There's so many issues with today's neighborhoods and towns. People do not stay in the same home anymore. Where I grew up, just about every immediate neighbor was people who had lived in the houses since the 1940s and even the 30s. And they stayed till they passed away. These same folks had pride in their homes and yards and community. These days???? You are doing good to see a family stay in the same house for 5-10 years. Society has become lazy as hell and ZERO social skills. There's a reason why HOAs exist. My ex and I built a brand new house, 19 years ago. There were about 15 houses on our street that were built with ours or maybe a year older. 19 years later, there is ONE couple that was there when we built. Half the houses on the street look like absolute $H**! Needless to say, there was not an HOA there.
These days, you might get lucky and find a street of close nit neighbors but entire towns are VERY rare. Crime is rampant, bums are everywhere. I mean BUMS and not people down on their luck. Jacksonville is LOADED with shelters that have programs to help people get on track. They are rarely used. Too many simply enjoys the Nomad lifestyle. Just yesterday, I saw a able bodied guy, smoking a cigarette and holding a phone, holding a "Anything will help" cardboard sign. Funny thing was, he was FIVE feet from the Zaxbys sign that read... "HIRING! Come join our team." Jacksonville USED to have several nice parts of town. My old neighborhood is LONG gone. It's hard not to hear of a daily shooting. Houses cost $$$$$$. But who wants to pay $$$$$$ to live around Dirt Bags??
My Wife and I have our sights on Cleveland, Georgia some day. But being a desirable area, that market is skyrocketing. AND.....The blight n crime from Atlanta is slowly but surely headed outward...as far as Gainesville, Ga.