What's Lockport NY like? (Buffalo, Rochester: sales, real estate, renting)
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I'm thinking of moving to upstate NY from S.California and Lockport looks like a place of interest. I don't have kids in school and I'm self employed, working from home.
I know the winters are tough but what about the crime rate? Why are properties so cheap in Lockport? What's the catch?
Lockport is a small town & crime really isn't a big deal (though I have heard that there is a little bit of a drug problem within the town). Its close enough to Buffalo that you can commute but far enough away that violent crime really doesn't roll over. One of the major "catches" may be that Lockport's property taxes are high even by WNY standards, I believe they hit you with something in the area of $3800-$4000 in property tax per $100K assessed property value.
Lockport is a small town & crime really isn't a big deal (though I have heard that there is a little bit of a drug problem within the town). Its close enough to Buffalo that you can commute but far enough away that violent crime really doesn't roll over. One of the major "catches" may be that Lockport's property taxes are high even by WNY standards, I believe they hit you with something in the area of $3800-$4000 in property tax per $100K assessed property value.
Total Town, County and School taxes on a house assessed at $120K are $3,963 in the Town of Lockport. Thus an assessment of 100K will result in a tax of $3,300 - $3,400. Though they are supposed to be at full assessment a quick check of real estate sales will show that a home sold for $100K last year will be assessed at about $85K the next year.
Lockport receives about 40 to 50% LESS snow on average than does Erie County due to the fact that it is east of the Niagara pennisula and not east of Lake Erie. Lockport has it's own daily newspaper and it's own locally programmed radio station.
The Town and City have a stable population base the combined population of the two entities having grown 11% from 1980 to 2000 going from a combined 37,786 to a combined 41,932. For reference in 1970 the combined population was 33,576.
Population of the Town of Lockport itself has grown as follows per the US Census Bureau:
Indeed the population of Eastern Niagara County is unique in the Buffalo metro in that the combined population of the the City of Lockport and the 9 Towns that make of Eastern Niagara County have shown population gains at each Census since at least 1940. With the population having increased from 46,829 in 1940 to 63,769 in 1960, 68,935 in 1970 and all the way up to 80,266 in 2000.
The catch? Lockport is freaking boring and generic. I like small towns and I like boring ... I don't like closed-up empty strip malls right behind brand new strip malls with the same stores. It is just so depressing to look at. I feel like every time I visit my parents, it just looks more and more pitiful.
People are friendly and real estate is cheap - at the cost of high taxes, as pointed out above. But the major social gathering place is Walmart and there are few restaurants/other places that feel worth visiting. However, if that doesn't bother you, or if you're a homebody anyway, there are some really nice historic districts with pretty architecture, and the drive to areas with more 'stuff' isn't too bad.
My feelings are, though, if I am going to live in a small town that requires a drive for anything social or shopping that isn't Walmart, I'd rather live in a slightly more rural, less loud/light polluted place, of which there is plenty in Niagara County.
Thanks to all for the replies - I appreciate the detailed information. I can handle boring as it's a fair trade for cheap, and I suppose cheap is a fair trade for high property tax, at least with an entry level (dump) fixer of a house. I'm currently renting and property tax is paradise in comparison.
If I may piggy-back some questions on a question... what about my second option, Jamestown? (I know, I could list every upstate city in turn,.. "what about.... and what about..., and how about Syracuse....?".) Jamestown 14701 a violent crime rate of 3.0 (national average) and a property crime rate of 5.0. Should I be too worried about these numbers or does Jamestown crime narrow down more to specific streets? I lived for over ten years in LA county and a single street or two would make the difference between a leafy green upscale suburb and a crack-ridden ghetto. I don't want to look at someone 'wrong' and get shot.
I'm really attracted to Lockport because of the old locks and rustic laid back appearance. Kinda looks like Amsterdam. Any other upstate NY recommendations would be greatly appreciated though. Priorities are cheap cheap property and low crime. Low priorities are the weather and the boredom.
Thanks to all for the replies - I appreciate the detailed information. I can handle boring as it's a fair trade for cheap, and I suppose cheap is a fair trade for high property tax, at least with an entry level (dump) fixer of a house. I'm currently renting and property tax is paradise in comparison.
Any other upstate NY recommendations would be greatly appreciated though. Priorities are cheap cheap property and low crime. Low priorities are the weather and the boredom.
You really need to come up to WNY and spend time visiting the different towns, villages, and cities. You do not have to settle for high crime or a dump of a house. There are very few truly "bad" areas overall, and very few "expensive" areas (especially by California price standards). Your biggest choices are likely the terrain you desire (flat mostly North, hilly mostly South), size of house and property, water access (lake, river, creek, etc), urbanization (dense city, dense town/village, industrial mix, suburban, rural), distance from Buffalo (closer to major shopping and activities), and as a newcomer the amount of snow you can handle per season (<50 inches Northtowns to 200+ inches Southtowns).
There are plenty of similar cities in that 15,000-50,000 range, give or take. You might like Batavia, which is in between Buffalo and Rochester. Perhaps Olean, which has St. Bonaventure University nearby. If you go outside of WNY, Elmira might work, as Chemung County has some of the lowest taxes in the state, if not the lowest. You would be close to Ithaca, which is Upst[e NY's version of Berkeley, but probably not as extreme. Auburn is another community that would work, as you can get a decent home for 50k in parts of that city. Oswego, Watertown, Cortland, Gloversville/Johnstown, Glens Falls, Rome, Oneonta, Plattsburgh, Massena, Ogdensburg, Geneva and maybe even Canandaigua would work too.
Downtown Lockport
Bewley Building - Downtown Lockport
Upside Down Bridge - Lockport, NY
http://www.niagaracounty.com/images/gtb.jpg (broken link)
Triangle Building - Downtown Lockport across from Bewley building
New Yahoo facility - Lockport, NY
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_c5KqT_ahvKw/SlXrc0LEtVI/AAAAAAAAAPY/jcr5b-AZAho/s1600/altro+park+lockport+free+movies.jpg (broken link)
Free summer night movies in the park
If its between Lockport & Jamestown I'd choose Lockport & not even give it a second thought. As mentioned previously Lockport has a small town feel but you're also close enough to a nice sized metro area where its no big deal to drive into Buffalo for shopping, entertainment or whatever. Niagara Falls is also close by & Rochester isn't too far away either. You also have easy access to Lake Erie & Lake Ontario as well as some very scenic areas in northern Niagara County. Jamestown is somewhat secluded as its the biggest town in the area but its like an hour & a half from Buffalo & an hour from Erie, Pa. All of Upstate has their economic issues but several decades ago Jamestown was hit rather hard & I dont know if it will ever recover, on the other hand with the addition of Yahoo & talk of other companies moving to the area, Lockport's economy stands do very well in the future.
Thanks to all for the great help. Thank you donbuy for the pictures. The free movies in the park has me even more sold on Lockport. ; )
It's a little late in the season to look now but as soon as the snow clears in the spring I'll fly out and go house hunting.
The insider advice is well appreciated.
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