Moving to a new city, especially if you're being relocated because of work or another situation where you feel like you're lacking total control of where to go, is a tough situation full of plenty of chances to make bad decisions for you and your family. Before you end up in a neighborhood that's less than ideal for your lifestyle, you might want to consult Homethinking, a Web site that matches up neighborhoods in two different cities based on their 'personality.' A closer look and our own personal gripe with this site, after the jump...
Real estate web site Homethinking compares neighborhoods in different cities to help you find a new neighborhood you'll like. Say, for example, you want to leave New York for Los Angeles. Homethinking tells you which neighborhoods in LA might fit your tastes based on which neighborhoods you like in New York (e.g., East Villagers might like Los Feliz or Echo Park).
For a more detailed look at how the neighborhoods match up in the categories of culture, people and activities, you can click on a specific neighborhood.
I personally don't know how well this works. I tried to compare the city I grew up in, Miami, with the city I now live in, Atlanta, but most of the neighborhoods I love in Miami are missing or miscategorized (by my standards) and Atlanta isn't even on the list. Why don't you Angelenos and Manhattanites give this Web site a spin and let us know how well it matched your expectations?

And whenever or wherever you do decide to move, be a good Unplgg'r and pack up your stuff with the digital message tape.
I tried this with San Francisco and San Jose (I've resided in both areas), and the matchup neighborhood was ridiculous.
view stickyricemama's profile
Agreed, the results are only slightly better than a dartboard. (And some of the neighborhoods I've honestly never heard of.) It's just a real estate ad dressed up to get blog hits.
I don't think you're directed to the "best matches" so much as the ones that have lots of properties that realtors need to get rid of. For most NYC neighborhoods, you don't get their Pittsburgh equivalents by a long shot, but mostly neighborhoods where people aren't clamoring to live.
view pwl's profile
Glen Park is like Brownsville?
useless
view amanda bee's profile