movin'up 2 Albany,NY ?*&$^ (New York, Schenectady: schools, college, tax rates)

[speeder]

we're texans and we're heading up to Albany,NY. havin' 2nd thoughts though. dunno know what to expect with pretty much everything!!! need a whole lot of convincing. But still so so excited! I'm an rn! Is it a gud thing to move up there or not?

[Pidgett]

Hi Speeder,

Welcome to Albany. You would need to be more specific with what concerns you have about the move, so that we posters here on the NYS forum can best address such concerns. For exmple, when you say you've had second thoughts, but are also excited about your move to Albany, perhaps you can tell us in your next post the answers to these questions, in order to be of meaningful help to you:

Have you been to Albany before? New York State/New England?
Are you familiar with our weather? Do you like snow? Winter temperatures as low as minus 20 F? Do you like changes in seasons? Are you aware of the general personality differences between Texans and Northeasterners? Are you from a big Texas mega-city? Are you aware that Albany only has a population of 100,000 in the city proper and about 500,000 for the tri-cities, five county area? Do you know about NYS's high tax rate? Are you familiar with the lay-out of the Albany/Schenectady/Troy infrastructure? Have you heard about our school systems vs the Texas systems?

I look forward to helping you, as best as I can. I'm sure I speak for other posters as well!

Pidgett

[ss58yy]

Originally Posted by speeder

... Is it a gud thing to move up there or not?

Sure -- Someday I might move (my main home) up to the Albany area, also known as the Capital District. Personally, I'd much rather move there than Texas.

As for being -20F in the winter, that doesn't happen all that often -- when it does, it usually makes the newspaper headlines. I spent 5 winters in the Capital District a few decades ago, and it got to -20F perhaps once or twice per year, and -28F was the coldest I ever saw. With the recent global warming, things may be a lot milder now.

[Vagus]

Originally Posted by speeder

we're texans and we're heading up to Albany,NY.

Egad, why? As much as I like the Albany area, I can't imagine ex-Texans (Ex-ans? ) being very happy there. Especially if you're coming from a major city (Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, Austin . . . ). But then again, I could be wrong. Hope you end up liking it . . .

[emmi]

My husband and I moved back to upstate New York from Arizona 3 years ago to be closer to our aging parents. We were both brought up in the Horseheads/Elmira area, but had old friends living in the Albany area, so decided to settle here. I regret it every day. While the landscape is beautiful, I find the majority of people here to be rude....no common courtesy at all (no "excuse me" when bumping into you, no holding the door for the people behind them). I have worked with people at the same job for 3 years and they barely acknowledge you when you walk past them in the hall. All everyone does is complain about everything (weather, eachother, etc). For the 1st time in my life, I feel like I don't have any real friends close by. This feeling was only reinforced when we vacationed back in Tucson in February...everyone was so friendly and kind. I had a conversation with a girl who moved here a couple of years ago from Charlotte N.C. - she feels the exact same way and cannot wait to leave. I know there are a lot of folks out there who will take offense at what I'm saying, but I cannot help how I feel. I may have been brought up in upstate New York, but Arizona feels more like home. As soon as we're able, we're headed back west.

On the postivie side: 1. in terms of winter weather, if you have to live in upstate, Albany is your best choice. 2.the landscape is absolutely beautiful, especially up towards the Adirondacks... Autumn here will bring tears to your eyes. 3. Housing prices are really good in most places (though taxes can be high) 4. there are a lot of great schools in the area and 5. you're really close to NYC and the coast, so it's easy to take a few days and get away to Cape Cod, Manhattan, etc.

[Pidgett]

The last paragraph of Emmi's above post makes the negatives that she mentions in the first paragraph inconsequential...(thank goodness!!)

Emmi's experience with cold, unfriendly co-workers is unfortunate; I totally empathize with her. I would not, however, make the assumption that upstaters are rude in general. You want rude? Head straight down to NYC, Long Island, New Jersey or Connecticut for starters.....then you'll have "rude" as rude can be....

Of course, keep in mind, that people are alike all over. The generalizations are just that...generalizations, and individuals vary as much as patterns in snowflakes....we're all unique on the personal level.

So, Speeder, our OP, please post with specific concerns...we'll try to help..

Best,

Pidgett

[ernieb]

i like albany a lot, even though i left the area to go to college. it will get very cold, the tax rates are outrageous and the economy is not the great i dont think. with all that being said, i learned a lot of great life lessons from being in albany. are you planning on raising a family there? there is a lot of bad stuff that happens in albany but if you keep a close eye on your kids you should be fine