This stage of your researching a potential home is done on the scene. Driving or walking slowly through the streets is the only successful way to canvass a neighborhood. What defines "a neighborhood"? It may be a grouping of houses around a physical landmark, such as a park, marina, valley, or hill. It can be as small as one block or large enough to surround a fashionable shopping area.
When you start looking for a neighborhood, think about what you want in terms of proximity to people, goods and services. Do you want to be close enough to stores so that you can get there on foot or bicycle? Do you want a closely-knit community where everybody knows everybody else, or a more impersonal place? A huge apartment house can be a neighborhood all by itself, where you nod to people in the elevators for years without ever knowing their names.
Drive around and investigate neighborhoods in the car, then get out and walk around those that really interest you. You learn a lot on foot! Ideally, you shouldn't tackle more than three neighborhoods in one day, because no matter how good an observer you are, communities will start to blend together in your mind.
If you see a "For Sale By Owner" sign as you walk, go into the house and look around. If you see a place under renovation, stop and speak to the contractor. Or if you notice an ad about a neighborhood block association meeting or a house tour, take advantage of it. You want to educate yourself as much as possible about the community before you even begin to think of buying there. It's like marriage - you've got to know the person before you make the big decision.
