Before buying a home in a sports city, evaluate your lifestyle to determine if it's truly the right place for you.

FINDING FUN

Because sports stadiums are a magnet for crowds, Lynch observes that he and Allman have plenty of mini bars and restaurants they can visit as well as the harbor. The stadiums also attract other big sporting events, like soccer and lacrosse.

"We get a lot of college games, and the Mountain Dew Action Sports Tour. There's a lot of cool stuff that goes on around here," says Lynch, "and I think everybody in the area, whether they're from Baltimore or not, enjoys the festival-type atmosphere."

Matt French, 34, his wife, Dayle, their 1-year-old son, Hudson, and their golden retriever, Hank, live in a condo across the street from Petco Park, the home of the San Diego Padres. French, who works for an information technology service company, used to live in San Francisco and dreamed of living next to AT&T Park. But life got in the way, he moved to San Diego for work reasons and when the chance came to move into a condo adjoining Petco Park, he grabbed it.

He used to have season tickets, but he says his job is so unpredictable, he stopped that. Still, he can buy tickets for $7 and often takes his family to the games. Fortunately, Dayle's a big baseball fan as well.

French says that a big benefit of living so close to the stadium is that "if you're a social person, all of your friends want to come down and visit and be at the center of the action."

For French, there simply isn't any downside to living so close to a sports arena. Not even gridlock. "Sometimes I take the train, but I drive too, and I've gotta be honest. The Padres are having a difficult season, so traffic isn't that big of a deal," says French, before acknowledging: "But it can be crazy when it's busy."

Still, the craziness is arguably part of the charm. "We love having the ballpark as our backyard. Yes, it can be crazy, but we love being in the middle of all the action," says French before suddenly sounding like a member of the city's chamber of commerce. "San Diego has done a tremendous job creating an inviting environment for fans of the Padres, plus those that live in the area. The stadium has a park in center field that they open to the public when games aren't scheduled. It's our playground. The Padres security and staff know us by name and love our dog. It's a very cool environment that's keeping us from moving to suburbia."

French's one regret is that his home doesn't face directly into the stadium, as some of the condo units do -- and thus, those people can literally watch the games from their balconies. "If I could do it again, I would have spent a few more dollars," laments French. "Those opportunities don't come along every day, and if you're going to do it, do it right."

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