Whether you’re in the market for a new home or you’re a current homeowner, the safety of your neighborhood is always a factor in the value of your home. Interestingly enough, there are many factors that contribute to the degree of safety in your neighborhood. Factors such as drug use, burglary, and even domestic matters can affect the crime rate in your area.

Considering the weight that crime rate can take on your neighborhood safety, many home buyers and homeowners seek for ways in which they can find out just how their area ranks in safety. Be sure to check out these helpful tools that have been a game changer for home buyers:

Trulia

Most people know Trulia as a helpful real estate tool to explore the area for properties to buy and rent. It has acted as a go-to resource for home buyers to seek out the right now and neighborhood to fit their needs. Whether you’re someone looking for the suburbs on the outskirts of the city, an urban loft, or a cozy bungalow away from it all, this tool has a great platform for anyone. However, what some may not know about Trulia, is that you can also perform research on the crime rate in your area. Trulia’s helpful tool can pull reports of the neighborhood and even provide you with information as to the types of crimes that were committed.

As most of us are aware, the opioid crisis has been widespread across our nation and helpful tools such as Trulia have been successful in letting homeowners be aware of any drug use charges in their area.

Nextdoor

Another great tool for homeowners, neighbors, and their community is Nextdoor. This website is a private social network that allows neighborhoods to communicate about their community. Those who use this resource can quickly communicate about break-ins, recommend handymen, help locate a missing pet, and most importantly, get to know their neighbors. Regarding crime, this is an exceptional tool to make others aware of any noticeable suspicious activity in the area.

AreaVibes

As homeowners, we all have different priorities, things that are important to us. AreaVibes is a tool that helps you find the best place to live based on your preferences. Simply, search a neighborhood, city, or state and this tool provides you with your “livability score”. This helpful tool also assigns areas to that of something like a report card, from A+ to F.

Be sure to utilize this tool to access need-to-know information about crime, housing, education, and other amenities.

These are just three helpful tools to help buyers and homeowners in their search for a piece of mind. The best way to become familiar with the area will require some time. Be sure to take a visit through the neighborhood, even if you’re out of state. Find ways to get information from neighbors in the area and reach out to local law enforcement for additional crime reports.

Having a piece of mind as a homeowner means you’ve done your homework. Be sure to utilize tools that best suit your needs in order to find the perfect fit.