Rochester Economy? (Greece, Penfield, Pittsford: spring break, real estate, low crime)

[FallDreamer]

I am thinking of moving to Greece, NY when I am done with college. My husband and I have made a couple of trips up there recently (both summer and winter), and we love the area. However, my husband is convinced the the economy is REALLY bad up there right now, compared to other places. I'm hoping that it's not, just because Greece has everything that I've been looking for. We haven't tried looking for jobs because we wouldn't actually be moving for a couple of years. But I was hoping that some locals might be able to give me some insight into the economy in the Rochester area. Thanks for any and all info!

[ckhthankgod]

There are similar communities in other areas of NY State too. So, maybe you can look at other parts of the state as well.

[cheese9988]

The Rochester economy is somewhat steady. Rochester has had no large upswings or downswings in a while. The population trends show this as well. The area is largely manufacturing (industry and pharmaceutical), services and healthcare.

Rochester has a good number of well known corporations that are based in the area. The big two most people know, Eastman Kodak and Xerox (huge presence but not headquarted).

We didn't participate in a bubble like most of the country so we did not see a huge decrease in our local economy (housing or financial) due to the recession. Taxes here are high, but the cost of living is extremely cheap. We are among the most affordable places to live in the country. You don't get stuck in traffic so most people end paying less in gas.

Basically, Rochester is cheap to live in and still gives you all the amenities you would expect from a large city. There is safety in a predictable economy.

[I'minformed2]

I live in Greece and love it. Depending on where you are moving from, Rochester is most likely more affordable than where you live right now. The nicest parts of Greece are in the North and West of the town and this is a very family-oriented community. Most real estate agents for the Rochester area will pump up the "p towns" (Pittsford, Perinton, and Penfield) as well as other east side towns; and its true they are all nice. But you definitely shouldn't write off Greece especially if you have visited and enjoy it here!

[FallDreamer]

I'mInformed2....I have been reading many of your posts and love them! Mostly because I have been torn between Greece and the Cary area (which I see you have lived in both). Cary scares me because it seems to be growing rapidly, and I am looking for a smaller town feel. I am currently living in the Panama City, Florida and am getting tired of spring breakers, blah! The cold does not bother me, as I am previously from Maine. In fact, I fell in love with Greece because it reminded me of my hometown....smallish (with the amenities of a larger city), beautiful nature (fields, and nice lakes), low crime, and extremely low housing costs. The only thing that my husband seems to be afraid of is the economy (but that scares everyone right now! ) I'm hoping that eventually we'll end up in Greece. I miss the fall and the snow. It looks like a great place to raise kids. I have some relatives that live in Greece and have been using that as an excuse to come and visit (especially when the heat down here is about to kill me). It's a beautiful place and I hope I end up there if everything works out!

[cheese9988]

Originally Posted by FallDreamer

I'mInformed2....I have been reading many of your posts and love them! Mostly because I have been torn between Greece and the Cary area (which I see you have lived in both). Cary scares me because it seems to be growing rapidly, and I am looking for a smaller town feel. I am currently living in the Panama City, Florida and am getting tired of spring breakers, blah! The cold does not bother me, as I am previously from Maine. In fact, I fell in love with Greece because it reminded me of my hometown....smallish (with the amenities of a larger city), beautiful nature (fields, and nice lakes), low crime, and extremely low housing costs. The only thing that my husband seems to be afraid of is the economy (but that scares everyone right now! ) I'm hoping that eventually we'll end up in Greece. I miss the fall and the snow. It looks like a great place to raise kids. I have some relatives that live in Greece and have been using that as an excuse to come and visit (especially when the heat down here is about to kill me). It's a beautiful place and I hope I end up there if everything works out!

This could be a smaller change for you too. NY has waterways and lakes all over. (Finger Lakes, Great Lakes, Erie Canal) So Upstate is also similar to Maine.

I lived in Cary for awhile as well. Although the city was growing rapidly, the city had a lot of sprawl, without a good downtown. I'm not sure what Florida is like where you are but the traffic is a breeze up here. The Raleigh area needs to build up more rds to handle the traffic problems they have. What I did like about Cary was the two hour drive to the beach.

[FallDreamer]

Traffic where I am is alright I guess. It's not too populated but the 2 major roads that we have are always packed. We have 1 bridge that leads from the beach to the city and it takes about a half hour to get over it during rush hour. For a city with only about 30,000 people that just seems rediculous to me. However, I am from a town that had NO traffic, so any traffic to me is aggravating . I do however know that Ridge Road in Greece basically has all the shopping and can get congested, especially with all of the road work from winter (I remember that all too well ). It's something that I can deal with though.

I have only driven through Raleigh (driving from Maine to FL), and it seemed really nice, but all the other info I have gotten about it has been from this website or others that used to live there (all good, except for the population issues). I still feel like Greece is more realistic to me just because I've been there a couple times and seems more like what I'm used to from Maine. I'm incredibly homesick. Moving from Maine to FL seemed great at first but it was extreme culture shock. Even though I have gotten used to it now, I am ready to settle down, and there is no way I will buy a house here. I am not the type to buy a house for an investment (what got us into this mess), I want to buy a house and live there for a long time. That's what I think I can get in Greece.

p.s. Those photos for Greece of the beach and the lighthouse are mine! We took the picture of the lighthouse after getting frozen custard from Abbotts (I'minformed2....I remember you mentioning abbotts in one of your previous posts...you are right, abbotts is realllly good! :-))

[I'minformed2]

Cary is a nice place; but it lacks all of the things that you seem to like about Greece. You are right, although Greece is the largest suburb of Rochester with around 95,000 population (a little smaller than Cary) it definitely still maintains a close-knit small town feel. Cary just feels much more like generic cookie cutter suburban sprawl to me. They both have decent parks and nature walks; but Cary has nothing that compares to Greece's shoreline on Lake Ontario! Also, despite the fact that property taxes in Greece are definitely higher than in Cary; the cost of living is still much much lower here. Average home price in Cary is around $300k; in Greece it's about $110k.

[juppiter]

The economy is decent. It's not booming like the Sunbelt. But then again, when they're all dehydrated in 20 years and paying so much for air conditioning we have Lake Ontario and a moderate climate.

People may point at the figures of loss of B&L, Xerox, and Kodak jobs as a bad thing.... the figures are HUGE when you look at 20 years ago to today. But in retrospect, it's a good thing. How often do you hear "too big to fail?" So Rochester going from a three company town to a multi-company town was ultimately for the better.

I know I have a great job in Rochester. I'm making twice as much now as I was making 2 years ago. Times have never been better for me.

[I'minformed2]

lol...I wouldn't say the economy is "booming" in the sunbelt by any stretch of the imagination. I'd say we are much better off here than in Florida, Arizona, Nevada, California. NC is pretty stable too but I don't know if you'd consider that the "sunbelt"