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I've read through just about everything I can find about the Buffalo area on the forum and now I need some specific information, please. My husband has just accepted a job with a company in the Elma/East Aurora area and we need to move from Erie, PA as soon as possible.
We would like to be fairly close to his work, as he isn't too keen on driving too far in snow. What suburbs would be best for a family of four that has just relocated from England to America? We have two children who both fall in the "gifted/talented" spectrum and would need extra support in that area, so good schools are critical. We want somewhere that meets all the usual demands like safe, clean, etc.
Someone said that the various suburbs have different "characters"...can anyone expand on that, please? Real stories about the good and bad at various schools would be great. Any help would be greatly appreciated!
If you dont want to have to drive, East Aurora is a beautiful community and has a fantastic shool system. The houses are old and well kept, but expensive if you are looking to purchase. Elma is also very nice, similar feel and is a border town to East Aurora. I've interacted with people from both communities via sporting events and they are very down to earth. Southern Lancaster may be a good area for you as well, it borders elma and is about 15 minutes from East Aurora, with affordable housing and a great school system. I think the different "personalities" or areas were specific factions of people occupy are more in the city.
CW1095 Made some valid points, the East Aurora school district is a good one. Williamsville and Clarence are probably the best known in regard to higher education in this area - the drive would be maybe 30-45 minutes tops from that area to East Aurora, so that of course would also be something you would want to take into consideration.
Welcome to the area!!!!!!!
The other thing is snow - East Aurora will normally get more snow than the northtowns, like Williamsville and Clarence - now that's certainly not a reason not to move there........ but for some people it plays a deciding role, so it is something to think about.
East Aurora is quaint and very nice, it can be expensive though - but so can Williamsville and Clarence, budget is another deciding factor.... I'll look some prices up for you to give you some idea between those areas so you have an idea and post them here for you to see what each towns prices look like.
What about Orchard Park? I read somewhere that their schools were supposed to be good, but the area is expensive? We have a bit of money to work with as we lived in England for eleven years and house prices tripled over there while we were there!
We don't have a fortune, but we probably have more for a downpayment than most.
What about Orchard Park? I read somewhere that their schools were supposed to be good, but the area is expensive? We have a bit of money to work with as we lived in England for eleven years and house prices tripled over there while we were there!
We don't have a fortune, but we probably have more for a downpayment than most.
Here's a little to go by to start you off - however, expensive to one person is cheap to another, so not knowing your needs and expectations, it's hard to say....
I went through inventory on 4 bedrooms with at least 2 full baths for resell value - you may need a larger home, that I have no idea.....but this formula is pretty good starting point for the basic home..... I have aquant, that just moved here from UK that couldnt find what they wanted and built a 700k homr to suite thier needs, so everyone is different.
Orchard Park - available right now 14 on the market between 150-250k
Clarence - 9 on the market between 150-250
Williamsville - 32 on the market between 150-250
East Aurora - 2 on the market between 150-250 - however if you go higher in price say between 200-500k - the number jumps up to 8 (I know it's not that much)
Highest taxes will be Williamsville, but really not that much higher than the others, it will also be the bigger bang for the buck in square footage - btw the people that I mentioned above, built in Williamsville.
Orchard Park schools are fine - I have heard personal stories of good and bad.
You want to look at school rankings, Business First puts out a list every year, IF schooling is the most important thing for you ( I dont know if that is #1) on your list or not) then you probably should be looking in Williamsville and or Clarence - they go head to head every year based on eduation.
The southtowns as I mentioned will get more snow - if you like it, it's perfect, if not, that will be a problem - the Northtowns dont get as much - I have friends that live in both areas and enjoy each one for what they are.
What you need to do is what you are doing now - figuring out where you want to live, once you do that, you will be able to tour with an agent and make a decision in a weekend - if you dont narrrow down an area - literally it could take you months - with pick say, Orchard Park and East Aurora or pick Williamsville and Clarence - I assure you that once you figure out where you are going to be looking - your life will be much calmer....
I hope this helped some........... today is a computer day for me, I hope I get some actual work done
Marilla is an option; some is in the E. Aurora school district. IMHO, South Lancaster is nothing but developments and they still go up like mad and are crowded into tiny lots while the rest of the town is basically on 1 acre ( or larger) lots.... other than the village, that is. I live on the E. Lancaster / Alden border and there are 3 or more school districts in the town of Lancaster : Lancaster, and Alden and Clarence are fine. Schoolwise, there is also Depew district and even -- in one small spot -- possibly a Cheektowaga system ( I am not sure on that).[ We have family in the town in 2 districts: Lancaster and Depew.]
You need to see the school district map, which not everyone is pointing out. Town lines are NOT school district lines. An example: My road has areas which are in 3 districts (Lancaster, Alden and Clarence) and that is just in a 3 mile length of it!
You also need to decide whether you want a town atmosphere or rural. My road is rural, but if I go into "town", Lancaster has a lovely village with everything in walking distance: Post Office, Town Hall, Churches, supermarket ( grocery), library, stores ( not a lot).... you get the idea. Alden has a village as well, although smaller. Willaimsville and E. Aurora have villages, the bigger villages in the area.
When I say village, I mean a town center formed in the 1800s which is still basically intact and has everything you need in a small area. Note: I do not count developments as part of a village; they are "car country": basically, you are going to need a car to get anywhere and the houses are cookie cutter boring. Rural, you need the car and ther houses go from new to quite old ( farmhouses) and many in between.
I would decide what type of area you want, then go see the school district map ( a district has to provide one at their office) and make sure what district your choice of house is in. [I have one relative who lives in the village of Depew, but the part of the village which is in the town of Cheektowaga and is in the Lancaster schools. No rationale for it. Across the street from her are kids in Depew schools.]
Homework is needed here.
Last edited by BuffaloTransplant; 11-19-2008 at 08:13 PM..
Reason: spelling and addition
You need to see the school district map, which not everyone is pointing out. Town lines are NOT school district lines. An example: My road has areas which are in 3 districts (Lancaster, Alden and Clarence) and that is just in a 3 mile length of it!
Valid point and the only reason I did not point that out is because I assumed she had a realtor that would be doing that for them........ BT is right, just because you live in a particular town does not mean the schools are in that town at all - make sure it's listed on the property disclosure.
This is all getting a bit complicated! I really appreciate all the advice. We *should* have a realtor on board very soon as the company has provided one (we just have to talk to the right person, apparently, and they will let us know who it is)! I was getting confused about schools versus towns as I saw some houses in some areas with different school districts listed, but it is clearly more complicated then I realised!
And I'm not sure about rural versus town. After eleven years on the Isle of Man (where there are 75,000 people in an area 33 miles by 13 and the biggest shopping area has about ten shops), the thought of living in Buffalo with multiple MALLS is just a bit overwhelming! Even small towns will probably feel quite large to us, and the further we can be from the big city the better!
We have driven around Orchard Park, East Aurora and Clarence (though we didn't see much more than a few housing estates there) and all seemed quite nice, really.
I don't think we want anything too rural, as we don't want too much grass to cut! House plots in the UK are TINY and while we would love to have some space around us, we don't want to spend all weekend, every weekend cutting grass! (Though I have promised hubby a ride-on lawn mower once we get moved...he is excited!) Half an acre or even an acre would be good, much more would probably be too much. House plots in Clarence seemed a bit on the small side, but maybe that was just where we happened to be looking.
Anyway, thanks to everyone for all the advice so far. I can't wait to find a house and get moved! (Wherever we end up!)
what a relo does is assign an agent to you and that agent pays a referral to them - make sure you are comfortable with that person, if not, you should ask for another and keep looking until you find one, that is your choice - there are good and bad as in any business
welcome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i think you will enjoy it here, i really really do!!!!!!!
This is all getting a bit complicated! I really appreciate all the advice. We *should* have a realtor on board very soon as the company has provided one (we just have to talk to the right person, apparently, and they will let us know who it is)! I was getting confused about schools versus towns as I saw some houses in some areas with different school districts listed, but it is clearly more complicated then I realised!
And I'm not sure about rural versus town. After eleven years on the Isle of Man (where there are 75,000 people in an area 33 miles by 13 and the biggest shopping area has about ten shops), the thought of living in Buffalo with multiple MALLS is just a bit overwhelming! Even small towns will probably feel quite large to us, and the further we can be from the big city the better!
We have driven around Orchard Park, East Aurora and Clarence (though we didn't see much more than a few housing estates there) and all seemed quite nice, really.
I don't think we want anything too rural, as we don't want too much grass to cut! House plots in the UK are TINY and while we would love to have some space around us, we don't want to spend all weekend, every weekend cutting grass! (Though I have promised hubby a ride-on lawn mower once we get moved...he is excited!) Half an acre or even an acre would be good, much more would probably be too much. House plots in Clarence seemed a bit on the small side, but maybe that was just where we happened to be looking.
Anyway, thanks to everyone for all the advice so far. I can't wait to find a house and get moved! (Wherever we end up!)
A lot in a "standard" house development is about 60 feet by about 100/120 ft. deep in Lancaster; in the village, it can be quite smaller some 40 feet by 100 ft. Many local developments and villages fence lots -- I don't really like that as it makes me a bit claustrophobic looking at a solid fence . I live in the rural part of town on 4 acres ( legal smallest size lot is 1 acre here as we have septic, not sewer) - that translates roughly into 200 feet wide by over 800 feet deep; we have land across the road which is in another town. Our land is mostly trees; but the 200 X 200 feet that we mow needs a riding mower. A small lot in a village gererally doesn't and in developments, most people have them.
Another thing to check in any area is to go right to the Town Building Dept. and ask to see the FLOOD ZONE MAP. Many recent developments are in flood zones and builders don't tell people. With a mortgage, I believe you have to carry flood insurance with one. [As we are on a creek, with a mortgage we would need to, but as we own the house outright, we don't have to.] Same thing with fences: if you decide to buy on a corner, you have 2 front yards ( the sides which face the street) and you are restricted to height and location. ASK YOUR REALTOR FOR ALL THE FACTS!
You need to check with a Town Clerk for the correct census ( # of people) of the area you are going to. On this site, it says 10,000+/= for Lancaster; that is only the village. The town ( including the village) has about 40,000.
You should also look for playgrounds for your kids. Most towns have very nice ones. Clarence restricts theirs to only town residents with stickers. There are also several county parks: Como Lake Park [in Lancaster], Elma Meadows, Chestnut Ridge, Akron Falls... etc. etc.
I think you will find that multiple malls is not as great as it sounds when you get used to it. They all have branches of the same stores! [Personally, I prefer the smaller malls which take less time to walk: Eastern Hills, as opposed to the gargantuan Galleria ( you can spend a week and not see everything)... of course, Galleria has all the "odd" (one of a kind in the area) chain shops.] Still, small stores in small towns have lots of appeal -- we go to one family jeweler, one family pharmacy, etc. etc. - simply as we trust them.
etc., etc. etc.....
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