Why are houses in Elmira so cheap ? (Syracuse, Horseheads: section 8, crime rates)

[Snowball7]

Hi, I'm not famliar with Elmira. Even houses north of the river
are cheap, I mean cheaper than most new cars.
What is the problem ? Stay away ?
I have never been there. Seeing the prices as an investor/landlord
but there seems to be quite a few run down areas with bad/nonexistent
upkeep. Can anyone add some color on this ?
Please don't hold back, I need the bare truth.

[ckhthankgod]

Actually, the East Side is the city's most notorious. It is north of the river. West Elmira and some of the West Side is generally the nicest area of town. South Side varies and is more working-middle class. North Side is similar to the South Side. I think the economy has something to do with it and perhaps the Correctional Facility too.

[exploringoptions]

Agreeing with ckh. In many cases it is a street-by-steet or even house-by-house basis as to what is "nice" and what isn't. According to my wife - who went to Elmira College a few decades ago - the neighborhood around the college used to be decent, but it has slipped downhill drastically in her opinion.

Rental units ANYWHERE in Elmira are often sketchy. The city has recently started prosecuting landlords for property upkeep/code violations, because of the number of complaints they were getting about both the properties and the tenants who lived in them. Since you don't live in the area, I'd be VERY careful about becoming an "absentee landlord." Also, ckh mentioned the Correctional Facility - remember that there are TWO prisons. The Elmira Correctional Facility which is a maximum security facility located in the city itself, and Southport Super-Max which is about 2 miles away. Both of these facilities result in families and "support networks" of inmates looking for nearby housing. I'll leave it to someone else to say whether that is good or bad.

[Snowball7]

Originally Posted by ckhthankgod

Actually, the East Side is the city's most notorious. It is north of the river. West Elmira and some of the West Side is generally the nicest area of town. South Side varies and is more working-middle class. North Side is similar to the South Side. I think the economy has something to do with it and perhaps the Correctional Facility too.

Thanks, I knew about the prison, it's max and I've seen it on tv.
I think I'll just write off the whole town. Must not be worth the
aggravation if landlords are willing to sell this cheaply.

[Snowball7]

Originally Posted by exploringoptions

Since you don't live in the area, I'd be VERY careful about becoming an "absentee landlord." Also, ckh mentioned the Correctional Facility - remember that there are TWO prisons.

Yup, I mean I'm from RI, which is driving distance, but not baby-sitting distance,
I'm just gonna pass.. thanks for the advice.

[ckhthankgod]

Originally Posted by Snowball7

Yup, I mean I'm from RI, which is driving distance, but not baby-sitting distance,
I'm just gonna pass.. thanks for the advice.

You could look into Corning or maybe parts of Elmira Heights or Horseheads. All are at least solid. Perhaps look into PA. Places like Sayre, Athens and Wellsboro may work.

[ts13209]

There was an article back in June in the Post Standard which talked about the effects of Hurricane Agnes and other factors such as a recession which played a role in the population decrease ( which never really rebounded.) Those factors could also play a small role in how Elmira is viewed today. Hurricane Agnes still stirs up a flood of memories | syracuse.com

[Snowball7]

Originally Posted by ckhthankgod

You could look into Corning or maybe parts of Elmira Heights or Horseheads. All are at least solid. Perhaps look into PA. Places like Sayre, Athens and Wellsboro may work.

what can you tell me about Little Falls or Gloversville ?
Those two are rock bottom prices.
Also there is rock bottom in Syracuse, but it's pretty big,
so the reasons there are probably no different than other
good sized cities.

[ckhthankgod]

Originally Posted by Snowball7

what can you tell me about Little Falls or Gloversville ?
Those two are rock bottom prices.
Also there is rock bottom in Syracuse, but it's pretty big,
so the reasons there are probably no different than other
good sized cities.

Not too sure about Little Falls or Gloversville, but I don't believe that the crime rates are high or above average.

What is your budget, as you may find some steals? Are you buying to live, flip, rent, etc.?

[Sean®]

How its done is you buy a bunch in the same area and hire local talent to maintain.

All will be section 8 and the places will be trashed every time.

Drug use will be heavy and you run the risk of a meth lab setting up shop.

Good money can be made but its a ruthless business and requires a steady hand on the wheel.

Any town in Upstate that had more then say 5k people in 1980 is gonna be a welfare zone. Morally it's up to each person but its legal and somebody is gonna do it if you don't.