Buffalo officially second poorest city in country (New York, Amherst: mortgage, credit)

[londonbarcelona]

Originally Posted by Dee62

Buffalo Attracts many poor because the Median cost of a home is less than the Median price of a house in the East or West coast areas! This is not a situation unique to Buffalo. Most cities and towns North and West of Duchess County have suffered an influx of Poor people looking for an affordable place to live. However once they move to these low cost of living places they realize that they cannot find Work. And or the price to fix or maintanin the home is greater than what they will be able to resell it for. As a result mass abandonment. Buffalo will look like Detroit very soon.

Nahhhhhh......... Buffalo's hit bottom. I don't think that things will ever get "rosy" in Buffalo, but I think it's fallen as far as it will go. We can thank the economy for that. In a bizzare way, Buffalo's low cost of living (especially housing) will keep/attract enough people to keep it at status quo.

[bluebonnetbabe]

There is a job that my spouse is looking into that would require us to move to Buffalo. We currently live in the Dallas/Ft.Worth area and love it here. I know nothing about Buffalo and would like to know the pros and cons of the area. Also, if anyone has ever lived in the DFW area or San Antonio, TX area, how does Buffalo compare? (besides the obvious difference in climate) How bad are the winters? After reading a lot of the different posts about Buffalo, I am really concerned about all the negative things I've read. What's good about the city? Are there good schools? Neighborhoods? What area is THE BEST to live for families with middle school and high school children? Are there areas close to Buffalo (within 30 minutes) that are better to live?

[bmd69]

Suburbs are good. Winters are totally overated there. Their not like they were many years ago.

I lived in the snowbelt region for forty years and that's where all the snow is.

[bmd69]

If you like the country without alot of major shopping then I would say East Aurora or Elma.

[bluebonnetbabe]

so, is most of the bad stuff I'm hearing about Buffalo specifically about Buffalo proper and not the surrounding areas/ suburbs? I haven't really read anything flattering about the city or what it has to offer. I'm sure there has to be some redeeming qualities, right? I'm very skeptical about the area and would like to know all of the good, positive as well as the bad, the ugly, etc.

If we did move to the area, we would want to be within a 20-30 minute drive to the airport.Top quality schools would be a priority,(what is better, private or public school?) as well as a nice neighborhood where crime is not an issue, close to shopping,dining, parks,recreational areas. What areas are the prettiest/well cared for?

[bmd69]

[bmd69]

Originally Posted by bmd69

Has alot to offer, give it a chance

[UpstaterInBklyn]

If we did move to the area, we would want to be within a 20-30 minute drive to the airport.Top quality schools would be a priority,(what is better, private or public school?) as well as a nice neighborhood where crime is not an issue, close to shopping,dining, parks,recreational areas. What areas are the prettiest/well cared for?

I've said this before and I'll say it again...

The Buffalo area, especially the suburbs, offers an excellent quality of life and is a great place to raise a family IF you have a stable career there. If you are considering a good stable job offer, you should not hesitate to come. The problem with people leaving, especially young people, has to do with lack of opportunity for long-term career success, especially in certain industries.

To address your points specifically:

20-30 minutes from the airport - in the Buffalo metro area, you are not more than 20-30 minutes from anywhere. It is a much smaller metro than DFW, and traffic is not a problem.

Nice neighborhoods/low crime - just about anywhere outside the city limits or within the city's North side. Crime in the city is pretty generally contained within the East and West Side ghettos.

Top quality schools - Again, just about anywhere in the suburbs has good public schools. City schools are a mess. Clarence, Williamsville and Orchard Park (which also happen to be the most affluent suburbs) are the top rated.

Close to shopping/dining/parks - I'd say the most diverse shopping and dining options - assuming you are not looking for the usual suburban chain stuff - is in the city along Elmwood Ave, but you will also find lots of choices in in Amherst/Williamsville. The city has a beautiful park system designed by Fredrick Law Olmstead (the designer of NYC's Central Park) but it is under-maintained. The suburban communities all have parks that have nice recreational facilities. They are not what you'd call places of natural beauty, but are clean and well maintained, with lots of organized recreational programs for children. There are also a number of state parks and county parks throughout the area, some of which are quite beautiful.

Personally, if you are looking for a solid suburban community with great schools, shopping and family-friendly recreation, I'd look first at Amherst, Williamsville, Clarence, and Orchard Park.

Please search this board and you'll find a lot of good information that has already been given on specific communities and school systems. I think your pessimism will start to lift!

[bluebonnetbabe]

Is Grand Island a good place to live? how far is that from the airport? I saw a beautiful waterfront property on realtor.com that was for sale there. what other areas have waterfront homes?

[steffali]

Originally Posted by bluebonnetbabe

There is a job that my spouse is looking into that would require us to move to Buffalo. We currently live in the Dallas/Ft.Worth area and love it here. I know nothing about Buffalo and would like to know the pros and cons of the area. Also, if anyone has ever lived in the DFW area or San Antonio, TX area, how does Buffalo compare? (besides the obvious difference in climate) How bad are the winters? After reading a lot of the different posts about Buffalo, I am really concerned about all the negative things I've read. What's good about the city? Are there good schools? Neighborhoods? What area is THE BEST to live for families with middle school and high school children? Are there areas close to Buffalo (within 30 minutes) that are better to live?

We just moved to Clarence from Long Island and we really enjoy the neighborhood, the people here are very friendly and we are close to alot of stores on Transit Rd. like some one else had said nothing is more than 20-30 minutes away. Good luck!