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Old 06-06-2016, 02:15 PM
 
885 posts, read 1,157,626 times
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We've lived in the area since 2000 moved away for the last 2 yrs (2 hrs southwest of Saratoga). May go back soon -still deciding.


Anyway- Saratoga springs is VERY nice- a little on the expensive side- will get a little more house for your money just outside the city. The hospital is VERY good- great drs, and dentists in area. Lots of shopping of all kinds in the immediate area. Broadway is very walkable- good restaurants, etc. There is always something going on. There are some nice parks- one has geysers and a little river with picnic area. Has colleges there and just a nice area all around.


HOWEVER- you knew this was coming- racing season (last wk in July and 3 weeks in august) can be a nightmare with tourists. The prices of things go up and the traffic bring things to a crawl. Parking garages which are free otherwise- now charge $$ to park, etc. So when possible you walk everywhere, or don't go into the city center.


Other areas within a 15 minute car ride could be Greenwich across the river (gong east) in Washington Cty- nice little town with a Kmart and supermarket, plus some Mom and Pop stores. An easy trip into Vermont thru Greenwich and Cambridge- we used to live there- (east of Greenwich)More rural than Saratoga Cty, very pretty with lots of little farms.


Schuylerville- between Greenwich and Saratoga Springs. cute little town. No chain stores- must go to Greenwich or Saratoga Springs. Just a few Mom and Pops, but heard the school is good- brand new building maybe 5-6 yrs ago.


Wilton- north of Saratoga Springs has a mall at the south end- really an extension of Saratoga Springs. No "town" just housing but nice.


Anywhere west of Saratoga is getting more rural but the areas are nice. Really nothing there but housing and some small hobby farms. You would need to go into Saratoga Springs or probably Amsterdam- depending how far out you went- for any shopping.


Ballston Spa is southwest on Rt 50. This is Saratoga's little sister. Nice area. Walkable main street (Rt 50) Mostly mom and Pops and some restaurants. Home to the Saratoga Cty fair. Antique area with a few good shops. Don't know anything about the schools.


Going South from Saratoga Springs -anything along the Rt 9 corridor is Ok. Many nice small towns. Check out Round lake if you like quaint. Once was a Methodist colony at the turn of the century. Beautiful Victorian cottages on TINY property. Some don't have parking for cars. But has a green belt- Zim Smith- and a common lawn for events. The "town"- really nothing there but still very nice- good school district. It is right off the Northway.


Keep going South is Malta- no "town" just shopping centers, but nice. Don't know about schools.


Clifton Park is nice- good schools but a little more pricey. No "town" just shopping centers. Northway is right there.


A little further is Latham. Very nice. Lots of shopping but again no "town." Not in Saratoga Cty either- I believe that is Albany Cty. Taxes aren't too bad. Continue and you are in Colonie (pronounced col-on KNEE). Good area but very urban- a stone's throw from Albany.


We are also from LI- Sayville. The northway can get congested going into Albany during rush hour but nothing even close to the LIE. Saratoga Cty is the fastest growing Cty in NYS. Saratoga springs is not the sleepy city anymore even since we've been up here.


Hope this helps- sorry it was so long. If you have any more questions, just ask away.




You're best bet for a job is Albany or Troy, depending on what you do. The commute isn't horrible. Did it myself, Hubbie still does. (I think Saratoga Springs is about 40-45 miles up the Northway).More than likely you would be paying for parking in Albany. Very few places have their own free parking there. Albany also is not a horrible city. You just need to know where to live, and those areas can be very pricey


Good luck.
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Old 06-06-2016, 04:35 PM
 
150 posts, read 298,778 times
Reputation: 328
I've lived in many places other than Long Island ( Texas, New Mexico, NYC) so I guess I am pretty flexible.. its funny but aspects of this area remind me of LI.. the malls, areas with lots of shops and restaurants, the suburban feel in Wilton. There are many ex NYC and Long Island folks here as well. If you are worried about missing the beach, no worries. There are many beautiful lakes here .. I am now preferring to swim in them rather than the LI Sound.. no rocks or jelly fish..link below to fishing lakes in the area..

https://www.google.com/search?sa=X&e...1&rlfi=hd:;si:


There are many things for kids and families to do. You are only 3 hours from Boston, Montreal and NYC if you want to go a big city. I drive to Bridegeport CT and take the ferry to LI.. its a bit of pain to get to LI from here but doable.
Hope this helps.
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Old 06-07-2016, 08:42 PM
 
59 posts, read 76,024 times
Reputation: 46
Quote:
Originally Posted by countrykaren View Post
We've lived in the area since 2000 moved away for the last 2 yrs (2 hrs southwest of Saratoga). May go back soon -still deciding.


Anyway- Saratoga springs is VERY nice- a little on the expensive side- will get a little more house for your money just outside the city. The hospital is VERY good- great drs, and dentists in area. Lots of shopping of all kinds in the immediate area. Broadway is very walkable- good restaurants, etc. There is always something going on. There are some nice parks- one has geysers and a little river with picnic area. Has colleges there and just a nice area all around.


HOWEVER- you knew this was coming- racing season (last wk in July and 3 weeks in august) can be a nightmare with tourists. The prices of things go up and the traffic bring things to a crawl. Parking garages which are free otherwise- now charge $$ to park, etc. So when possible you walk everywhere, or don't go into the city center.


Other areas within a 15 minute car ride could be Greenwich across the river (gong east) in Washington Cty- nice little town with a Kmart and supermarket, plus some Mom and Pop stores. An easy trip into Vermont thru Greenwich and Cambridge- we used to live there- (east of Greenwich)More rural than Saratoga Cty, very pretty with lots of little farms.


Schuylerville- between Greenwich and Saratoga Springs. cute little town. No chain stores- must go to Greenwich or Saratoga Springs. Just a few Mom and Pops, but heard the school is good- brand new building maybe 5-6 yrs ago.


Wilton- north of Saratoga Springs has a mall at the south end- really an extension of Saratoga Springs. No "town" just housing but nice.


Anywhere west of Saratoga is getting more rural but the areas are nice. Really nothing there but housing and some small hobby farms. You would need to go into Saratoga Springs or probably Amsterdam- depending how far out you went- for any shopping.


Ballston Spa is southwest on Rt 50. This is Saratoga's little sister. Nice area. Walkable main street (Rt 50) Mostly mom and Pops and some restaurants. Home to the Saratoga Cty fair. Antique area with a few good shops. Don't know anything about the schools.


Going South from Saratoga Springs -anything along the Rt 9 corridor is Ok. Many nice small towns. Check out Round lake if you like quaint. Once was a Methodist colony at the turn of the century. Beautiful Victorian cottages on TINY property. Some don't have parking for cars. But has a green belt- Zim Smith- and a common lawn for events. The "town"- really nothing there but still very nice- good school district. It is right off the Northway.


Keep going South is Malta- no "town" just shopping centers, but nice. Don't know about schools.


Clifton Park is nice- good schools but a little more pricey. No "town" just shopping centers. Northway is right there.


A little further is Latham. Very nice. Lots of shopping but again no "town." Not in Saratoga Cty either- I believe that is Albany Cty. Taxes aren't too bad. Continue and you are in Colonie (pronounced col-on KNEE). Good area but very urban- a stone's throw from Albany.


We are also from LI- Sayville. The northway can get congested going into Albany during rush hour but nothing even close to the LIE. Saratoga Cty is the fastest growing Cty in NYS. Saratoga springs is not the sleepy city anymore even since we've been up here.


Hope this helps- sorry it was so long. If you have any more questions, just ask away.




You're best bet for a job is Albany or Troy, depending on what you do. The commute isn't horrible. Did it myself, Hubbie still does. (I think Saratoga Springs is about 40-45 miles up the Northway).More than likely you would be paying for parking in Albany. Very few places have their own free parking there. Albany also is not a horrible city. You just need to know where to live, and those areas can be very pricey


Good luck.
Wow- I sincerely thank you for this, as I know it probably took awhile to write. Seems like the areas that would suit us (at least at this point) would be Wilton or Saratoga Springs. Now it's a matter of breaking those two places down to see where inside of them is best but I got a good head start from this thread. I'm in finance (retail investing management) so there are some options up in those areas (Hudson Valley region) but it all depends on timing.

I thank you again!
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Old 06-07-2016, 08:44 PM
 
59 posts, read 76,024 times
Reputation: 46
Quote:
Originally Posted by Sally29 View Post
I've lived in many places other than Long Island ( Texas, New Mexico, NYC) so I guess I am pretty flexible.. its funny but aspects of this area remind me of LI.. the malls, areas with lots of shops and restaurants, the suburban feel in Wilton. There are many ex NYC and Long Island folks here as well. If you are worried about missing the beach, no worries. There are many beautiful lakes here .. I am now preferring to swim in them rather than the LI Sound.. no rocks or jelly fish..link below to fishing lakes in the area..

https://www.google.com/search?sa=X&e...1&rlfi=hd:;si:


There are many things for kids and families to do. You are only 3 hours from Boston, Montreal and NYC if you want to go a big city. I drive to Bridegeport CT and take the ferry to LI.. its a bit of pain to get to LI from here but doable.
Hope this helps.
Thank you again. We make the drive to and from Lake George a few times a year and have seen just how crazy it can get, especially on a holiday weekend or when there's an accident on the thruway or taconic. Like stated above, I think we will check out Wilton and Saratoga Springs more in detail. Have alerts set up for new houses that become available on the popular home buying sites to get acquainted with the market up there. This is a great head start. Thank you for your contributions.
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Old 06-10-2016, 07:28 AM
 
150 posts, read 298,778 times
Reputation: 328
Interesting new report that shows tax rates and rankings for NYS


http://www.empirecenter.org/wp-conte...g2014rates.pdf
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Old 06-10-2016, 07:46 AM
 
59 posts, read 76,024 times
Reputation: 46
Quote:
Originally Posted by Sally29 View Post
Interesting new report that shows tax rates and rankings for NYS


http://www.empirecenter.org/wp-conte...g2014rates.pdf
Very interesting- goes to show just how much of a disparity there is..
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Old 06-10-2016, 08:56 AM
 
92,019 posts, read 122,173,887 times
Reputation: 18136
Quote:
Originally Posted by Sally29 View Post
Interesting new report that shows tax rates and rankings for NYS


http://www.empirecenter.org/wp-conte...g2014rates.pdf
A lot of this is due to the lower home prices/values in parts of Upstate that make the rate(key word) higher than parts of Downstate. The North Country is pretty rural and has pretty low prices and relatively lower property taxes. I believe that Lewis County may be the best example of this in the North Country.

You'll also notice that villages have higher rates and that is due to an extra layer of government. On the other hand, the highest rate for Onondaga County, the village of Solvay, has very low utility rates due to NYPA to offset the tax rate. This is why looking at total costs are important, as one thing may offset another aspect.
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Old 06-11-2016, 10:23 AM
 
Location: Upstate NY/NJ
3,058 posts, read 3,795,611 times
Reputation: 4367
Quote:
Originally Posted by jason7613 View Post
Very interesting- goes to show just how much of a disparity there is..
Also just how low the taxes are in Warren and even Saratoga counties. Warren county is clearly doing something right that other counties need to follow. Binghamton $52 per $1000?! That's unheard of even in NJ.
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Old 06-11-2016, 01:21 PM
 
92,019 posts, read 122,173,887 times
Reputation: 18136
Quote:
Originally Posted by VintageSunlight View Post
Also just how low the taxes are in Warren and even Saratoga counties. Warren county is clearly doing something right that other counties need to follow. Binghamton $52 per $1000?! That's unheard of even in NJ.
It looks like in the areas listed in both of those counties are pretty rural and have higher home median prices than the places with higher tax rates.

I'm not sure about why Binghamton is that high.
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Old 06-12-2016, 02:17 PM
 
59 posts, read 76,024 times
Reputation: 46
Quote:
Originally Posted by ckhthankgod View Post
A lot of this is due to the lower home prices/values in parts of Upstate that make the rate(key word) higher than parts of Downstate. The North Country is pretty rural and has pretty low prices and relatively lower property taxes. I believe that Lewis County may be the best example of this in the North Country.

You'll also notice that villages have higher rates and that is due to an extra layer of government. On the other hand, the highest rate for Onondaga County, the village of Solvay, has very low utility rates due to NYPA to offset the tax rate. This is why looking at total costs are important, as one thing may offset another aspect.
Agreed, total cost is always the most important thing to look at..
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