Find out more about the immediate homes around the particular property you want to buy. Are the homes around well maintained and worth the same or more than the home you are considering? If homes around are remodeling, that means that homeowners are generally happy with the neighborhood. Also a street with a lot of "sold" or "pending sale' signs is usually in demand. Watch for signs of overbuilding. If the area becomes over saturated with inventory this tend to depress property value.

Your future home is part of a larger community, so make sure you know about local problems, noise, traffic, future construction and developments in the area, zoning restrictions, rezoning, contamination, etc. Talk to people in the neighborhood, store owners, people on the street, church members and don't forget to contact the local municipality planning and zoning departments to find information you need.