What to check about a property's location before you buy

A listing shows the kitchen, not the flood map. These are the location checks that matter when you buy a US home, each with why it matters, what the data can and cannot tell you, and what to ask next. The Property Location Report gathers all of them for one address, every figure sourced.

Check an address

US addresses only. Every figure names its source.

The checks

Flood zone

See the FEMA flood zone at a US address, how far the nearest Special Flood Hazard Area is, and what each zone means, on a map, from FEMA's National Flood Hazard Layer.

Wildfire risk

How a US county ranks for wildfire risk and how many of its buildings are exposed, from USDA Wildfire Risk to Communities, plus the wildfire rating in FEMA's National Risk Index.

Crime

Offenses reported to the police agencies that cover a US address, from the FBI's Crime in the United States, with state rates for comparison. An agency's statistics, not a map of crime near a home.

Superfund sites

EPA Superfund sites near a US address with their list status and boundary distance, plus leaking-underground-tank records and regulated facilities. Proximity is not contamination.

Wetlands

Mapped wetlands near a US address from the USFWS National Wetlands Inventory, with their type, size and imagery year. A map reading, not a jurisdictional wetland determination.

Schools

The public schools nearest a US address with their distances on a map, and the school district the address falls in, from the National Center for Education Statistics.

What a report looks like

A real report for a well-known address: a cover, an at-a-glance page that puts the matters that count most first, then a section for each check with its source, a map or chart, and a plain note on its limits. Select a page to see it full size.

The cover of a Property Location Report: the address and coordinates over a green band, and a satellite map of the property with a red pin. — The cover: address, coordinates and a satellite view of the point.

The at a glance page of a Property Location Report: three neighbourhood figures as tiles, then a short sentence for each topic the report covers, with the matters that count most first. — At a glance: the neighbourhood figures and one sentence for each topic.

A starting point, not a verdict

The report reads public data for a point. It is not a flood determination, an insurance rating, an environmental assessment or an inspection, and it never calls a place safe. Use it to know what to ask the seller, the lender, the insurer and the local authorities.