There is a saying about opening a restaurant; "the three important things are LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION". Buying a home, while it is not a restaurant, also requires this simple piece of wisdom. Choosing a proper location is the single most important item to buy a new home. While parts of the new home can be repaired, replaced or even an entire house can be rebuilt - you are stuck with the location of your new home. The choice you make for the location of your new home will stay with you for the rest of your life (or, at least until you move). A bad choice in location will haunt you (or him or her) till the end of your days (or, until moving day if you move again).

While every individual or family has their own requirements of convenience and preference in location, here are some factors to watch out for when choosing a location for your new home buying. Convenience for travel to work and/or school is the first thing to look for - unless you are retired (or a lottery winner), chances are you will spend half your waking life at work or school. If you drive to work, is the location of your new home close enough to your place of work or school?

There are some people who drive 200+ miles to get to work everyday! While this sounds like it borders on insanity, they probably made a poor choice in selecting a location for their new home. In bad weather or emergency situations, it is better to be able to return home quickly without trekking through half the State. If you commute, look for convenient commuting options such as buses, trains, or even car pools. While you can drive and park at a train station, for example, it should not be so far away as to take up half your day just to commute to work from your new home.

Another factor to consider in the convenience corner is the closeness of other members of your family (or good friends). In the unfortunate event of a personal emergency, can a family member or friend reach your home promptly? Being all alone in a new neighborhood can also make for lonely times, if you are so far away that other family members cannot visit you easily - and vice versa, where you would not be able to visit them easily either. Accessibility to shopping and groceries is another important factor to keep in mind. While you do not want to live next to a supermarket for obvious traffic reasons, is it close enough so you can drive there quickly in an emergency (storms, blizzards, etc)? If you have kids then there will likely be a milk run every day or few days, short of keeping a cow in the garage, is there more than one grocery store within easy reach (should one run out of food or milk - which can happen in times of emergencies)?

If you have children, proximity to parks or similar recreation facilities is very important. You really can't expect to drive a four year old 200 miles to play in a park. Children make friends in such social meeting places and having friends to play with is a critical element in any child's development. Emergency services are another thing to look at, is there a firehouse close enough to your new home location? Is there a hospital or medical facility near enough to reach quickly in the event of a health emergency? Is there a police station or sheriff/law enforcement presence nearby where they can respond quickly to assist you if need be? Crime can happen anywhere, and having a police or law enforcement presence nearby will keep your mind at ease.

You also have to make sure that your new home is in a safe neighborhood. There should be zero crime in that area over the past several years - its a simple enough thing to consider, but many people don't bother checking into it before buying a new home. You really don't want to be in a location where you are likely to get shot at when walking your dog in front of your house - nor would you want to have drug dealers hanging out in front of your new home (means a house, or an apartment unit in a building) peddling their wares. Note that police presence does not necessarily make for a safe neighborhood.

Proximity and availability of other local municipal services should also be considered. Is there regular sanitation pickup (garbage removal), or are you expected to drive your trash to the nearest landfill by yourself? How is the water supply provided, and sewers (if available)? Are the streets going to be plowed regularly (if you are in a snow area)? Usually these municipal services are paid for through real estate taxes, so ensure that you are getting a level of service for the amount of taxes that you will pay on your new home each year. If you have children and they will be attending public school, how are the schools in that area?

Last but not the least, the home prices in the area you are selecting for your new home to buy must be realistic and in your price range. Naturally, the safer the neighborhood and better the schools and municipal services, the higher the price of homes to buy. You may have to compromise on how "good" the neighborhood is, or on the level of services available in the area, to fit within your new home buying budget. Remember the age old golden rule; "you get what you pay for". If you want convenience, safety and services - expect to pay more for your new home in that location. Be absolutely clear about the tradeoff in safety, convenience and municipal services if you have to trade off some of these benefits to get an affordable home in the location. Your choice in location for buying a new home will stay with you for a long, long, long time.