So you’ve just moved into your new home and are excited about starting your life in a new place—the possibilities are endless!  Making sure you get off on the right foot with your neighbors is a key component to ensuring your home environment is happy and peaceful.  Coldwell Banker Select Professionals has compiled the following suggestions to help you navigate the path to good neighbor etiquette.

1. Host a Housewarming Party: What better way to introduce yourself to the neighborhood than hosting a friendly gathering where your new neighbors can meet your friends and family.  It shouldn’t be anything fancy—just a low key get-together with a little food and a tour of the new home.
2. Be Conscientious:  Realize that whatever you decide to do to your home will affect those living around you.  Not only should you be meticulous about outdoor upkeep, but if you decide to make any big changes to your home’s exterior, be polite and inform your neighbors ahead of time.  They will appreciate your thoughtfulness and might even have a useful suggestion for you to use regarding good contractors.
3. Avoid Gossip: This is more easily said than done, but it is very important.  Falling into the trap of listening and even participating in conversations within the local gossip mill is so easy, but you must resist the temptation.  Rarely does anything good come of it, and more likely someone’s feelings will get hurt.  You have more productive things to do, so avoid the gossip!
4. Don’t Take Advantage of Other’s Talents & Tools:  You’ve just moved in and there are parts of your home you need to fix to better suit your needs.  You learned that your neighbor works in landscape design, so he has lots of tools and experience you would like to tap into.  Do not take advantage of his generosity by constantly trying to wrangle him into giving you free help—he will get sick of it fast!  If you do borrow his tools, make sure you return them as soon as you’re finished and in the condition you received them.
5. Be Open-Minded: You may find that some of your neighbors come from different cultural backgrounds than you do.  Take the time to learn from them and their culture.  You may feel out of place at first, but you will find that most people are happy to share their culture and experiences with you.  This is a great way to foster positive relationships and broaden your horizons.

Creating positive relationships with your new neighbors can be one of the most rewarding aspects of moving into a new home.  While learning all the social nuances of a new place is a daunting task, the best course of action is to get started right away since the neighbors will be curious about the new arrivals. 

If your looking for personal service and have questions regarding buying a home in Lancaster PA, York PA, Harrisburg PA, Lebanon PA, Hershey PA and Cumberland County, be sure to connect with Coldwell Banker Select Professionals and one of our agents at www.cbselectpros.com.