Long Island - what should i be ready for? (New York: property taxes, housing)

[Positiveone]

We are planning a move back to LI after being gone for 11 years. We know that the taxes will be high and the housing to.

But what else should we be ready to deal with? Like besides the cost of living why are so many leaving?

We know that traffic is an issue, but we have been to many large cities and the traffic isnt so great here in Vegas, or AZ or even Raleigh.

How are the LI schools these days? Like Huntington ? Is Walt Whitman still a safe school? When i graduated it was very safe, clean and nice. That was back in 87.

While the majority of High schools here in NV are full of gangs , stabbings and shootings.

The LI job market i'm not worried about since i have a job lined up.

So please fill me in on what to expect that i already dont know.

Thanks

[jfkIII]

Hi. To truly give you an unbiased view (and to avoid getting slammed by the ones who so defensively cherish their Long Island), I offer you this:

Long Island Index: Long Island's Changing Population

[jfkIII]

Another informative view of population shift is a site that I found from another poster (credit: bellafinzi) which shows both Nassau and Suffolk losing population:

Moving from county to county

[ClarkStreetKid]

Boy was the author of that first article hedging.

"Long Island’s population continues to diversify and lose young adults in the key 20–34 year old demographic."

"Increasing diversity can provide a cultural richness that many people value, but can also add to social tensions. In addition, some economists have found that workforce diversity leads to a stronger regional economy."

"Every year about twice the number of people moved from New York City, particularly from Queens, to Long Island than vice versa. Interestingly, more people move from Long Island to other suburban parts of the New York metropolitan area than move in the reverse direction."

"The population continues to age, with more people over 55 and fewer in their 20s and early 30s."
No hedging on that one.

[jfkIII]

I think two particular stats from that article paint an alarming picture of the widening gap...

1) "Particularly in the last two years, the number of out-migrants has grown from 68,000 in 2003 to 81,000 in 2005, while the number of in-migrants decreased slightly from 60,000 to 57,000."

2) "Since 2000, those over 55 increased from 23% to 25% of Long Island’s population, while those 20–34 decreased from 18% to 16%."


If things don't change down there...and change quickly, Nevada won't be the only place with ghost towns!

LI will become prime area for Depends, Viagra and morticians!

[lilibrarian]

I find the Newsday site very helpful in getting a picture of the schools. You can see a side by side comparison of graduation rates, Regents graduation rates, student passing state tests etc. Focus more on the high schools, that's where you can see the disparity, and which ones are stronger.

I've heard mixed things about Huntington, but not from anyone who lives there, so I wouldn't take their word. I hope someone from the area speaks up 'cuz I'd love to know. I do know that Greenlawn and Elwood district have among the best scores in Suffolk.

[GCGuy]

Originally Posted by ClarkStreetKid

Boy was the author of that first article hedging.

"Long Island’s population continues to diversify and lose young adults in the key 20–34 year old demographic."

"Increasing diversity can provide a cultural richness that many people value, but can also add to social tensions. In addition, some economists have found that workforce diversity leads to a stronger regional economy."

"Every year about twice the number of people moved from New York City, particularly from Queens, to Long Island than vice versa. Interestingly, more people move from Long Island to other suburban parts of the New York metropolitan area than move in the reverse direction."

"The population continues to age, with more people over 55 and fewer in their 20s and early 30s."
No hedging on that one.

This is just migrations, no? This doesn't count births and deaths. Overall, the population of both counties have grown, Suffolk much more than Nassau.

[4StanleyCups]

Originally Posted by Positiveone

We are planning a move back to LI after being gone for 11 years. We know that the taxes will be high and the housing to.

But what else should we be ready to deal with? Like besides the cost of living why are so many leaving?

IMO the Big Two (property taxes and housing costs) are the main reasons why 95% decide or want to leave.

Some may say it's because they want a more rural setting, more privacy, etc. Well, LI still has those areas BUT (back to square one again) the house prices and property taxes in those areas are high. Meaning higher than many can either afford or want to pay. You can still get acres of land on LI but it'll cost more than the same thing somewhere else. But as you've already found out, there's always a tradeoff and "what you get for your money/taxes" here vs elsewhere might not turn out to be THE most important thing.

Other than what might be happening in specific neighborhoods or communities, I've never heard anyone criticize LI for anything OTHER than high housing prices and high property taxes. (I agree with you on traffic; it's not Utopia but I've been in a lot of worse traffic places than here. Maybe the complainers have led sheltered lives, trafficwise, LOL!) I don't pay attention to those who say they hate LI just because "people here are rude" or whatever behavior ticks them off ... there are rude people and bad drivers everywhere, not just here. In fact I've met more jerks and downright s.o.b.'s either in or from other parts of the USA than native Long Islanders.

[jfkIII]

The blue areas in the first link I provided gives you good places to look for a well-rounded, non-biased, view. If you click on any of those, you'll get some additional info. What I like about it, is that the info is very current (2007), and also shows the trend for the past five years or so.

[ClarkStreetKid]

Originally Posted by GCGuy

This is just migrations, no? This doesn't count births and deaths. Overall, the population of both counties have grown, Suffolk much more than Nassau.

And don't forget the undocumented summer help.

Good point, here's the census numbers though 1970 looks suspicious.
1950 5,237,918
1960 6,403,852
1970 7,141,515
1980 6,728,074
1990 6,861,474
2000 7,448,618
2006 7,559,372