HELP! Best towns in Upstate NY to move to? (New York: real estate market, house prices)

[I'minformed2]

Yes, the cities do have a few magnet schools that are the exceptions, Rochester has Wilson T Magnet as well....I was saying in general.

[xamsx]

That's not considered a magnet school. The City of Buffalo has several test required high schools that are all considered excellent - City Honors, Hutch Tech and Leonardo da Vinci. Riverside HS also has a program that requires admission testing. To get into these schools requires several components - admission testing, teacher recommendation and elementary school grades. These are not lottery schools.

[bellafinzi]

Originally Posted by i'minformed

Bell...i'll agree with you that the best school districts in Upstate NY are not in the major CITIES....but the suburbs of Rochester, Buffalo, Sryacuse and Albany do have excellent schools, probably the best in the region. Brighton and Pittsford, 2 Rochester suburbs, rank in the top 100 schools nationally. The schools in rural NY and the smaller cities may be better than those in the city limits of the major metro areas, but for the most part, the suburbs of the metros will have the best schools.

Thanks....agreed.....I corrected my error!

[liza.judy]

We are looking for liberal - arts oriented, towns in New York State. Any one out there who knows?

[2Lloyd]

Canandaigua got a Starbucks this year. I've voted for it as the western New York town to live in. Voted by buying a house there, February 2007, before the Starbucks arrived; and will move there in October, 2007 (from Sacramento, California).

My hometown is Dansville, which I left behind in 1966 when I entered college. Dansville didn't draw me back because it has none of the employment it had in the 60's and is depressed.

Ontario County and Canandaigua have a growing, albeit slowly, population. Perhaps the $150 million to be invested in the VA hospital will even perk that up.

Walkability and access to a larger city (Rochester); and a good supermarket (Wegmans) were important considerations. Soon I'll find out if it lives up to my dreams.

[12buttons]

Originally Posted by Ex-Ithacan

Ithaca did just recently get a Starbucks, but most folks there are quite loyal to the many local coffee shops. There are homeless, and even some panhandlers on The Commons (the main part of downtown), but they are restricted by law from any aggresive panhandling. If you are looking for 10 to 15 acres of land with your home, it will have to be a ways outside the city limits. Plenty of old farmhouses and such in Tompkins county(Ithaca), but housing is more expensive in Tompkins than any of the surrounding counties. I guess that's because of the stability of the Ithaca economy.

There are plenty of smaller villages outside the city of Ithaca for that really small town feel. Ithaca itself, though small, has quite a comsmopolitan atmosphere. Tons of restaurants (of all sorts), several museums and art galleries, live entertainment(music, dance, and theatre), very active citizenry as far as social issues go, and more natural beauty and activities than most folks can keep up with. Winters are harsh, and the sun, though a welcome sight, is not a frequent visitor. Summers are beautiful. If you decide to grow your own garden, there's always the Farmers Market for a couple of extra bucks.

As far as big city excitement, Ithaca is often said to be centrally isolated. No freeways or interstate highways to the city (I-81 is about 20 miles away). NYC is 4 to 5 hours away, though Syracuse and Binghamton are both about an hour away. Retail is not that great, though that is improving. And of course there are some benefits of having 3 institutions of higher learning in the county (including an Ivy leaguer-Cornell), though the faces of many of the residents don't seem to age even though yours will.

If you have any questions, let me know and I will try to answer them.

How bad are the property taxes?

[12buttons]

Originally Posted by plattsburgher

Well..............

There is a Starbucks just freshly opened, a college here and you are EXTREMELY close (one hour???????) away from 9 million people in Montreal with the Gran Prix, International Fireworks, Blues Festivals, world cuisine, and arts, artists in Montreal. Burlington, Vermont is just across the lake with all the cool culture of collegiates that you can handle..........UVM and Middlebury College and little ole Plattsburgh has its own state college of around 5 thousand kids from Long Island mostly. Amtrak runs the most scenic route in US along Lake Champlain and Hudson River down into Penn Station so if you have the time and moolah, you can spend lots of time in the Big Apple without even driving there. Albany is almost 2 hours south with other events.......The big drawback is your chickens will have to wear boots for some of the year........Oh, and world famous Lake Placid has events all winter long on the ski jumps and luge runs, etc.........The area is growing with all kinds of folks who are buying lake front at outrageously cheap prices for second homes or retirement places........The community feel is great however, with no homeless and very little trash around. The police and security are great here........Plus you have Lake Champlain in the summer to boat around if you like.......Get a hot tub for you and the chickens and you are all set............Very welcoming place, especially if you want to do some volunteering in a community..........More housing for your money, then you have traveling/fun money left over for adventure!

okay so how bad are the property taxes?

[12buttons]

Originally Posted by AverageJo

Unless you wanna go to NYC, Buffalo (or Rochester) would be your best choice. Lots to do there and the Falls is very close to Buffalo. The nicest people are in Western NY.

buffalo has the worst property taxes, bad local govt, negative growth,,rochester is a lot better...more whtie collar, healthier economy..buffalo is sad and depressing although it has a really strong base of fans that pump it. Cheap neighborhoods falling to gang violence..northern suburbs are where families end up for schools and safety which drives prices up..be prepared to pay 355000 for a 2800 sq ft 1996 nice colonial and pay 11,000 in taxes on less than an acre in a subdivision in AMherst, etc.

And having lived there, can't say the people are any different than anyplace else.

[AJNEOA]

11,000 in taxes??? OUCH!!! Are property taxes really that high in that region? Doesn't that drastically infringe on Upstate's cheap living, or is it still considered cheap? I mean, if my mortgage was around $600 a month and I had $8K in taxes a year, wouldn't that be another 600+ a year? Maybe I don't know how this whole thing works...

[CAugust]

I do real estate and would recommend East Amherst or Williamsville, NY - nice, really nice neighbors, close to everything and very very safe. University of Buffalo and Buffalo State College are right here as well, if that matters. Moderator cut: realtor soliciting

Hopefully, Welcome to our Area

Colleen