You’ve found the perfect home, completed settlement and just finished moving in. As you happily fall asleep, all seems well in the world. An hour later, you are awoken to an ear splitting sound. All is no longer well in the world.
What’s that racket? If you saw the movie “My Cousin Vinny”, you know what I’m talking about. If you haven’t, there is a lawyer, (Vinny) who travels to a small country town to defend his nephew against criminal charges.
Every night when Vinny finally goes to sleep, an hour or so later he is awoken by some blasting noise. When house hunting, you need to make sure you don’t get “Vinny’d.” When you find the home you like, make absolutely sure you drive the area looking for any potential noise producers. Have the car windows down and turn off the radio and just listen. You might be surprised at what you hear. If you run across railroad tracks, how close are they to your potential new home. Make sure you are near the house when a train goes by, so you can get the full effect.
Weekend vs. Week Days Most of us look at homes to buy on Saturday and Sundays. This makes sense since you have to work for a living, but it can result in some nasty surprises. The neighborhood on weekends could be entirely different than during the week. Make absolutely sure you check out the property during both times. To check for consistent “partying” neighbors, make sure you check the area during evenings as well.