Should I buy a house on a busy street?

Pros: if it's a busy street there's probably a lot going on and you may be within walking distance to many popular destinations including malls, box stores and restaurants.

If you need noise to sleep at night then openning your window will provide ample ambient sound (traffic) of course you'll run into the occasional horn or emergency vehicle.

If you have children you want to get rid of, with all the traffic all you have to do is teach them to run in front of cars and you're golden (lol).

If you ever decide to start a home-based business you'll have lots of cars passing by reading the sign in your front yard instead of having to shell out hundreds of dollars per month for a billboard.

There will be a lot of trash/litter by your curb. You can burn some of this in a home based incinerator to keep your home warm in the winter or can be used to start a fire in your fire place. You can also recycle the aluminum cans for cash. Some places you can still get cash for glass too.

If you're the exterior decorating kind of person for the holidays, you will get a lot of people seeing your house. This may help if a local organization runs a best Christmas Lights contest. Since a lot of people see your house, if you do a good job you'll get more votes than an equal display on a cul-de-sac.

If you get drunk at the bar and need a ride home from a cab or a random person from the bar they're going to know where you live since you're on a street everyone travels. Certainly alot easier than the one-way street off the cul-de-sac in the housing development.

If commercial development explodes in the area the land your home is on may double, triple, quadruple even quintuple in value over a few short years.

I've listed only pros here since you said you know the cons.

Being able to afford it is a big pro! I think it depends a lot on your personality. I used to live in the burbs, and I hated it. Very quiet, neighbors always in your business. Now I live in the middle of a big city, and I love it! There's always something going on, and the traffic noise is sort of comforting. If you can live with the things that go with a busy street; i.e., more dust, more noise..then go for it!

You will constantly get to see the comings and goings of the world. People will stop and say hi always. People can easily find your house. You will have street noise to lull you to sleep. You'll never be lonely. The cars will drown out the sound of your lawn mower so you won't ever disturb your neighbors. How's that for a start? :D

The only reason I would not is because I have a small child. Knowing him, he would run after his ball in the street and that would be devistating!

well its good if you have an emergency ..lots of people around

You won't be lonely all the time.