Summary: Before you buy or rent learn if a place is pedestrian-friendly with these helpful internet-based and physical methods.
A community which offers great stores, service businesses, and recreation within walking distance and near your job is a huge plus for most home buyers. Residents label this as being walkable. Apart from a walkable community's convenience, they are also more green friendly and create a feeling of being tight-knit.
So, for example, in Laguna Beach's Village neighborhood, 84% of residents claim it to be walkable to restaurants, and only 42% say it is bike friendly.
A neighborhood is truly walkable when you can enter and exit easily without needing a car. Research reveals that the closer you are to public transit systems (bus, train, biking), the more prone you are to walking.
Check out what locals say about a neighborhood on Neighborhoods.com, NeighborhoodScout.com and Trulia.
It's walkable to cafe's and grocery stores
Is it walkable to eateries
There are sidewalks
People feel safe walking alone at night
Do the streets have good lighting
Do they say an automobile is necessary
Check out local restaurants.
To know if you can easily go out for some food, check out Yelp Maps near the area you want to live. That'll provide you with a sense of the number of restaurants within walking distance. And don't forget that the more restaurants that are nearby, the higher chances your neighbors will there too.
Do a virtual walk
Prior to taking a walk in your potential new neighborhood, type in an address on Google Maps and go to "Street View" to take a look at it online. For any property you are considering buying or renting, usually you'll see a link to a map near the listing.
By doing this it will give you a good idea of what's close by. Keep in mind you don't know what time of day (or year) the images were taken. A quiet-looking street could be that way 2 to 5 years ago on a street at 8 a.m. on a cold Saturday in December.
However, that same block today may have new neighbors, families, on-street parking restrictions, and more. Therefore, it's smart to do a physical visit during different times of the day. Visit the neighborhood in the evenings, on weekends, and also during the middle of a weekday.
Check for the following:
Wide sidewalks. These are important so pedestrians can feel safe walking around.
Trees near the sidewalks invite local residents to walk versus using their car to get around.
Benches, picnic tables, and other places to sit and rest are positives.
Intersections that have crosswalks and pedestrian signals.
Ample street lighting. This considers safety for pedestrians.
