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Pros: We get maybe two months of nice weather all year. No snow shoveling.
Cons: Too hot and too humid for too long; homes are overpriced; too few shade trees to help with the heat, worry about hurricanes every year. Oh, and did I mention it's hot & humid? I have to wait till right before sunset to take the dog for a walk and even though it might be 8 p.m., the humidity smacks you in the face like a wet blanket. Traffic during season is terrible. Even the beaches aren't that great, nothing like Panama City.
Hate it enough where I'm planning my move as we speak.
I’m not thrilled, but I will start with the positives.
Lots of points of contact with cultural happenings - tons of shows, concerts, festivals, some boutique little cinemas, etc. Restaurants tend to be really good - service varies a lot but they know how to cook up here for sure. Tons of open/public spaces in and out of town, there’s always a great spot for a picnic, camping, or a walk. Ritually all the small towns I’ve been through in the region seem to be thriving with healthy downtowns and well-kept houses and parks. Rochester metro is a nice size. Nothing you use regularly or even semi-regularly is really more than half an hour away, but there’s enough pull to bring in big acts. Freeway system was overbuilt so there’s virtually never traffic. The city also has good bones - it hasn’t been totally ravaged like a lot of legacy industrial cities and while it certainly has some deep problems, it’s been able to retain a lot of both its character as well as “secondary” services like operational rec centers and such, and there aren’t a massive amount of vacant lots from torn down houses. Should the opportunity come along, I think the built environment is ripe for an upgraded transit system. And last but certainly not least, summers are really mild and absolutely perfect for spending time outside, which people do here. I’ll put downtown in the positives, though it’s a mixed bag. It lacks residents and therefore a homey kind of feel, but it’s visually impressive and in pretty good shape, with the river and waterfalls smack downtown, and some pretty interesting little bars and such if you look a little, the Strong Museum, and more. It certainly is a way better downtown than it could be, and it does get used for some of the signature events like the Fringe Festival with Parcel 5 being a real draw to the city and downtown.
There are a lot of cons, unfortunately. This is where I confirmed that I do NOT like winter. It noticeably impacts my mental health, and of course the road salt cuts the lifespan of cars in half. It’s horrifying as a car guy to see how far your money won’t go in the investment you make in a car. Winter alone is cause enough to say no to this place, though to be fair that’s hardly just Rochester. More specific to the area here is the pervasive inner city hustle culture; your relationship with these kinds of folks is really in direct proportion to the material benefit they can derive from your acquaintance. I’ve been burned in just a little over a year, and I don’t really trust people here now. Driving is quite literally out of control - the police are understaffed and to their credit they choose to focus on the worst of the crime here, but that also means traffic violations are just not on their radar. Speeding is one thing, but we are talking unsafe/rude passing, running red lights, and generally selfish behavior that’s dangerous in its unpredictability. And this isn’t just sometimes, this is normal, daily stuff. To some extent I think it could be improved upon if someone bothered to synchronize stoplights better. Sacramento is the only place I’ve ever seen which got this right, but both the city and it’s suburbs stick out as being worse than average for all the places I’ve spent time driving in. It wastes fuel and time for no good reason. Road layouts are a bit confusing sometimes given that this place was populated well before cars were a thing. Some of the older suburbs like Fairport have that weird narrow small town street thing going on which wasn’t a thing where I’ve lived, so for me at least getting around isn’t always terribly intuitive. It’s also kind of a wild place - try listening to the police or fire scanner sometime. I’ve witnessed a police chase, an ambulance responding to an unresponsive person, junkies, multiple fires, and have heard the gunshots for what ended up being a murder. I do feel guarded when entering the city proper with regards to what I wear and demurring from eye contact. And COL is sneaky high - it’s an experiment in what happens when minimum wages are high. I can get on a plane back to Texas and find restaurants are $3-4 cheaper per plate. Oh and speaking of food, I’m still adjusting to not having abundant Mexican food here. The housing stock is old and architecture tends to be not at all my style unless it’s masonry which they seem to be pretty good at up in the northeast. And ugh…stairs. Stairs everywhere. At my last workplace, in all the houses…there’s nothing inherently wrong with a lot of that, but given where I’ve spent most of my life, it’s a bit weird and feels kind of unnecessary.
Overall I just don’t really connect with the area. I’m much more used to my sunbelty kinda places, so I haven’t really found my role here. It feels kind of foreign to me in a way, and I can’t really seem to find my mojo here. That’s unfortunate because in a lot of ways, it has some neat stuff and I wish I’d perhaps moved here a bit earlier when I was to some extent a bit less rigid and perhaps more adaptable.
Pros: mostly mild weather that rarely interferes with outdoor plans; people tend to be active outdoors and healthy/fit; 5 minutes from mountain biking/hiking trails; 20-30 minutes from great beaches (Laguna, Newport, San Clemente); quiet suburban community with no trash/graffiti/crime/homeless; walkable to many amenities (Trader Joe's, Target, restaurants, parks, community pool)
Cons: no real winter if you are a winter lover (though mountains with snow are 1.5 hours away); traffic to popular locations (e.g. beach) is daunting during summer; drought and wildfire risk; high cost of living esp. real estate--doesn't bother us as we own our house & business but we worry about whether our children will have to move away
Pro-Con: Los Angeles is close enough to be drivable for a single day event, but far enough to be not at all fun to drive to.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
44,579 posts, read 81,186,228 times
Reputation: 57818
I'm very happy here in Sammamish, WA where we have lived for 30 years this month.
We are at 600' elevation, with views from different parts of the city including the Cascade Mountains, Mt. Rainier, Lake Sammamish, the Snoqualmie Valley, Bellevue and Seattle skylines.
We have only 3 small strip malls, no big box stores with the traffic, noise, litter and crime that goes with them, yet anything we could need is available just 5-6 miles away in Redmond or Issaquah.
Most homes are on lots of 12,000sf or more, far enough apart for good privacy, 3 recreational lakes, with old-growth trees and even woods still here.
Schools are all highly rated, very low crime rate, 88% owner-occupied homes.
Atlanta, GA (northern suburbs) - Half and half (leaning towards unhappy)
Pros: Modern housing is widespread and the comforts they come with new buildings are nice. People tend to be friendly. Food options are plentiful, you can get any type of cuisine easily. Entertainment amenities are everywhere. Entrepreneurship and small businesses are encouraged locally. Diversity within higher socioeconomic classes is a wonderful thing to see that is lacking in many other metros. This is also the safest area I’ve ever lived.
Cons: I despise Atlanta’s build environment. The endless suburban sprawl, spaghetti roads, sterile Sunbelt plazas, gated communities and terrible planning. The urban core is not that appealing either. Traffic is atrocious and public transit is abysmal. Even in the areas MARTA serves, it’s one of the weakest rail systems I’ve used. Not only are the roads congested but the drivers have poor skills maneuvering traffic. I doubt if more than 30% of people even bother to use turn signals. They’ll just cut you off, speed in school zones and bully you if you’re not doing more than 15mph over the limit. Constant gridlock. Sitting 3 light cycles at 3 minute red lights is not uncommon. Commutes are long and stressful. Just getting around takes away from the joy of living in a city with so much to do.
I also really dislike the weather. Summer is the worst time of year (too long and hot). Even winters are way too mild for my tastes. I have turned the A/C on in January, no joke. I miss the snow. Food scene is mediocre too. Yes, there are tons of options, but they average worse than nearby cities. I have had very few meals blow me away in Metro Atlanta. For instance, BBQ is better in Tennessee and the Carolinas. Soul food is better in Savannah. Latin food is better in Florida. I can’t find good working class Italian food anywhere, just uppity “fancy” Italian restaurants (crappy pizza, subs, delis, bakeries, etc.) There are endless chains though.
Pay is fairly low for a major city while the job market is quite competitive, and housing may be cheaper than other major cities, but it is rising fast and getting suffocating. The apartment I am living in has nearly doubled in rent since 2019.
Finally, there seems to be a huge culture of materialism and “keeping up with the Joneses” which I find annoying. But maybe that’s just the side of town I’m on.
Overall, I can appreciate the beautiful things about a Sunbelt metro in its prime. I’ve met plenty of transplants who LOVE it here. So these are simply personal takes based on my own lifestyle. Having lived in Rochester, NY and NoVA, Atlanta is my least favorite home. I’d be fine to live here another few years because truthfully it could be far worse, I just am not interested in settling down in this area.
West University Place | Houston for now. Paris (depending how long the visa takes….) soon.
Half and half
It’s a beautiful neighborhood with manicured, well-maintained landscape, safe, great school district, upscale and all that jazz that people rave about in the modern life Americana. If I were a more typical “let’s get married and have kids and move to suburban idyllic Norman Rockwell perfectness” type id be 100% content with the life I’m having. Houston is a nice springboard that allows us to travel overseas and domestically almost every month but I’m not a suburban person. I decorated and renovated my house exactly the way the grand Parisian Haussmann apartment is.-that tells you what and how I lean, mentally, emotionally and culturally.
I’m also having the U.S fatigue. I’ve done Manhattan, Los Angeles, quaint Shaker Heights, cutesy Sarasota, and now one of the best neighborhoods in Houston.-my nomad genes are calling me.
I’m not unhappy, I’m more bored. (hence posting online) Not necessarily because where we live now is boring, but because i am craving for new experiences and I don’t like sameness, no matter how great the sameness is. (Only with places and cities.) im off to Santa Barbara to see whales and dolphins next week then im taking off to re-visit Grand Canyon, im determined to show my daughter the world outside the U.S and her comfort zone. She’s also not the type of kids who can just live in the suburbs and be content. Good for anyone who can do it, but we can’t.
The U.S life provides enormously in terms of convenience, job opportunities, wealth attainment, overall well-rounded lifestyle, competitiveness and variety, my husband’s job is so much secure and stable here in the U.S but I’ve been here for almost 29 yrs, time to take some risk and discomfort.
Ellicott City, MD (suburb of Baltimore) -- half and half (trending downward)
Pros: affluent suburban area; nicely laid out (doesn't feel too sprawly even though it kind of is); decent selection of chain restaurants and big boxes (sorry, I actually like cookie-cutter suburbia); pretty clean and generally safe; still pretty good schools; easy access to BWI Airport.
Cons: crime is increasing, more so in neighboring Columbia but I'm starting to feel like it's closing in on me; the political will to deal with crime is dropping (because That Would Be Racist); schools are going down in quality; there's a lot more litter and aggressive driving and in general a degradation in civility and manners, readily apparent since COVID; politically liberal; increasing diversity seems to be leading to a lack of trust and social cohesion.
Used to be a Pro, now a Con: proximity to Baltimore and Washington.
I've lived here for 29 years. For the longest time, I thought that I would grow old here, maybe live out my entire life here. Now, I'm actively looking to move and am eager to leave. My son graduates high school next year; we may very well be leaving right after that.
Middle Tennessee -- half and half, with a down arrow. But the wife likes it so I'm stuck.
Pros: reasonable cost of living; semi rural, small town life; decent school system for a small town; large lakes nearby for recreation.
Cons: too rural to have lots of amenities, but not rural enough to actually be rural, meaning we get some of the traffic headaches of a small city without the benefits of one. I don't mind the lack of amenities but I'd rather then just be on a farm and not have the traffic problems. Mostly a three season climate. Hot, humid summer with cold, damp winters. Fall is the best season because you get a period of temperate weather. Spring is a flash in the pan. Politics is aggressively libertarian. Most would call themselves conservative, but conservative and libertarian are NOT the same thing. And too far from the mountains to be in them but not near anything else either.
I would much rather move to an area near the mountains but wife likes it here.
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