The world of Pokemon is a wondrous, almost utopian place where humans and Pokemon (and, presumably, animals, too) live together in harmony. It might be nice for 10-year-olds to be able to set off into the world on their quest to catch 'em all, but at a certain point, it's nice to put roots down and put all those match winnings to good use. But just like in real life, there are good neighborhoods and there are bad ones.

Related

6 Pokemon Who Could Replace Pikachu As The Franchise's Mascot

Pikachu is seen as the iconic mascot for the Pokemon franchise, but could another Pokemon be just as recognizable?

Many places in the Pokemon franchise might seem exciting or pleasant while passing through, but in reality, life there would be harder than mountaineering would be for a level-two Magikarp. Others are dead-end Diglet dumps, obvious even to wandering trainers passing through to get their badge. If a "for sale" sign gets hung up in any of these places, even someone desperate for a place of their own should slip on their running shoes and sprint as fast as they can until the music changes.

6 Fortree

Hoen - Ruby, Sapphire, Emerald; Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire

• While charming and picturesque, insect invaders would make life there unbearable
• Climbing up and down ladders every single day would quickly make living in a tree house lose its luster

Every kid dreams of being able to live in a treehouse out in the forest. It's an immediately compelling place to imagine living and must have some incredible views, but as one resident points out in Ruby & Sapphire, living with bugs just isn't all that fun. Anyone who has ever gone camping will know that insects (especially the blood-sucking ones) are a menace, especially at night.

Being so surrounded by so many trees would make using repellents an exercise in futility, as there wouldn't be enough cans of the stuff in the world to keep the bedbugs at Bayleef. Not only that, but imagine having to haul groceries or water up and down those ladders. Nice to visit once in a while, but after one night sleeping in those huts, even the biggest kids at heart would bug out and leave.

5 Lavender Town

Kanto - Red, Blue, & Yellow; Gold, Silver, & Crystal; Let's Go Pikachu / Eevee

• For goths and ghost fans only
• Lavender Town was so creepy in the original games that the Pokemon Tower was replaced in the sequels

The giant, haunted cemetery tower is probably the only thing anyone from outside knows about Lavender Town, and it's the only thing any house hunter should know about the place. Although the Pokemon Tower of the Pokemon Red/Blue/Yellow/Let's Go era was demolished and replaced by a radio tower by the time of Pokemon Gold & Silver, and the bodies of the deceased were exhumed and placed in the House of Memories, those ghostly Pokemon and the stories of their hauntings still likely remain.

3:09

Related

The 21 Creepiest Pokemon Ever (That Are More Intense Than You Remember)

Not all Pokémon are as cute and cuddly as Pikachu. These guys are way too creepy to ignore.

Radio listeners' sets could go haywire with creepy sounds in the night, whispers from long-dead Pokemon. Terrifying! For anyone whose favorite color isn't purple and whose favorite music isn't the creepiest tune ever played in a Pokemon game, Lavender Town might not be the most relaxing place to settle down.

4 Ever Grande "City"

Hoen - Ruby, Sapphire, & Emerald; Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire

• Isolated from the world, and pretty much human beings in general
• Difficult to access given that a waterfall seems to be the only way to reach the top

Welcome to Ever Grande, population: approximately zero. For a "city," it sure is sparse, even for a settlement depicted in a Pokemon game. In Ruby & Sapphire, and their remakes (in which Game Freak had the chance to expand the population but didn't), there's a Pokemon Center, a Poke Mart, and the Elite Four building, and that's about it. The place is so small that it makes even the smallest Kanto hamlets look like mega metropolises.

Even for those looking for a secluded spot, there aren't even any houses to buy. Good luck getting building materials up the waterfall, which is the only way in. Anyone climbing it probably has their minds entirely focused on the final battle ahead. The city is cut in half by a cave system filled with dangerous, high-level Pokemon, so even the idea of starting a family and raising a young Pokemon trainer seems pretty irresponsible here.

3 Cinnabar Island

Kanto - Red, Blue, & Yellow; Gold, Silver, & Crystal; Let's Go Pikachu / Eevee

• After the eruption, Cinnabar Island became a desolate and unwelcoming place
• Before the eruption, Cinnabar was also a desolate (if slightly more welcoming) place

In Pokemon Red & Blue, the fire gym's ominous and foreboding "Volcano Badge," awarded for being able to beat its leader, almost made it obvious that something hot was rumbling underfoot on Cinnabar. Who would possibly have wanted to make their home on the island even before the eruption in the Gold and Silver era? Not a soul seemed to live there, although there was a convenient Poke Mart and Pokemon Center located right next to the gym, as well as a lab and an abandoned mansion.

Perhaps the mansion's owner also knew about the disaster ahead of time, hence the empty, Koffing-infested ruins. Even at a low price, property near a recently active volcano makes for a poor investment. It's also rumored that a glitchy Pokemon makes its home off the island's coast, and who knows what living near such an entity could do to someone exposed to it for so long?

2 Mauville

Hoen - Ruby, Sapphire, & Emerald; Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire

• An extremely dull "just passing through" town in the original games
• A soulless, glorified mall in the Alpha/Saphire remakes

Home of the Electric-type gym, Mauville is arguably the blandest and copy-pasted town in all the Pokemon games. Nothing really distinguishes it from other places besides the extremely expensive bikes at the bicycle shop, which have been thoughtlessly left outside to rust. Economically, there isn't much going on. The only business in town, Greater Mauville Holdings, seems cursed, as every one of its projects has been doomed to failure.

Related

Every Poke Ball In The Pokemon Games, Ranked

Poke Balls are a crucial part of the Pokemon experience. Here's every type of Poke Ball in Nintendo's games.

During the development of the Omega and Alpha remakes, it's possible that a Game Freak designer misheard their supervisor when they were told to "make Mallville" (presumably the Japanese word is the same as in English) because, in the next-gen rendition, the nothing and nowhere town ends up resembling an oversized mall where people just happen to sleep. Its confusing layout and the lack of sunlight are sure to shock any house hunters who come to poke around with thoughts of putting down a deposit for one of its weird homes.

1 Po Town

Alola - Sun & Moon; UltraSun & UltraMoon

• Many buildings here are abandoned, run-down, and covered with gang tags
• Criminal activity in the whole area is rife, and the gang has even taken over the Pokemon Center

This place is the very definition of a "bad neighborhood," and stands out as a dark and foreboding place in one of the brightest and most beautiful regions in the Pokemon world. Team Skull have basically taken over Po Town, including the big mansion at the end of the road, known as the Shady House, and all the services and amenities expected of a regular town or city. In UltraSun & UltraMoon, trainers are even expected to pay in cash (instead of a "please" and "thank you") at the Pokemon Center.

Only an evil organization like Team Skull could come up with something as dastardly as making people pay money for their healthcare. Besides that, Po Town has many abandoned houses, which may seem enticing for someone looking to buy property, but any potential homeowner should probably ask why they ended up abandoned in the first place (the answer probably has something to do with crime).

MORE: Terribly Designed Pokemon (That Are Incredibly Strong)