Upstate NY

[AlexisT]

Westchester/Rockland are the grey area. To LIers they're upstate, to someone from White Plains they sure as heck aren't!

Kodak and Xerox aren't that long ago. The big cuts were in the '90s up to about 5 years ago. There's been a rebound since then, but Rochester took a huge hit when that happened. That's part of why it's so cheap today; the prices have increased now as the economy has improved, but it started from a lower baseline.

[Jennifer06]

Did you look at towns near Albany before settling on Rochester?
(Schenectady, Niskayuna, etc.)

[Lancet71]

I based my search on good neighborhoods surrounded by food,movies,bowling,etc...(for the kids),also good schools and close to where I wanted to work.Rochester became the obvious choice and it was ranked #1 metro for raising a family.

[OhBeeHave]

Originally Posted by AlexisT

Rochester got hit by problems at Xerox and Kodak, which is partly why it's still relatively cheap. Its economy is good by upstate standards but lagging behind downstate.

Snow wise: Rochester averages 95" a year, Syracuse 116". Both have a perennial lack of sunshine. (I went to the U of R for 2 years; one of my sisters went to Syracuse, so a reasonable familiarity with both cities). You will have weeks where there is no sun. The wind comes off the lake and it is COLD. As upstate cities go, Rochester is one of the nicer ones but it's not what I would call a strong slate of contenders.

Sunless winters. Ugh. I've dealt with that in Vermont. Grey skies in the morning, grey skies in the evening. It does get to the soul and make me understand SAD better.

[OhBeeHave]

Originally Posted by Jennifer06

Did you look at towns near Albany before settling on Rochester?
(Schenectady, Niskayuna, etc.)

My college roommate attended Niskayuna.