When checking out a new area that is unfamiliar it is important to gain an understanding of how safe a neighborhood is. There are several steps that any buyer should do to determine how safe and neighborhood is likely to be.

1 - Ask the local police/sheriffs department
Gather the street names closest to the home you and considering and ask them to check on the streets. They will in most cases they can tell if they get many calls from the area or if there are any other issues you should be aware of.

2 - Megan's Law Database
Visit: [http://www.meganslaw.ca.gov/]
This site offers a search feature and will show the current location of known sex offenders. There is an interactive map feature which is very helpful.

3 - Online data
[http://www.city-data.com] is full of statistics and information. It doesn't always include crime statistics but it will have a wide variety of important information.
http://www.propertymaps.com is another good site, which has crime statistics.

4 - Talk to neighbors
Talk to several people. Most people are friendly and will share everything they know. Nothing beats the insight of someone that has lived in the area for years.

5 - Visit the neighborhood at various times of the day and night.
What is the condition of the surrounding block or two? What condition are the houses? What condition are the front yards in? Good signs are...kids playing outside, manicured yards, well kept houses and streets. Signs to be concerned...Broken down cars, chain link fences, and pit bulls, bars on the widows, lots of houses with miss kept front yards or houses with lack of maintenance.

At the end of the day ask yourself this one question: "Do you think it would safe for your grandma to walk around the block alone at night?" Hopefully after competing the 5 steps listed above...this should be an easy question to answer.