This week on Good Morning America on abc news, there was a feature about nasty neighbors. They focused on an ongoing case in Arizona where a buyer is sueing the former owner for failure to disclosure problem neighbors. See http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/story?id=4572108&page=1 for the full story. They even made mention of a website that is new but might be beneficial called www.rottenneighbors.com.
You need to make sure you protect yourself before you buy a home. The best way to do it is to take action yourself. If my buyer is not familiar with the community, I recommend that my clients drive through the neighborhood at different times of day and different days of the week to see what kind of people live in the community and what is going on at the various times. Don't rely on what your agent tells you as what you think is ok and what you think are often two different scenarios.
I also recommend that clients walk to the neighbors house and knock on doors before they buy. Purchasing a house is one of the most important and costly decisions you will make. Don't make the mistake of assuming your neighbors will be perfect. It is much better to know up front than when it is too late. I have knocked on many doors with clients in the past to check them out and sometimes you get an added bonus when they start talking about the house you are interested in purchasing. You just might learn something that helps you out during negotiations.
While you are doing your drive by of the community and see adults out make a point to stop and ask questions about the neighbors and community that may be of importance to you. But as a mother of a young child, don't stop and ask children as you may in turn get a very protective parent staring you in the face, or worse yet calling the police since YOU are the stranger. Speaking of that....another great website to be aware of is www.familywatchdog.us to check for a list of offenders.
Now you may not always have time to thoroughly investigate your neighborhood and that is a risk you take. So make sure the risk is worth the gamble and don't rely on what your real estate agent alone tells you as YOU are the one buying the home and must conduct your own due diligence.