal_Rock
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Messages
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People.

I won''t live near people. They suck.
 

Haven

Super_Ideal_Rock
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Messages
13,166
I would not want to live near a school. The traffic can be maddening.

I wouldn''t want a single family home that is too big for its lot, so it''s right near the neighbors'' homes. That would feel too cramped, to me.

We actually have railroad tracks behind our house and we LOVE them. We both love trains, though, and there are no commuter trains on the tracks, just freights, so they aren''t frequent. I think it''s really romantic whenever the train goes by. But the biggest bonus is that we don''t have any backyard neighbors, so our house feels really secluded when we''re in the backyard, which we love. And, there''s no threat of someone buying the lot behind ours, building a hideous McMansion on it, and blocking our view of the sky. (This happened to my mother.)

There''s also a huge bike path that runs along one side of the train tracks, so we go right out the gate in the back of our yard and have a gorgeous, miles-long path to play on.
 

MichelleCarmen

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Date: 4/20/2009 4:21:58 PM
Author: TheBigT


Date: 4/20/2009 3:30:45 PM
Author:TravelingGal
Locations are considered undesirable if they are near:


Main thoroughfares with a lot of traffic
Railroad tracks
Commercial properties
Industrial properties
Apartment buildings
Utility structures such as waste, electrical or nuclear power plants
Cemeteries
Noise pollution from nearby airports or freeways
Garbage, landfills and recycling
Schools
Government housing or government buildings
Sports arenas
Wind pollution such as odors from neighboring farms or factories


As a resident of NYC, I find this kind of weird.

Anyway, I would never (again) live near a highway. It's not the noise as much as the filth that bothers me.
My parents live down the block from an elementary/middle school, but most people don't drive to pick up their kids and it's a parochial school so the little one are really well-behaved - in their house/backyard you wouldn't know the school was there at all.

I wouldn't want to leave near a doughnut or cupcake place, because I have NO self-control.
I would never buy a home next to an apartment complex. There's tons of traffic, noisy people all crammed in together, and people milling about. Living in a condo was bad enough even with everyone owning (except for a small percentage who rent and the HOA has a say in who rents, so there's some control AND *criminal background checks* done on any perspective renters), but regular apartments would be a nightmare.

Another place I wouldn't live is next to a walking trail. There is a great set of trails in my neighborhood and run along side some of the homes around here and they're so close, only seperated by a fence, that people can easily see in if the lighting is just right.
 

April20

Ideal_Rock
Joined
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Messages
3,372
I wouldn''t live near any of them. The cemetary doesn''t bother me, but the resale does.

I refuse to buy the first house in a subdivision. Even if the surrounding streets are quiet.

I also don''t like the idea of buying a house across the street or next to a house that is a junk yard. I took this risk in Seattle and got a great deal on a house no one else wanted. I got lucky. They junky people got evicted and the place cleaned up. Raised my property value over night. I won''t take this risk again. Too chancy.
 

fieryred33143

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Date: 4/20/2009 5:06:44 PM
Author: purrfectpear
I''m curious about those who are bothered with a cemetery.

If you actually believe there could be ghosts, then what makes you think they couldn''t travel a mile or so?
20.gif
I''m hoping that by the time they''ve reached my house, they''re all puckered out from scaring those that live closer to them.

32.gif
 

softly softly

Brilliant_Rock
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Messages
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Good call on the school Tgal. We live directly across the road from a small primary school and while the traffic and noise from the kids doesn''t bother me too much any more, the constant announcements that blare out from the loudspeakers drive me nuts. It also drove me mad when the P.E teacher took to bellowing instructions at the kids through a microphone repeatedly waking my son from his afternoon sleep.
 

lliang_chi

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Messages
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Right now I have a condo that''s 50 yds from a train track. It''s not so bad. I''d hate hate HATE to live close to a ball park. But some ppl here, for whatever reason LOOOOVE living next to Wrigley Field. Maybe because I''m not a Cubs fan but that''s my idea of slow torture.
 

zoebartlett

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Of the things you listed, TGal, I wouldn''t want to live near:

train tracks
main thoroughfares with a lot of traffic
industrial properties
utility structures
noise pollution
sports arenas
garbage, landfills, and recycling


It''s weird, my town has some pretty odd zoning laws. We live in a residential neighborhood (small condo complex), but there are businesses all along the road that our complex is off of. It''s not noisy at all but I wouldn''t have thought to put these businesses and houses right near each other. I certainly can''t say it''s my ideal location but it''s pretty quiet, so it doesn''t bother me too much.

My parents live right behind a small elementary school, and I used to love living there. I loved hearing the bell ring and listening to the kids out at recess. The only thing that bothered us is that the kindergarten parents would block my parents'' driveway as they lined up to pick up their kids. That issue''s been solved, so now it''s not a problem.
 

zoebartlett

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Date: 4/20/2009 4:51:35 PM
Author: Sabine
I currently live within blocks of railroad tracks, 3 apartment complexes, a water treatment plant, a chocolate factory, a high school, a few hotels, a shopping center, a major hospital, a major concert/sports arena, and a major amusement park (haha, gold star if you can name my town!). I have to say, the things that really bother me are the chocolate factory (we really do smell chocolate, and often, it smells bad, as if it is burning!) and the water treatment plant. We don''t smell the water treatment plant all the time, but when we do smell it, it is terrible (smells like sewage) and it permeates everywhere!


During the summer, when there are major concerts, traffic can get bad (especially if it''s a concert that is huge that I forgot about), but if you hear about the concerts on the radio, it''s easy enough to take an alternate route. Same with the amusement park. There are times when traffic will be bad right around it, but those times are predictable and easy to avoid unless I''m going to the park. Traffic due to the other things hasn''t been bad, and although I do wake up sometimes to the train in the middle of the night, I''ve gotten very used to it.


Oooohhh, pick me, pick me! I know the town!
 

musey

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Date: 4/20/2009 3:30:45 PM
Author:TravelingGal
I found this list of undesirable locations. Would you consider living next to any of these? Just a question for fun. Because apparently there is a buyer out there for every home...

Locations are considered undesirable if they are near:

Main thoroughfares with a lot of traffic
Railroad tracks
Commercial properties
Industrial properties
Apartment buildings
Utility structures such as waste, electrical or nuclear power plants
Cemeteries
Noise pollution from nearby airports or freeways
Garbage, landfills and recycling
Schools
Government housing or government buildings
Sports arenas
Wind pollution such as odors from neighboring farms or factories
How near is "near?" I''d consider living near schools, if it''s at least 1/2 block away. We live 1/2 block away from a school (though it''s elementary, so no bells) and never even notice it until we''re on a walk or driving past on our way out.

What else do you consider a bad location?
I personally NEVER EVER want to live directly against woods/forest. No THANK you - and no lakes or reservoirs - I heard that those are popular body drops around here
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Also would not want to be within a block of a bar/club, or probably even a restaurant (unless it were just a brunch/lunch cafe or coffee shop).

Anything that could cause parking crunch (including the aforementioned bars and restaurants, but also shopping areas) in my neighborhood - NO THANKS.
 

Dreamer_D

Super_Ideal_Rock
Joined
Dec 16, 2007
Messages
25,238
I would never live near:

Main thoroughfares with a lot of traffic
Commercial properties
Industrial properties
Utility structures such as waste, electrical or nuclear power plants
Noise pollution from nearby airports or freeways
Garbage, landfills and recycling
Government housing or government buildings
Sports arenas
Wind pollution such as odors from neighboring farms or factories

But I would be more than willing to live near:

Railroad tracks
Apartment buildings
Cemeteries
Schools

I grew up next to railroad tracks and the train went by 2x per day. No biggie at all! Also, apartments dont bug me, nor would an elementary school. All of these things would lower the cost to buy without a lot of down sides IMO.

I would love to live near a cemetary! I love going for walks with the dogs through our local cemetary, it is well tended and quiet!
 

CNOS128

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Date: 4/20/2009 5:44:51 PM
Author: MC
I would never buy a home next to an apartment complex. There''s tons of traffic, noisy people all crammed in together, and people milling about. Living in a condo was bad enough even with everyone owning (except for a small percentage who rent and the HOA has a say in who rents, so there''s some control AND *criminal background checks* done on any perspective renters), but regular apartments would be a nightmare.
I guess my point was rather that it would be impossible to find a place in Manhattan and many parts of Brooklyn (the only boroughs I''ve lived in) that wasn''t near an apartment building. I don''t know about "complexes," I''m not sure what distinguishes those from "buildings." But the list said "apartment building." I guess people are afraid of socio-economic diversity? There goes the neighborhood!

It is too nasty of me to say I wouldn''t want to live near my in-laws?
 

musey

Super_Ideal_Rock
Joined
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Messages
11,242
Date: 4/20/2009 4:21:58 PM
Author: TheBigT
Date: 4/20/2009 3:30:45 PM
Author:TravelingGal
Locations are considered undesirable if they are near:

Main thoroughfares with a lot of traffic
Railroad tracks
Commercial properties
Industrial properties
Apartment buildings
Utility structures such as waste, electrical or nuclear power plants
Cemeteries
Noise pollution from nearby airports or freeways
Garbage, landfills and recycling
Schools
Government housing or government buildings
Sports arenas
Wind pollution such as odors from neighboring farms or factories
As a resident of NYC, I find this kind of weird.
I totally get it (and I'm an apartment-dweller). Until recently I've lived in apartments-only neighborhoods, but for the past year I've been living in a mixed neighborhood (with condos, single-family homes AND apartment buildings). I would get incredibly annoyed if I were a homeowner in this area. People do not respect the public areas (leaving their dogs' messes around, trash, etc.) because it isn't 'theirs' anyway, the noise level is much louder - obviously - than a neighborhood filled with single-family homes would be, parking is crunched because there aren't enough garage spaces to go around, apartment-dwellers 'borrow' the trash and recycling bins of the single families because their building's bins are full...

If I were looking to buy a home, I wouldn't want to be within a couple blocks of an apartment building, at the closest - just based on personal experience. Living here and walking through the nice neighborhoods nearby us, there's just no comparison.
 
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