moving to rochester...maybe (Monroe, Hillside: apartment, rent, how much)

[KBM]

Hi. I am seriously considering moving to Rochester with my husband and am looking for some advice. We are both 31 years old and have moved around to various cities for job opportunities, graduate school, etc. We are looking to settle down and buy a home in the near-ish future. Rochester seems to have a lot to offer and is more affordable than many other cities.

We are both working in non-profits - I am in social services and he is a fundraiser. How is the job market for these fields in Rochester?

We like being near the action....cafes, bars, shops. etc. We love live music. Are there any neighborhoods in particular would offer these?

Also, I am concerned about our earning potential. How much money is needed to live a comfortable life in Rochester?

All feedback is welcome and helpful. Thanks in advance!

[Madewoman]

There isn't much action in the Roc (affectionate term) which is why I left. But you may want to consider the East Ave, Park Ave, Monroe Ave and Meigs St areas. There are a few bars, restaurants, coffee shops, etc. Good thing about Rochester is you can get almost anywhere in 15 min. The cost of living in Rochester is not bad at all.

[Meganrose323]

I live in the Rochester Area...and it sounds like a good fit for you! I am not too sure about your husbands field but I do know from experience there are tons and tons of social service/ non-profit jobs in the rochester area. One of the huge employers of this is Hillside Family of Agencies which assists children primarily and familes in crisis situations in a variety of ways (Hillside Family of Agencies) There are also a ton more listed everyday on careerbuilder.com if that doesn't sound like anything you're into. I would stick in the park avenue neighborhood or the nieghborhood of the arts. They are next to each other and are pretty much bordered by university avenue, winton road, monroe avenue, and alexander street. anything in that box will fit your criteria. You are in a fun nieghborhood with lots of cafe's, restaurants, coffee shops, and little boutiques. All summer long there are live concerts. Each summer Rochester hosts the International Jazz Fest which is famous and attracts a lot of people. On university ave is an Art Gallery and lots of art related stuff. Rochester is very affordable. You can rent an apartment in that area for anywhere from 500-1200. As far as buying houses in those nieghborhoods you can get a decend house for 70k. A really nice house (3 BR) for 70k-120 and you can get an extremely nice house for around 175-200k. Taxes are relatively not too high in comparision to some of NYS. Nothnagle.com - Rochester's Full Service REALTOR® is a good housing website. search Rochester SE as the towns, as this is where you will find these houses. for each house there is a map and just make sure it is in or around that square of streets. I hope I have been of some help and I hope you move here!