A home is a place where you want to feel secure and protected, but do you actually know how safe is your neighborhood? Feeling comfortable around your area is just one of the factors, but there are many other things that contribute to the overall feeling of safety. Apart from using common sense, you’ll need to pay attention to a few important signs, and we are going to tell you all about it.
Why Is a Safe Neighborhood Important?
Living in a secure environment is one of the most important things for our mental health and also one of the basic human needs. In order to be happy and comfortable around our home, we need to stay relaxed, and that’s why safety is so important. You can never completely focus on your other needs and responsibilities if one of the basic needs is not fulfilled.
You can start losing sleep and develop anxiety over the feeling that somebody is watching or following you, not to mention the fear that might occur if you have young kids. In order to avoid all these negative emotions, you can simply check some of the important factors that implicate if your neighborhood is secure or not. We will go in-depth and try to explain how it all works, so read carefully and prepare to forget about the moving stress.
It Is Not Just About Crime, There Are Several Other Indicators as Well
If you want to check if you should file a San Francisco rental application and relocate to one of the best Bay Area towns, you need to be aware of these important indicators. Most people rely on crime rates as the main indicator, but have you thought about looking at registries of sex offenders in that region?
You should also find some information about the community – is it developed, and in what way do they have a neighborhood watch? Is the real estate market around here strong? How big is your budget? Are you willing to risk your security to save a lot of money when buying a real estate property? You have to determine your own standards and criteria.
Determine Your Neighborhood Safety Rating and Priorities First
What is the most important thing you look for when you’re apartment hunting, and what are your main reasons to move? According to your standards, what defines the best place to live in the Bay Area? Job and business growth opportunities are something that attracts many young professionals. Traffic might be one of the downsides, so working close to your new home might be suitable for you.
But those who have a family and young children don’t want to bite nails every time when waiting for their kids to come back from school. You should save some money and invest in more expensive real estate if the neighborhood where it is located has a lower felony rate. Although the Bay Area is, generally speaking, a safe region, crime rates vary from one town to another, so make sure to check all places you’re interested in and compare their rates.
How Much Crime Is Actually Bearable and Under What Cost You’re Willing to Risk Your Well-Being?
When scouting neighborhoods, you should be aware of a few things. Overall, felony rates might vary depending on different categories of crime. The most important categories are violent and property crime rates. Apart from that, you should check the rates for some other categories such as rape, murder, robbery, assaults, and so on. Some parts of the region can have a lot of small robberies, but many violent crimes and high murder rates are not typical around here. Don’t make conclusions based on the first number you find on the internet, do thorough research and get the bigger picture.
How to Check How Safe Is Your Neighborhood? Here Are 4 Reliable Tools That Provide Important Crime Rates and Statistics
How do I know if a neighborhood is safe? Sure, you can follow your gut and rely on your inner feeling, but when it comes to these things, you should always check everything twice. One of the first things you should do when it comes the time to move out is to check these convenient apps and websites that cover most places in the Bay Area and can give you essential information. Some of the apps you can rely on while playing Sherlock and their main features will be described below. All of them are free to use, but you can sign up and pay to get access to some further information if you get interested.
AreaVibes Is One of the Most Popular Options
This website goes through different factors you might be interested in – from real estate prices to job opportunities. Once you go to the AreaVibes website, you’ll see a search engine where you can type in a particular place or an address. It will take you to the map of that location and show you its livability score. This score is measured from 0 to 100, and you can compare scores of different areas. This score is affected by seven factors, and some of them are the crime and safety index. You can also compare livability scores to national and state averages to get a bigger picture.
Family WatchDog Has One Unique Feature
Family WatchDog is a unique online tool, great for mapping sex offenders. It maps all the addresses of registered sex offenders, so once you type in the desired location, its generator will pinpoint all of the surrounding threats. It has different colors for various types of sexual crimes and assaults, including ones against children and rape. Once you click on the icon that pops out around the desired address, the picture of the offender will show, and you’ll find out everything about the case they’ve been involved in.
The other way to use it is to simply type the name of a suspected offender – if you’re feeling suspicious about your neighbor and you’ll see if they were previously convicted. One of the coolest features is that you can actually sign up for alerts, so every time a registered sexual offender moves close to your home, you’ll get a notification. Apart from that, you can also find some useful safety tips there.
Ready to Move Around the Bay?
Free QuoteIs NeighborhoodScout.com Reliable?
This is another popular option for those interested in finding more details about local crime rates. Some of the main categories are:
- Crime index compared to the rest of US,
- The number of property crimes,
- The number of violent crimes.
One of the interesting features this app has is that you can find out what is the chance of becoming a victim in a particular place while comparing the odds with other places. Another useful option is creating custom searches by adding some criteria and then looking for places that match them. This is one of the most reliable tools on the internet, so you can feel comfortable relying on its data.
CityProtect Offers Crime Statistics by Address
This simple and useful tool offers you a quick check-up of a place once you type in the address, region, or zip code. It actually maps the recent police activity around the place you’re interested in. You can also narrow the search to specific crimes and read everything about the location, type of incident, and other information. One of the particular features is that you can actually see the dates and follow whether the number of cases is growing or dropping.
Ask Your Neighbors for Advice and Get the First-Hand Experience
People tend to rely on technology for almost everything. But don’t forget that even the most high-tech system sometimes fails, and it can give you that first-hand experience. Find neighbors who have been living there for years, they must be familiar with various cases and crimes in the community.
They can also point you out which areas you should avoid and ways to protect yourself from those who don’t have your best interest in mind. Also, another thing to consider is the community organization. If you notice that your neighbors all know each other, support community events, and engage in various activities together, you should feel comfortable knowing you moved to a good and secure community.
Market Performance Is Another Strong Indicator
One of the things you need to do before relocating is to explore the real estate market, especially if you’re on a budget. Apart from making a to-do list, writing a moving expenses checklist is also important. This step is vital not only because of your finances, but it can also show you a lot about neighborhoods’ quality of life. Usually, higher real estate prices show that this place is good for living.
On the other hand – unsafe areas with high crime rates usually have lower real estate prices. If you notice that some low-priced real estate is sitting on the market for too long, you can’t help but wonder why that is the case? Is this a sign of rising criminal activities or poor economics? Ensure you continue your investigation to stay on the right path.
How Do You Keep Safe in a Neighborhood? Investing in a Good Home Security System Might be the Best Decision
A good security system is something that can keep you comfortable during the nighttime, daytime, but also when you’re away from your home. Nowadays, you can find quality systems at affordable prices. There are several options to choose from, but cameras and alarms are usually enough, even though you can go even further if you want to ensure maximum protection.
One of the basic precaution measures is to keep your doors locked all the time, even when you’re inside. This is very simple but always makes you feel more comfortable. If you’re moving with pets and want to walk them at night time, try to avoid suspicious places and go somewhere where other people have the same activities. Some of the popular companies in your region that might offer you good security installations are:
- Security 101 – San Francisco Bay Area,
- Access Control Bay Area,
- Safe and Sound Security.
Check out this video to see the best options on the market if you’re thinking about installing a security system.
Learn How to Inspect Your Future Neighborhood and Relocate There With the Best Local Movers in Bay Area
You finally did your research, learned everything about tenants’ rights, and decided to relocate. You might have to start packing because you’re relocating in a hurry and have no idea how to pack your books or organize your shoes for moving. Don’t worry, there is a way to move efficiently without going through stressful situations. You can enjoy all the benefits of moving without experiencing the bad parts if you decide to hire professional Bay Area movers. Golden Bay Relocation is one of the highest-rated Bay Area moving companies that can offer you various local relocation services.
If you want to relocate your household belongings without any complications, a residential relocation service should be your first choice. Apart from that, you can also choose to relocate your business office and rely on our commercial relocation service. For heavy duties around your home, such as relocating a piano, we can offer you another convenient service – labor-only. If you want our team of Bay Area movers to pack your furniture and everything else from your packing list, all you need to do is ask for our packing assistance. You can also relocate your storage belongings with our outstanding in- and-out-of storage relocation service. Don’t hesitate to contact us to get your free quote, and we’ll take care of all of your needs and requirements.