Review of Albany, New York


Horrible Weather Year Round
Star Rating - 4/6/2018
I've lived in the capital region Albany area since 1976. Albany's cost of living,(with the exception of property taxes,) is reasonable. There are a lot of things to do and a decent job market. It's centrally located and within a reasonably short drive to NYC, Boston, Montreal,Philadelphia and the Atlantic coast. Nice geography,(near the Catskill, Adirondack, Berkshire and Helderberg mountains) The city of Albany has its share of ghettos and undesirable neighborhoods but there are decent suburbs close by. I cannot overemphasize the following enough: THE WEATHER IS HORRIBLE. Frigid cold, dark,dreary winters can last from October to April. There's a saying about upstate New York.
Andy | East Schodack, NY
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4 Replies


"Albany has 2 seasons: the Fourth of July and winter."
Andy | East Schodack, NY | Report Abuse

Boston 3+ hours by car. Short drive ? Albany lots to do ? Like what exactly ?
David | Latham, NY | Report Abuse

We used to drive an hour north before we saw the sun most days in Albany! The husband and I used to say a cloud hangs over that area. Also very miserable people. I've always made friends all over the world but no one ever spoke to me there socially! Weird, weird place that should not be NY capital.
S | Lebanon, NH | Report Abuse

As far as the weather, you just described the entire Northeastern region of the United States from Philadelphia to New York City, Montreal, Boston, and Northern Maine, and has pretty much kept the same basic pattern for well beyond the last 40 years. I agree that Property taxes are horrendous, but overall cost of living is about as awful as 100 year old expired milk, if you don’t have a Job/Career with a starting pay of at least 80k/yr and have to pay rent and required utilities separately then you may want to get your bus pass and sign up for Uber or Lyft, and start filing for welfare now, and may any diety you believe in help you, if you also have to pay separately for water and/or garbage pickup, and should you have your own vehicle, you might want to pray that you’ll win the lottery. Crime in Albany, especially in most of the slightly nicer to even more rich/fancy neighborhoods ranges from Home robberies in broad daylight all the way to hit and runs, domestic violence, major drug trafficking and murder, with all being more per capita than New York City over the past few decades. If you’re looking for a job outside of the city or state government, or have a business or engineering degree then you’ll find a job quite easy, but if you’re like most Americans, and couldn’t afford a high end college, then you’re odds of finding a job that starts above minimum wage, is about the same as finding a politician that doesn’t place their personal ideals over those of the people they represent.
T | Albany, NY | Report Abuse
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