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My fiance is from Buffalo and is constantly trying to get me to move up there. Tells me the people are better, the overall quality of life is some of the best in the country and the food can't be beat.
My issue? Everywhere I read, population is down, government corruption, no jobs, high property taxes, slow decline, never bouncing back, horrible place to live.
I'm tired of reading the negatives. Give me some positives, I'm trying to convince myself to move across the country and everything I'm reading makes me very apprehensive.
My likes: Parks, Nature, Change of Season, Historical locations, theater, theme parks. I'm a go go kind of person and Buffalo seems like a place that I'll be miserable and I really want to give it a fair chance. So help me out please!
Dislikes: Harsh winters, sports, unfriendly people, bad education, nothing to do.
What I love about Buffalo .......... decent size area with everything you would expect a metro area to have yet very close to lakes, mountains & some of the nicest state parks around.
Central location, very close to other major cities .... Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Cincinnati, Detroit, Toronto, Philly, NYC, Baltimore, Boston, Ottawa, Montreal & DC are all within an 8 hour drive .... you can drive to Chicago in less than 10.
This is a personal preference & one you will definitely not agree with but here goes ...... Mild, pleasant summers & plenty of snow in the winter! Having 4 seasons. After living in Texas for 10 years & not having snow (or winter for that matter) I am thankful to be in a place where it snows a lot. I'm an avid skier & snowboarder but I also love snow in general. I'm not much of a fan of brutal cold but I'd rather have that + lots of snow + a summer of temps in the 70's & 80's over 110+ degrees everyday for 4-5 months. I also like not having to deal with the poisonous insects & snakes that they have in Texas. While we do have some rattlesnakes around I guarantee you I'm not checking my shoes for scorpions every morning like we had to do in Central Texas.
Nice welcoming people who also know how to mind their own business.
Very low cost of living. I can buy a 3br house with views of Lake Erie for $100-$150K ......... you would be lucky to find a similar property for 2x's that in many other parts of the US. Yes, property taxes are high in most of Western NY (though not all of WNY is high, deals can be found if you research it) but the cheap housing more than offsets the difference in many cases.
The historic architecture of the city as well as the history that is everywhere you look in the NE.
The old world culture & traditions that still exists in some neighborhoods. This isn't so much about Buffalo as it is about the NE & Great Lakes areas in general.
Entertainment. For a city it's size Buffalo's entertainment & dining options are amazing. I've been in much bigger areas with a lot less going on.
The job market isn't great by any means but jobs are available in Buffalo. It just really depends on what you do as to how difficult it may or may not be to find employment. My wife was recruited to move here & I had a job within a few weeks after arriving.
If you can't deal with harsh winters though nothing else may be important. There is just no way around it, Buffalo's winters are cold & snowy & if that is something that would make you miserable then maybe Buffalo isn't right for you. I lived in a place where I hated the weather, its really no fun.
I like buffalo because my family is here. It will be hard to leave them.
When I say buffalo, I am referring to the suburbs surrounding buffalo.
Many areas of the city itself are ugly and just plain dangerous. Other areas are fine. It is very spotty.
It has a very low cost of living, but the high taxes make up for that. My property taxes are 50 percent of my mortgage payment. We also have high income and sales taxes. We have the highest gas prices in the nation, right up with Honolulu, Hawaii.. We also have the most dis functional state government in the entire nation.
Jobs are sprouting up here, because corporations are realizing that people in this area will be glad to work for 9-12 dollars per hour answering telephones. There are many corporate call centers here. Also bill collecting is very big here.
And I haven't even started to talk about the weather yet...
I suppose if you have the means to live in a nice suburb of buffalo in a 100k+ home, and get a snowblower then you will do fine.
If you don't already have a good job lined up then don't come here..
I used to live there, I hated it there, I would never go back there
for all the money in the world. You ask why ? All the concerns
that you listed are all so so true. everyone of them. Then the Winters
are brutial, Last year when I headed west I drove thur Columbus OH
I was very impressed with Columbus, It's seem alot bigger then Buffalo
and lot's of new constuction going on.
...
Dislikes: Harsh winters, sports, unfriendly people, bad education, nothing to do.
What do YOU love about Buffalo?
Why do you bother to ask the question when you have already answered it for yourself. You do not like harsh winters and you do not like sports.
If you read this forum, you will see that the people of Buffalo revolve their lives around sports and especially their sacred cow--the Bills. They are willing to give up improvements to the quality of the region, pay any costs, so they can have their football game.
It does have harsh winters--there is no dispute. I do not think that the weather is deal killer but it is for you.
So, these are two attributes of the Buffalo that will never change---so I would say, you have your answer.
Buffalo is not so unique that you cannot find the same good qualities in other places that has weather you like and are not only focused on a sports game. In addition, all the negatives you read and hear are mostly true and there are better areas of the country. But to be fair, some of the comments made by people who love Buffalo have some truth; but what is true for them, may not be true for you.
Livecontent
Last edited by livecontent; 08-19-2009 at 10:29 PM..
The city has plenty of entertainment on many different levels. Rock climbing, parks, racing, sports, bars, restaurants, food, shopping, etc.
The city also has some of the best waterways around, if you like boating or fishing, it is excellent up here! You have the canal, lake Erie, lake Ontario, Niagara Falls (not boat friendly), Niagara river and the Finger lakes.
What do I love about Buffalo!?!?!? It would take essays of writing and I do not have the time. There are only a few things that detract from this great community- taxes, government, lack of jobs (somewhat), and more taxes. Other than that, I love it here and will never leave. There is nearly too much to do in Buffalo that it overwhelms myself sometimes. I truly love this city, I hope you may be able to discover America's Best Kept Secret for yourself! You really have to visit this hidden gem, and reveal what this awesome treasure has to offer. Cheers from the Queen City! ~
My likes: Parks, Nature, Change of Season, Historical locations, theater, theme parks. I'm a go go kind of person and Buffalo seems like a place that I'll be miserable and I really want to give it a fair chance. So help me out please!
Dislikes: Harsh winters, sports, unfriendly people, bad education, nothing to do.
[quote]
I find it interesting that your 'likes' apply to Buffalo, and also at the same time, your 'dislikes' apply to Buffalo. It is all in how you view what is around you. You can focus on the beautiful parks, the nature all around (water water everywhere!), the gorgeous change of seasons, the fabulous historical locations, and the great theater (if you can't find shows you like in Buffalo, drive 1.5 hours to Toronto and you'll feel like you're in NYC), the great theme parks (Darien Lake or especially Cedar Point in Ohio which is only a 5 hour or so drive), OR you can focus on the freezing cold and brutal winters, the constant obsession with sports, the naysayers and negative people (that are everywhere by the way if you're searching them out) and the pretty backward education systems ( I know, I have been a teacher for 16 years...)
It's all what you choose to look at and how you choose to live your life.
I chose to leave mainly because of the 6 or so months of gray and miserable weather, I got so depressed every year, I knew I had to go somewhere that was sunnier for my peace of mind. But if that won't get to you, then it won't get to you.
Think also about your fiance, is he a positive-minded person? Does he get out and do stuff? Or does he sit around and complain. If it is the latter, DO NOT I repeat DO NOT move to Buffalo, it would definitely be miserable living with that type of person there.
Last edited by claud605; 08-20-2009 at 04:30 AM..
Reason: spelling
My fiance is from Buffalo and is constantly trying to get me to move up there. Tells me the people are better, the overall quality of life is some of the best in the country and the food can't be beat.
My issue? Everywhere I read, population is down, government corruption, no jobs, high property taxes, slow decline, never bouncing back, horrible place to live.
I'm tired of reading the negatives. Give me some positives, I'm trying to convince myself to move across the country and everything I'm reading makes me very apprehensive.
My likes: Parks, Nature, Change of Season, Historical locations, theater, theme parks. I'm a go go kind of person and Buffalo seems like a place that I'll be miserable and I really want to give it a fair chance. So help me out please!
Dislikes: Harsh winters, sports, unfriendly people, bad education, nothing to do.
What do YOU love about Buffalo?
You are pretty much dead on.
If you really want to move to Buffalo don't let the fact that there are few jobs stop you, just get a job BEFORE you move, not AFTER. Moving is very expensive, and a mistake can cost you thousands of dollars and cause you more stress that you deserve.
You are right on the corruption, high taxes, winters, and horrible place to live.
However Buffalo isn't a bad sports town, the people are nice (depending on where you come from), the higher education institutions here are quite good, although the public schools are lousy, and the private schools aren't too good either (there aren't enough). It isn't a slow decline it's more like the airplane is going at full speed straight down towards the ground, and the pilot keeps saying, "don't worry folks, this is what we planned."
As for the parks, they are nice, although the ones near Buffalo aren't great. It's a sort of flat landscape in Buffalo, driving across the Northeast I remembered what nice hilly landscapes look like.
What I love about Buffalo .......... decent size area with everything you would expect a metro area to have yet very close to lakes, mountains & some of the nicest state parks around.
Central location, very close to other major cities .... Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Cincinnati, Detroit, Toronto, Philly, NYC, Baltimore, Boston, Ottawa, Montreal & DC are all within an 8 hour drive .... you can drive to Chicago in less than 10.
This is a personal preference & one you will definitely not agree with but here goes ...... Mild, pleasant summers & plenty of snow in the winter! Having 4 seasons. After living in Texas for 10 years & not having snow (or winter for that matter) I am thankful to be in a place where it snows a lot. I'm an avid skier & snowboarder but I also love snow in general. I'm not much of a fan of brutal cold but I'd rather have that + lots of snow + a summer of temps in the 70's & 80's over 110+ degrees everyday for 4-5 months. I also like not having to deal with the poisonous insects & snakes that they have in Texas. While we do have some rattlesnakes around I guarantee you I'm not checking my shoes for scorpions every morning like we had to do in Central Texas.
Nice welcoming people who also know how to mind their own business.
Very low cost of living. I can buy a 3br house with views of Lake Erie for $100-$150K ......... you would be lucky to find a similar property for 2x's that in many other parts of the US. Yes, property taxes are high in most of Western NY (though not all of WNY is high, deals can be found if you research it) but the cheap housing more than offsets the difference in many cases.
The historic architecture of the city as well as the history that is everywhere you look in the NE.
The old world culture & traditions that still exists in some neighborhoods. This isn't so much about Buffalo as it is about the NE & Great Lakes areas in general.
Entertainment. For a city it's size Buffalo's entertainment & dining options are amazing. I've been in much bigger areas with a lot less going on.
The job market isn't great by any means but jobs are available in Buffalo. It just really depends on what you do as to how difficult it may or may not be to find employment. My wife was recruited to move here & I had a job within a few weeks after arriving.
If you can't deal with harsh winters though nothing else may be important. There is just no way around it, Buffalo's winters are cold & snowy & if that is something that would make you miserable then maybe Buffalo isn't right for you. I lived in a place where I hated the weather, its really no fun.
Excellent, balanced perspective, I appreciate this post very much. Thank you.
Quote:
Originally Posted by JustinH
Where do you currently live?
I like buffalo because my family is here. It will be hard to leave them.
When I say buffalo, I am referring to the suburbs surrounding buffalo.
Many areas of the city itself are ugly and just plain dangerous. Other areas are fine. It is very spotty.
It has a very low cost of living, but the high taxes make up for that. My property taxes are 50 percent of my mortgage payment. We also have high income and sales taxes. We have the highest gas prices in the nation, right up with Honolulu, Hawaii.. We also have the most dis functional state government in the entire nation.
Jobs are sprouting up here, because corporations are realizing that people in this area will be glad to work for 9-12 dollars per hour answering telephones. There are many corporate call centers here. Also bill collecting is very big here.
And I haven't even started to talk about the weather yet...
I suppose if you have the means to live in a nice suburb of buffalo in a 100k+ home, and get a snowblower then you will do fine.
If you don't already have a good job lined up then don't come here..
Where we currently live is no reflection of our tastes because we hate it here. We live in Florida mainly because my family is here, but my likes/dislikes aren't cohesive with what Florida has to offer.
Quote:
Originally Posted by VegasRocks
I used to live there, I hated it there, I would never go back there
for all the money in the world. You ask why ? All the concerns
that you listed are all so so true. everyone of them. Then the Winters
are brutial, Last year when I headed west I drove thur Columbus OH
I was very impressed with Columbus, It's seem alot bigger then Buffalo
and lot's of new constuction going on.
What about it did you hate? Was it more of a personal circumstance that made it disagreeable for you?
My likes: Parks, Nature, Change of Season, Historical locations, theater, theme parks. I'm a go go kind of person and Buffalo seems like a place that I'll be miserable and I really want to give it a fair chance. So help me out please!
Dislikes: Harsh winters, sports, unfriendly people, bad education, nothing to do.
Quote:
I find it interesting that your 'likes' apply to Buffalo, and also at the same time, your 'dislikes' apply to Buffalo. It is all in how you view what is around you. You can focus on the beautiful parks, the nature all around (water water everywhere!), the gorgeous change of seasons, the fabulous historical locations, and the great theater (if you can't find shows you like in Buffalo, drive 1.5 hours to Toronto and you'll feel like you're in NYC), the great theme parks (Darien Lake or especially Cedar Point in Ohio which is only a 5 hour or so drive), OR you can focus on the freezing cold and brutal winters, the constant obsession with sports, the naysayers and negative people (that are everywhere by the way if you're searching them out) and the pretty backward education systems ( I know, I have been a teacher for 16 years...)
It's all what you choose to look at and how you choose to live your life.
I chose to leave mainly because of the 6 or so months of gray and miserable weather, I got so depressed every year, I knew I had to go somewhere that was sunnier for my peace of mind. But if that won't get to you, then it won't get to you.
Think also about your fiance, is he a positive-minded person? Does he get out and do stuff? Or does he sit around and complain. If it is the latter, DO NOT I repeat DO NOT move to Buffalo, it would definitely be miserable living with that type of person there.
I'm a very positive, look at the bright side kind of person and my fiance is the same but I'm also realistic and can see both sides of the coin. Hence the thread I made, I was looking for personal input, I can read statistics until my brain collapses, statistics never give you a true feeling of any area. I appreciate the input from those that live or have lived there.
The snow isn't a HUGE factor for me, I like snow I just don't want too much of it and I know I'm probably feeding the stereotype when I say that Buffalo certainly has a lot of it. LOL
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Former Buffalonian here...
