Upstate NY?

[cellososweet]

Hi everyone. Around about this time last year I posted looking for help on where DH and I should move. We were in Southern California and looking to come back east because I grew up all over the Eastern seaboard. Well, we made it to Boston in June and we really love the city. We love the weather (yes, we are looking forward to the snow. We are disappointed it hasn''t started. We love the cold!), we love the history, we just love Boston in general. If money wasn''t an object, we''d stay here forever.

One thing we don''t love is the cost of living and the ratrace feel. We are doing substantially better than we ever thought we could here. We have a great 2 bedroom in the North End of Boston, save a little bit each month and aren''t wanting for anything really (that money can buy). One thing I have noticed though, is that we have become really consumed by our careers. In trying to get a step ahead. In trying to do overtime to prove ourselves. In always looking for the next best (and better paying) thing. It''s draining and while we both love Boston to pieces, we''re thinking that we should look for a place that has a slower pace of life. The only thing driving us to be all consumed is the chance to get more money. It''s not out of passion. I should make the abundantly clear.

We''d like to try for kids (we''re not actively avoiding at the moment) and have come to the realization that we are more traditional than we thought. I always wanted to be a stay at home Mom, but this career thing and trying to keep up our cost of living had me telling my husband we''ll just get a nanny.

That might be good for a lot of people, but I realized when I made that statement that I wasn''t myself anymore. Sometimes that a good thing. But it''s not a good thing for me right now.

We tried Boston and love it, but the fact that we both agree with me being a stay at home Mom and teaching cello on the side has us looking elsewhere.

I remember that a few people had mentioned upstate NY.

My husband is in Finance and has a bachelors with roughly 5 years of finance experience (and 5 previous years retail-grocery experience). He is in wealth management/investments and has a pretty high level of experience thanks to a crazy internship he had back in college (the thing was like a full time job. On top of his already full-time banking job. Pretty intense).

I have worked in non-profit/social services, but am looking to be a stay at home Mom and teach cello/violin on the side. I also have medical admin background (lots of it actually. Most of my resume).

We were drawn to Syracuse originally for some reason, but decided to go with Boston because the potential to make more money was here (little did we know that more money would be a blessing and a curse).

We are young, have been married for two years next month. My husband is Korean, I''m multi-cultural so some form of variety would be sort of nice people-wise. We like to be outside. We like to take walks. We like to hike. We like scenery. We love that Boston has "stuff" to do, but even still we spend most of our time walking along the River, in the Arboretum, or at home drinking tea with eachother and the kitties. So, we figured, if we''re going to give this moving thing another go, we might as well switch it up completely.

Does anyone live in CNY/Upstate. Syracuse? Buffalo? Rochester? Oswego? What do you love and what don''t you love?

Oh yeah. . .we love snow, so don''t worry

 

[iluvcarats]

Hi Cello,
I am in Rochester. It may have a lot of what you are looking for. The Eastman School of Music is amazing, along with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra. The schools are great, the houses are affordable, and there is no traffic. We have lots of county parks to run and cross country ski in, and a couple of downhill mountains about 40 minutes away.
In terms of your husbands work, I am not sure on the financial side, but Wegman''s is located here, along with Kodak, Paychex, Xerox, 3M and the University of Rochester which consists of an undergrad school, medical school,nursing school, business school, and is a teaching hospital. It is the largest employer in the city. Rochester is a great place for kids too. We have the 2nd largest children''s museum in the country, a zoo, science museum and art museum.
It does snow a lot, but we are always prepared. School is seldom canceled.

I hope that is helpful. Let me know if you have more questions. I''ll dig up some websights for you. Gotta go - my kids keep getting out of bed

 

[Octavia]

I grew up in central NY state, but one of the very rural parts, not a city. It's lovely there, but economically depressed. Honestly, when I think of the large swath of towns and counties around where I grew up, there's not much call for wealth managers because there's not much wealth. Since I'm not that familiar with the cities you mentioned, it might be better there -- but when I was in high school, I think Syracuse was in pretty bad shape. One of the reasons I left for college and never went back is that there was virtually no work in my former field (nonprofit administration). Several friends of mine went to college in the Buffalo/Rochester area and none of them are still there, they couldn't find decent jobs after graduation. So it's definitely something to consider seriously before deciding to make the leap.

Kingston and its surrounding areas might be places for you to look at, since they're closer to "downstate" (where the majority of wealth is), but still have a smaller-town feel. The housing prices have risen a lot in the past few years, since people from NYC have started moving up or buying second homes around there, but they're still not bad compared to east coast metro prices.

However, while the cost of housing is certainly lower in a lot of areas than it is in Boston, a lot of other costs are not. Since you have to drive pretty much everywhere, you're at the mercy of fuel costs. Food is marginally cheaper, clothing is pretty standard everywhere. So you can certainly get by on less, but the difference other than housing isn't as big as you might think (although having to drive an hour to get to a mall definitely limits impulse purchases, if you're not much of an internet shopper!).

On the flip side of the coin, when I'm there, I love the openness and slow pace. I love not having people on top and beside and below me at all hours of the day and night.

Definitely do your research, and have your DH start scoping out job prospects ASAP. Central NY was a lovely place to grow up (although there "wasn't much to do"

and my parents had to drive me everywhere until I got my license) and if it was feasible for us to move back there, I'd definitely consider raising a family near where I used to live.

 

[cellososweet]

Thanks guys. I should''ve mentioned that DH isn''t into personal wealth management. He''s in institutional wealth management, which opens up a lot more options I think. Right now he works for State Street and does work on CALpirs and CALsters if anyone is familiar. He''d like to work for a smaller place and possibly do financial advising (which isn''t so crazy wealth-related. Even regular folks need people need someone to help them get ahead right?) And as for me, I taught cello and violin out of our home and I''m not keen on going back to work after we get preggers (we''re hoping soon). I just listed my background to get ideas.

Thanks!

 

[luckystar112]

Aw Cello! What a bummer that the cost of living is making you move. Small confession, but I remember how happy you were when you got back to the east coast. I read DH your follow-up post and burst out crying when I got to the part about the weight being off of your shoulders. I long for that so much!
Is upstate New York a must for you? Portland, ME is like a mini, more affordable Boston. If you miss the Red Sox you could just go to a Seahawks game.

Plattsburgh, NY is number 3 on my ''find your spot'' list (www.findyourspot.com). Apparently its the primary business hub of northern New York...but I''ve never been there! Looks pretty....lots of lakes and stuff...with 45 inches of snow per year.

Average home price (according to the site) is only 188,000 so I''m sure rent isn''t that bad.
You should actually go to find your spot and fill it out...it asks you all of those questions about how much you''re willing to pay for rent, etc. And you can specify the northeast if you''d like.

HUGS! I hope you find a great new town.

 

[Allison D.]

Date: 12/1/2008 10:15:39 PM
Author: luckystar112


Aw Cello! What a bummer that the cost of living is making you move. Small confession, but I remember how happy you were when you got back to the east coast. I read DH your follow-up post and burst out crying when I got to the part about the weight being off of your shoulders. I long for that so much!
Is upstate New York a must for you? Portland, ME is like a mini, more affordable Boston. If you miss the Red Sox you could just go to a Seahawks game.

Cello, I was going to suggest the same thing.

I can''t recall if you''re directly in Boston or in the immediate surrounding suburbs, but it sounds as though you are. If so, I''d suggest you potentially look a bit further north into the North Shore of Boston or even Southern NH/Southern Maine.

These areas are still commutable to Boston (which would keep hubby in good stead on a career track), but offer a blissfully slower pace than city living. You''d be STUNNED at how much more ''sane'' it can be going just 30 miles north!

When I met my husband, he lived in Malden. That''s still too close to the city, and every time I went to visit and drove around the streets, what came to mind was a giant anthill bustling with constant activity. That''s SO unlike my experience up here in Merrimack Valley; traffic is much lighter here. There are very nice country-ish areas that offer a more rustic lifestyle without sacrificing the diversity that is available in having access to a major city.

 

[cellososweet]

Hi everyone Thanks for your input! You all are wonderful. Upstate/Central NY isn''t a must, but the cost of living is super duper attractive. If we went thee, we''d be able to cut our cost of living by a almost two thirds. Even with a lower pay rate, we''d still be doing well.

DH''s parents had a lot of issues with us dating and, in turn, decided not to help him at all with college (even though they''ve paid for everything including cars and the like for his two siblings). It was a big blow because they helped the first year and then all of a sudden, he had to afford an apartment, an expensive southern californian university, and a terrible car insurance bill on his own. He worked a lot but started doing poorly in school. So, long story short, we took lots of loans to pay for his education so he could work less/do an important internship. We also have quite a bit of credit card debt that was accumulated during this time. It''s a loooong loooong story.

We''re trying to cut costs as much as possible so that we can get things paid off on one salary (i''ll be working, but from home. So, we''d like to live off of one salary, and save whatever I make). It''s only possible with a cost of living as low as Upstate/Central NY. Even Portland is a little more than we''d want to spend I think.

We''re open to Pennsylvania, NY, Connecticut, Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Rhode Island. We aren''t too thrilled with Massachusetts outside of Boston to be honest. We love Boston, but not Massachusetts really.

We love that a two bedroom can be rented for around $750 in Syracuse and around the same plus a few hundred in Rochester. This is astounding to us as we pay way way way way more than that now.

We''re basically looking to cut costs. It doesn''t have to be upstate.

Iluvcarats, do you have those websites?

 

[icekid]

cello- I can relate! My hubby and I are from the suburbs of Buffalo. And ohh how appealing is the cost of living back home is! The relative ease of life. (Or maybe I was just younger then and then life was by definition with fewer complications hehe). Businesses have a tough time in upstate NY though. The taxes for them are atrocious, so they cannot attract many companies. So the job situation may be a potential deterrent for a move toward the Buffalo/Rochester area. It would not be a problem for me, since I am in a field where I can pretty much get a job anywhere. I don''t think their is much there for my husband though, who is in consulting. But being that buying a home is so inexpensive, I am quite certain that you could do well there as a stay at home mom if your hubby can find a solid job (I am not really familiar with his field).

I find big city activities (aside from sports) to be lacking in the area, though there is a nice art museum and some fun galleries. Importantly, Toronto is very near! Depending on traffic, generally in the 1-2 hour range. And Toronto is a fabulous city with so many things to do!\

So I would say Buffalo/Rochester is definitely worth a look for the two of you.

P.S. Have you ever been to the grocery store Wegmans? Sometimes I think I would move home just so I can go to Wegmans again. Fortunately they are expanding

 

[Aloros]

I lived in upstate NY for seven years, in the suburbs of Rochester. It''s a great place to raise kids. There''s a ton of great parks, the schools are very good, the houses are cheap. I''m not sure how easy it would be to find a job there, though.

Wegmans is awesome!

Downside...after a while, I hated the weather. Really hot and humid in the summer, winter seems to last forever, and when the snow finally melts off, everything is brown for a couple weeks. The cold and the salted roads really take a toll on driveways and cars. Not a lot of cultural diversity. Lots of caucasian people, handful of asians...hispanic or african american? Very, very few. That might have changed since I lived there though, it''s been a long time.

If you can find work there, from what you''re looking for, I think that upstate NY would be a great place for you to go.

 

[cellososweet]

Thanks icekid and aloros!

Aloros, have you ever lived in the deep south? Somehow I just don''t think there''s anywhere in the US that even touches the humidity that places like the bayou in Louisiana, parts of GA, SC, and NC or even parts of FL. I spent a significant amount of time in the south and lemme tell you. . . ya shower and five seconds later it feels like no use. Yuck! Is Upstate even humid like that? I can''t imagine it would be! Yikes!

 

[iluvcarats]

Hi Cello,
Here you go
visitrochester.com
ci.rochester.ny.us
rochesternysites.com

Everything that icekid said is accurate. This is not a "happening" place. It is a nice, quiet, comfortable place. We lived in Orange County CA for a while, and I really didn't like it there. We missed it here, and decided to come back, even though neither one of us is originally from here.(I am from MA and my husband is from NYC) It is definitely not the right place for everyone, as it is a small city with a mid-western feel. If I have to wait in traffic 5 minutes I get annoyed (I know - very spoiled)and it takes about 10 minutes to get anywhere. We often go to the Rochester Philharmonic in downtown Rochester. There is a great restaurant across the street which valet parks our car. We have an amazing meal, hear great music, and are home 10 minutes after the show. Rochester is a very family oriented town. There are tons of festivals in the spring and summer. We are famous for our lilacs and Wegmans. Imagine a really nice market that also had Trader Joe's and Whole Foods in it, with an amazing french bakery, amazing prepared foods, and a freshly made all day sushi bar, and as you shop, they feed you. Fresh bread with brie, grilled swordfish, chocolate chip cookies, and sometimes around the holidays even Godiva chocolate!

Other shopping here isn't great, but I do everything online anyway. Toronto is about 3 hours, and it is a fabulous city. You can easily go for the weekend and shop or see shows, and they have amazing museums.

As far as the housing market goes, do a property search and see what you think. I would try zip codes 14618, 14534, 14450, and 14610 (depending on the schools) Taxes here SUCK! But we send both our kids to public school because they are excellent, so we feel that we get our money's worth.

It's home to us, and we love it here, but we are not hustle/bustle kind of people. My husband is an avid mountain biker, and there are several places to do that around here. Our property borders on a golf course, and although we don't play golf, we walk out the back door and cross country ski there in the winter. There are miles of trails along the Eerie canal to walk, bike or run on. If you are looking for nightlife, this is not it. But if you are looking for an affordable nice place to raise your family, it just might be...
Wegmans

 

[Aloros]

Yeaaaah, it''s not as humid as the deep south. I went to the Everglades once, and it was like swimming!

I still found it fairly unbearable in the summer. Having a finished basement is really nice. Our house had one, and it was a blessing in the summer - cool and dry.

 

[mia1181]

Date: 12/2/2008 8:14:53 PM
Author: icekid
cello- I can relate! My hubby and I are from the suburbs of Buffalo. And ohh how appealing is the cost of living back home is! The relative ease of life. (Or maybe I was just younger then and then life was by definition with fewer complications hehe). Businesses have a tough time in upstate NY though. The taxes for them are atrocious, so they cannot attract many companies. So the job situation may be a potential deterrent for a move toward the Buffalo/Rochester area. It would not be a problem for me, since I am in a field where I can pretty much get a job anywhere. I don''t think their is much there for my husband though, who is in consulting. But being that buying a home is so inexpensive, I am quite certain that you could do well there as a stay at home mom if your hubby can find a solid job (I am not really familiar with his field).

I find big city activities (aside from sports) to be lacking in the area, though there is a nice art museum and some fun galleries. Importantly, Toronto is very near! Depending on traffic, generally in the 1-2 hour range. And Toronto is a fabulous city with so many things to do!

So I would say Buffalo/Rochester is definitely worth a look for the two of you.

P.S. Have you ever been to the grocery store Wegmans? Sometimes I think I would move home just so I can go to Wegmans again. Fortunately they are expanding

Uh! I

Wegmans!!!! Their subs are awesome! I am from Buffalo. My field is teaching and now that we are getting closer to starting a family I wish we could go back! But alas, DH is in Biotech, so no hope for a job for him there

.

We live in CA now and I am seriously starting to get so depressed about home prices here!

 

[iluvcarats]

Date: 12/3/2008 12:01:44 AM
Author: mia1181

Date: 12/2/2008 8:14:53 PM

Author: icekid

cello- I can relate! My hubby and I are from the suburbs of Buffalo. And ohh how appealing is the cost of living back home is! The relative ease of life. (Or maybe I was just younger then and then life was by definition with fewer complications hehe). Businesses have a tough time in upstate NY though. The taxes for them are atrocious, so they cannot attract many companies. So the job situation may be a potential deterrent for a move toward the Buffalo/Rochester area. It would not be a problem for me, since I am in a field where I can pretty much get a job anywhere. I don''t think their is much there for my husband though, who is in consulting. But being that buying a home is so inexpensive, I am quite certain that you could do well there as a stay at home mom if your hubby can find a solid job (I am not really familiar with his field).


I find big city activities (aside from sports) to be lacking in the area, though there is a nice art museum and some fun galleries. Importantly, Toronto is very near! Depending on traffic, generally in the 1-2 hour range. And Toronto is a fabulous city with so many things to do!


So I would say Buffalo/Rochester is definitely worth a look for the two of you.


P.S. Have you ever been to the grocery store Wegmans? Sometimes I think I would move home just so I can go to Wegmans again. Fortunately they are expanding

Uh! I

Wegmans!!!! Their subs are awesome! I am from Buffalo. My field is teaching and now that we are getting closer to starting a family I wish we could go back! But alas, DH is in Biotech, so no hope for a job for him there

.


We live in CA now and I am seriously starting to get so depressed about home prices here!

Mia - check out Wegmans on line - they have great recipes!
When we lived in CA there was Ralph''s and Von''s

 

[mia1181]

I know! When I lived there I used to save recipes from their flyers. Up here in NorCal we have Safeway and Albertson''s

Whole foods is okay and there are a few other "high-end" grocery stores, but none compare to Wegmans IMO!

Aww now I''m getting homesick. Too bad I told DH he could go home without me for Christmas

 

[cellososweet]

Date: 12/2/2008 10:10:27 PM
Author: iluvcarats
Hi Cello,
Here you go
visitrochester.com
ci.rochester.ny.us
rochesternysites.com

Everything that icekid said is accurate. This is not a ''happening'' place. It is a nice, quiet, comfortable place. We lived in Orange County CA for a while, and I really didn''t like it there. We missed it here, and decided to come back, even though neither one of us is originally from here.(I am from MA and my husband is from NYC) It is definitely not the right place for everyone, as it is a small city with a mid-western feel. If I have to wait in traffic 5 minutes I get annoyed (I know - very spoiled)and it takes about 10 minutes to get anywhere. We often go to the Rochester Philharmonic in downtown Rochester. There is a great restaurant across the street which valet parks our car. We have an amazing meal, hear great music, and are home 10 minutes after the show. Rochester is a very family oriented town. There are tons of festivals in the spring and summer. We are famous for our lilacs and Wegmans. Imagine a really nice market that also had Trader Joe''s and Whole Foods in it, with an amazing french bakery, amazing prepared foods, and a freshly made all day sushi bar, and as you shop, they feed you. Fresh bread with brie, grilled swordfish, chocolate chip cookies, and sometimes around the holidays even Godiva chocolate!

Other shopping here isn''t great, but I do everything online anyway. Toronto is about 3 hours, and it is a fabulous city. You can easily go for the weekend and shop or see shows, and they have amazing museums.

As far as the housing market goes, do a property search and see what you think. I would try zip codes 14618, 14534, 14450, and 14610 (depending on the schools) Taxes here SUCK! But we send both our kids to public school because they are excellent, so we feel that we get our money''s worth.

It''s home to us, and we love it here, but we are not hustle/bustle kind of people. My husband is an avid mountain biker, and there are several places to do that around here. Our property borders on a golf course, and although we don''t play golf, we walk out the back door and cross country ski there in the winter. There are miles of trails along the Eerie canal to walk, bike or run on. If you are looking for nightlife, this is not it. But if you are looking for an affordable nice place to raise your family, it just might be...
Wegmans

This sounds like exactly what we are looking for. We really want to start a family and to get out of the rat race. I''m a cellist, so being able to enjoy live music is all I could really ask for. We''re definitely not party types. Actually, it''s sad. We live in Boston with all of this stuff to do and all of these happening places and we spend most of the time going for walks or with eachother at home or going to Mass on Sunday. We''re homebodies. Kinda boring. Haha.

I think we might have to make a weekend trip to see Rochester/Syracuse. And I''m definitely going to Wegmans. I want to be fed! Haha. I''m glad that there is a great grocery store. We''re vegetarians and I cook non-stop, so good food is important

Any other suggestions? No PA suggestions?

 

[iluvcarats]

Please let me know if you are planning a visit. I would be happy to suggest hotels, restaurants etc., and I could suggest a real estate agent if you like. If you enjoy live music you will love Eastman School of Music. The students are required to give free concerts and recitals and the Eastman Theater is beautiful, (and the talent is unbelievable.)
Best of luck to you Cello!

Have you looked into Ithaca? (Cornell is there) I don''t know much about it but have heard great things.

 

[Loves Vintage]

Date: 12/3/2008 8:24:24 AM
Author: iluvcarats
Please let me know if you are planning a visit. I would be happy to suggest hotels, restaurants etc., and I could suggest a real estate agent if you like. If you enjoy live music you will love Eastman School of Music. The students are required to give free concerts and recitals and the Eastman Theater is beautiful, (and the talent is unbelievable.)
Best of luck to you Cello!

Have you looked into Ithaca? (Cornell is there) I don''t know much about it but have heard great things.

Ithaca is lovely! Downtown Ithaca is supernice with lots of cute shops. They are on one of the finger lakes and have many waterfalls, parks, nature areas: http://www.visitithaca.com/

It''s a very veggie friendly town, so that might appeal to you as well. They also have a Wegmans, which I also adore.

I''ve never been to Rochester, but I used to want to live there (when I hated my prior job and was looking for a new place to relocate to). I used to look at houses on-line and was just amazed at what you could buy for 130-150k! Beautiful tudor houses!

 

[iluvcarats]

Date: 12/3/2008 9:30:44 AM
Author: Loves Vintage

Date: 12/3/2008 8:24:24 AM

Author: iluvcarats

Please let me know if you are planning a visit. I would be happy to suggest hotels, restaurants etc., and I could suggest a real estate agent if you like. If you enjoy live music you will love Eastman School of Music. The students are required to give free concerts and recitals and the Eastman Theater is beautiful, (and the talent is unbelievable.)

Best of luck to you Cello!

Have you looked into Ithaca? (Cornell is there) I don''t know much about it but have heard great things.

Ithaca is lovely! Downtown Ithaca is supernice with lots of cute shops. They are on one of the finger lakes and have many waterfalls, parks, nature areas: http://www.visitithaca.com/


It''s a very veggie friendly town, so that might appeal to you as well. They also have a Wegmans, which I also adore.


I''ve never been to Rochester, but I used to want to live there (when I hated my prior job and was looking for a new place to relocate to). I used to look at houses on-line and was just amazed at what you could buy for 130-150k! Beautiful tudor houses!

We live in a tudor built in 1926. We love it!

 

[Loves Vintage]

Date: 12/3/2008 9:34:18 AM
Author: iluvcarats

Date: 12/3/2008 9:30:44 AM
Author: Loves Vintage

Date: 12/3/2008 8:24:24 AM

Author: iluvcarats

Please let me know if you are planning a visit. I would be happy to suggest hotels, restaurants etc., and I could suggest a real estate agent if you like. If you enjoy live music you will love Eastman School of Music. The students are required to give free concerts and recitals and the Eastman Theater is beautiful, (and the talent is unbelievable.)

Best of luck to you Cello!

Have you looked into Ithaca? (Cornell is there) I don''t know much about it but have heard great things.

Ithaca is lovely! Downtown Ithaca is supernice with lots of cute shops. They are on one of the finger lakes and have many waterfalls, parks, nature areas: http://www.visitithaca.com/


It''s a very veggie friendly town, so that might appeal to you as well. They also have a Wegmans, which I also adore.


I''ve never been to Rochester, but I used to want to live there (when I hated my prior job and was looking for a new place to relocate to). I used to look at houses on-line and was just amazed at what you could buy for 130-150k! Beautiful tudor houses!

We live in a tudor built in 1926. We love it!

Ahhh!! That is why I love Rochester even though I''ve never been there!!! I would love your house! Do you have the original windows? Leaded glass? Stained glass? Built-ins? Radiator heat -- steam heat?

I moved out of my 1930 Colonial (not many Tudor style houses in my price range in CT) over the summer, and I miss those classic details so much!!

Sorry for going off topic.

Back to Rochester - I''ve also heard that the Brighton school district is one of the highest rated in the country.

 

[luvinlife]

Upstate NY ( Albany NY) is my home. What can I say, I grew up here so I love it! Yes, the winters are cold (but nothing that a jacket doesn''t cure), the spring is damp, but the summers and fall at to-die-for. I know you said that you are looking for a slower pace, this might be it. We are fairly young and don''t have children yet but would not consider moving. The schools here (at least where we live) are top-notch. For us there are is never a lack of things to do. We go out to dinner every friday, if we get bored being home, we take the train (or drive to the NYC) which takes 2.5 hours. I wish you luck on your search

.

 

[iluvcarats]

Date: 12/3/2008 10:05:44 AM
Author: Loves Vintage

Date: 12/3/2008 9:34:18 AM

Author: iluvcarats

Date: 12/3/2008 9:30:44 AM

Author: Loves Vintage

Date: 12/3/2008 8:24:24 AM


Author: iluvcarats


Please let me know if you are planning a visit. I would be happy to suggest hotels, restaurants etc., and I could suggest a real estate agent if you like. If you enjoy live music you will love Eastman School of Music. The students are required to give free concerts and recitals and the Eastman Theater is beautiful, (and the talent is unbelievable.)


Best of luck to you Cello!

Have you looked into Ithaca? (Cornell is there) I don''t know much about it but have heard great things.

Ithaca is lovely! Downtown Ithaca is supernice with lots of cute shops. They are on one of the finger lakes and have many waterfalls, parks, nature areas: http://www.visitithaca.com/



It''s a very veggie friendly town, so that might appeal to you as well. They also have a Wegmans, which I also adore.



I''ve never been to Rochester, but I used to want to live there (when I hated my prior job and was looking for a new place to relocate to). I used to look at houses on-line and was just amazed at what you could buy for 130-150k! Beautiful tudor houses!

We live in a tudor built in 1926. We love it!

Ahhh!! That is why I love Rochester even though I''ve never been there!!! I would love your house! Do you have the original windows? Leaded glass? Stained glass? Built-ins? Radiator heat -- steam heat?


I moved out of my 1930 Colonial (not many Tudor style houses in my price range in CT) over the summer, and I miss those classic details so much!!

Sorry for going off topic.


Back to Rochester - I''ve also heard that the Brighton school district is one of the highest rated in the country.

We do have all those great details Vintage! We just love it. Leaded glass, original leaded silhouettes, Oak, poplar and pine, stone and stucco, original Moravian tile, and we added on a kitchen and family room. We added central AC and switched the radiators to HVAC, but kept the old radiators for the charm. Brighton and Pittsford school districts are both nationally recognized. (makes the taxes a bit more digestable!

)
We are in love with it!

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

Date: 12/1/2008 9:29:41 PM
Author: Octavia
I grew up in central NY state, but one of the very rural parts, not a city. It''s lovely there, but economically depressed. Honestly, when I think of the large swath of towns and counties around where I grew up, there''s not much call for wealth managers because there''s not much wealth. Since I''m not that familiar with the cities you mentioned, it might be better there -- but when I was in high school, I think Syracuse was in pretty bad shape. One of the reasons I left for college and never went back is that there was virtually no work in my former field (nonprofit administration). Several friends of mine went to college in the Buffalo/Rochester area and none of them are still there, they couldn''t find decent jobs after graduation. So it''s definitely something to consider seriously before deciding to make the leap.


Kingston and its surrounding areas might be places for you to look at, since they''re closer to ''downstate'' (where the majority of wealth is), but still have a smaller-town feel. The housing prices have risen a lot in the past few years, since people from NYC have started moving up or buying second homes around there, but they''re still not bad compared to east coast metro prices.


However, while the cost of housing is certainly lower in a lot of areas than it is in Boston, a lot of other costs are not. Since you have to drive pretty much everywhere, you''re at the mercy of fuel costs. Food is marginally cheaper, clothing is pretty standard everywhere. So you can certainly get by on less, but the difference other than housing isn''t as big as you might think (although having to drive an hour to get to a mall definitely limits impulse purchases, if you''re not much of an internet shopper!).


On the flip side of the coin, when I''m there, I love the openness and slow pace. I love not having people on top and beside and below me at all hours of the day and night.


Definitely do your research, and have your DH start scoping out job prospects ASAP. Central NY was a lovely place to grow up (although there ''wasn''t much to do''

and my parents had to drive me everywhere until I got my license) and if it was feasible for us to move back there, I''d definitely consider raising a family near where I used to live.

Where in Central NY are you from Octavia? FI is from Morrisville (near Hamilton).

 

[Loves Vintage]

Date: 12/3/2008 10:45:30 AM
Author: iluvcarats

Date: 12/3/2008 10:05:44 AM
Author: Loves Vintage

Date: 12/3/2008 9:34:18 AM

Author: iluvcarats

Date: 12/3/2008 9:30:44 AM

Author: Loves Vintage

Date: 12/3/2008 8:24:24 AM


Author: iluvcarats


Please let me know if you are planning a visit. I would be happy to suggest hotels, restaurants etc., and I could suggest a real estate agent if you like. If you enjoy live music you will love Eastman School of Music. The students are required to give free concerts and recitals and the Eastman Theater is beautiful, (and the talent is unbelievable.)


Best of luck to you Cello!

Have you looked into Ithaca? (Cornell is there) I don't know much about it but have heard great things.

Ithaca is lovely! Downtown Ithaca is supernice with lots of cute shops. They are on one of the finger lakes and have many waterfalls, parks, nature areas: http://www.visitithaca.com/



It's a very veggie friendly town, so that might appeal to you as well. They also have a Wegmans, which I also adore.



I've never been to Rochester, but I used to want to live there (when I hated my prior job and was looking for a new place to relocate to). I used to look at houses on-line and was just amazed at what you could buy for 130-150k! Beautiful tudor houses!

We live in a tudor built in 1926. We love it!

Ahhh!! That is why I love Rochester even though I've never been there!!! I would love your house! Do you have the original windows? Leaded glass? Stained glass? Built-ins? Radiator heat -- steam heat?


I moved out of my 1930 Colonial (not many Tudor style houses in my price range in CT) over the summer, and I miss those classic details so much!!

Sorry for going off topic.


Back to Rochester - I've also heard that the Brighton school district is one of the highest rated in the country.

We do have all those great details Vintage! We just love it. Leaded glass, original leaded silhouettes, Oak, poplar and pine, stone and stucco, original Moravian tile, and we added on a kitchen and family room. We added central AC and switched the radiators to HVAC, but kept the old radiators for the charm. Brighton and Pittsford school districts are both nationally recognized. (makes the taxes a bit more digestable!

)
We are in love with it!

Ahhh! So gorgeous!!! L

ve those windows and the fireplace and the exterior (so green too)! It is just so pretty, and your doggie looks pretty happy too!!

 

[Octavia]

I don''t want to say the exact town, but it''s the upper Catskills/Leatherstocking region. So fairly eastern NY (we don''t say "pop" there, we say "soda") and not too far north. Several kids from my old high school usually go to SUNY Morrisville each year, though.

It''s funny because to us, anything north of the NYC suburban counties is "upstate," but we always have to further qualify it because NY state is so huge (so I don''t even think of Buffalo/Rochester as "upstate", I think of them as "western NY." Plattsburgh, Lake Placid, etc. would be "northern NY"). Conversations with non-upstaters usually go like this:

A: I''m from upstate NY.
B: oh, you''re from Buffalo?
A: no, *Town Name*
B: ah, is that near Syracuse?
A: no
B: hmm, but I thought you said you were from NY state . . .

 

[iluvcarats]

Thanks Vintage!

Octavia LOL! My inlaws live in Manhattan, and they think that Westchester is Upstate!

 

[mia1181]

Date: 12/3/2008 4:38:18 PM
Author: Octavia
I don''t want to say the exact town, but it''s the upper Catskills/Leatherstocking region. So fairly eastern NY (we don''t say ''pop'' there, we say ''soda'') and not too far north. Several kids from my old high school usually go to SUNY Morrisville each year, though.

It''s funny because to us, anything north of the NYC suburban counties is ''upstate,'' but we always have to further qualify it because NY state is so huge (so I don''t even think of Buffalo/Rochester as ''upstate'', I think of them as ''western NY.'' Plattsburgh, Lake Placid, etc. would be ''northern NY''). Conversations with non-upstaters usually go like this:

A: I''m from upstate NY.
B: oh, you''re from Buffalo?
A: no, *Town Name*
B: ah, is that near Syracuse?
A: no
B: hmm, but I thought you said you were from NY state . . .

He he! This cracks me up! I say pop but now that I am in CA I say soda to others and pop only to my DH at home! It''s like talking a foreign language at home!

In CA, when I tell people we are from NY state they always assume NYC, then when I clarify Western NY they don''t know what I am talking about so I go with Upstate NY and they think Ithica and I usually just let it go at that!