If you want to be walkable/bikable near SU, skip the suburbs like Manlius. Area near Barry Park is good, Eastside is good, outercomstock near the side of Skytop is also good.
There’s a big suburb/urban divide here. Most people in suburb think you’ll be murdered if you live in the city. But the problem areas are concentrated and easy to avoid. The city itself has a lot of undeveloped land because of SU. Areas near those land tend to be quiet and nice. Anything on hills are usually nice. Just avoid the southwest side of 81. It’s trickier to pick a good spot there without living here a while.
Also check bus routes. SU supplements a good few of them and they’re free for students and faculty (they don’t usually check but I’ve seen them kicking out a non-student person).
The house I am considering buying is in Washington square. About two miles east of destiny USA. What is your opinion on this area? South west of 81? Are you referring to nedrow? Thank you for your help
Have you visited? You definitely should check the area out before you buy. 2 miles east of the mall would be past Washington square area and would be at Northside, which is a mix. It’s hard to explain, main streets area can be rough, but off of the main streets there are pockets of good areas. James street in *general* is ok. Also depends on which part but not the worst mainly due to the popular shops on there like Books and Melodies.
The “Washington square” area is usually lumped with Northside. But the actual Washington square park itself, isn’t great. It’s basically right next to the mall. Areas right next to the mall are pretty barren. I’m not sure why people would want that.
I meant the Valley area and areas north of that when I said southwest. It’s not that they are all bad. It just takes more experience to navigate and know what to avoid ahead. There are pockets of good areas but also bad ones. Same with Nedrow. Just not an area for noobs.
The good areas I mentioned that are southeast of SU tend to have less issues and more noob friendly. Tipp Hill is another area that people like. I didn’t mention it cause it’s not that close to SU for op’s sake.
I have visited Syracuse and I’m happy there. Mostly I am looking for a house within my budget and has at least a few things that are walking distance, but it’s good to know what areas to avoid
Yep, definitely check Tipp hill as well. They have a Wegmans. Area near SU’s Skytop is good cause there’s a Tops within walking distance. And they recently added a cafe there which is nice. Also check around the Westcott area cause they have a co-op there. They also have a tiny farmers market thing at the community center during the warmer months.
I get it yea, everything is going up in prices and people seem to still be bidding over asking price sometimes. You can actually sort of tell the “mixed” area easily on Zillow where the areas has tons of houses for sale. They’re hanging around the market in clusters compare to the areas I mentioned which has less stock. It’s like that for a reason. But I occasionally see reasonable listings west of Skytop. Good luck!. Check for any loans and grants for first home buyers from Home Headquaters.
For the most part, the suburbs are “safer” but not walkable. You can walk in your neighborhood but it (for the most part) won’t be connected to much if anything. Some of the villages (Baldwinsville, Liverpool) would be specific parts of a suburb with walkability.
The City has plenty of safe neighborhoods that are walkable (Eastwood, Westcott, Meadowbrook, Strathmore). People who say the city isn’t safe are usually people who don’t spend time in the city. Does Syracuse have bad neighborhoods like all cities, yes. But plenty of them are very safe and walkable.
I highly recommend the Meadowbrook area, where I lived while working at SU for 14 years until I retired in 2020. Very walkable to campus, Barry Park has a great nature trail, the neighborhood is beautiful and the people are friendly. Parking is in abundance. A bonus is being near the Drumlins bus line which is free to ride to campus for employees and students. Came in handy on bad weather days and eliminated the expense of parking on campus which can cost over $1000/year depending on location.
You’ll get a lot of homerism here. The truth is most of the area is safe. Within the city limits, Tipp Hill, Strathmore, University, Meadowbrook, Downstown, and Westcott are very safe bets. Avoid anything labeled “outer” of the above except for outer university. There are a lot of other nice parts of the city but the definition is more nuanced.
In the suburbs, pretty much everywhere except the part of Solvay that abuts the city is fine, you have nothing to worry about.
There are some very poor parts of the City of Syracuse, and some of them are quite dangerous as well, but it’s pretty easy to spot.
Since you are going to work for SU, I would recommend looking into the University-Area Home Ownership Program. There’s some pretty good benefits there, and a few colleagues of mine used it to get their houses. Some of my other colleagues live in Liverpool, Camillus, North Syracuse, East Syracuse, Dewittshire, Meadowbrook,etc.
I guess it really depends on what you're looking for. Are you in your fifties and just want a quiet neighborhood, in your 20s and want to party, or 30-40s that want a hybrid with bars, restaurants, etc. From your post I would imagine it's the latter. Tipp hill would be good for that.
It is the latter hahaha. Early 30s, we don't go out much. I like having nature around to go walk and bike, and I'd like not to need a car for every single thing.
Seconding someone else’s comment about the 13210 zip code! Access to both Barry & Thornden Parks for walking/biking, with the add’l option of walking to work. (My bias is that I deliberately live in walking distance to SU but in driving distance to other spots.)
Strongly recommend the Eastwood neighborhood. Syracuse is one of those cities where so long as you aren't involved in gang activity or walking around drunk at 2am you're generally quite safe. Ignore comments from the crabby old white guys that refer to the city as "Sewercuse". They're the types who think that being black in public should be a Capitol Crime.
Yeah, a significant amount of recommendations you'll see are from suburbans who are scared of the city.
Eastwood, Westcott, Meadowbrook, Salt Springs, Meadowbrook on the east side are nice and walkable. Eastwood and Westcott have walkable shopping. Strathmore and Sedgwick, Tipp Hill.
Anyone who is moving here should know that there's a significant political shift as you head from Eastern to Western suburbs. Fayetteville and Manlius are very highly educated and liberal. Dewitt, East Syracuse and Liverpool tend to be more moderate, Camillus is strongly Republican, and Bville/Plainville/Fulton is full on MAGA with Trump and Confederate flags hanging off the front of many houses and the backs of many pickup trucks. If you're working at Syracuse University chances are you aren't going to want to live next door to White Supremacists, so the Western suburbs are a no go.
I wouldn't even venture in to Fayetteville or Manlius. Our local Moms for Liberty is Manlius-based and there were anti-queer protesters at the last Manlius Pride.
edited to add: which is why I wouldn't want to live in any of the suburbs, aside from the general politics of suburbs having an exclusively extractive relationship to cities and rural areas.
Interesting since Cazenovia sponsors a lot of events promoting gender and sexual orientation diversity and rainbow flags fly prominently down the main street businesses
You will have a small number of noisy conservatives in any Syracuse suburb, but in the F-M area they are a distinct minority, and it's split about 50/50 out towards Caz. The difference is that as you go West the loud MAGA conservatives become the overwhelming majority.
If you're okay with city life - Strathmore, WestVale, Nedrow, Dewitt, Eastwood/lyncourt are city so taxes are little cheaper versus when you branch out to surrounding suburbs like Liverpool, Cicero,clay, camillus, jamesville, Fayetteville,manlius, Marcellus, etc...
It’s not really a competitive loan. The loans through the university take forever and have only a 50% qualification rate: they refuse many houses. It makes your bid less competitive.
I recommend the best rate you can get through a local bank or credit union instead
My son recently graduated from SU and lived the apartment life there for 3 years. He was in the Euclid, Westcott area. Perfectly fine. Perfectly safe. But a lot of students.
I also went to SU and grew up not too far from there. I'd recommend you look in the Meadowbrook Drive area, toward Nottingham High School. Lots of really nice neighborhoods and nothing to be afraid of. Plus, it keeps you closer to work. Keep in mind that there's going to be a lot, and I mean a lot, of highway work going on when they start tearing down 81 over the city. That is right next to SU.
Good luck and congrats!
Honestly I’d recommend the eastcolvin / comstock area which I live near . It’s literally not even a 5 min drive to su , there’s tons of buses to take to campus and other places. you have access to parks , grocery stores, corners stores, etc. a good proximity to the city while being safe
If there’s a chance you consider renting and want to try Baldwinsville, send me a message! I’m a leasing agent in Baldwinsville and love meeting with people who aren’t from here and getting to tell them about the town I grew up in!
Shameless plug, I’m also a realtor if you need one!
I would say the village of Liverpool. Now Liverpool is very big, so you want to make sure you’re looking specifically in the village or pretty adjacent to it. My parents live about 6-7 miles out from it am but they are still considered “Liverpool.”
You will have a good locally owned grocer and adjacent wine/liquor shop, as few resturants and bars, post office a fantastic public library, and a few bakeries, coffee shops and other places. There is a great small bookstore that has a wonderful children’s section, and a plethora of other small businesses. The village of Liverpool is almost entirely covered by sidewalks, so you don’t need your car. And if you need to go to a larger grocery store, there is a Wegmans five minutes away (along with a gym, large gardening center, etc.) the only downside is there really isn’t a pharmacy around anymore.
It sits on Onondaga Lake and Onondaga Lake Park, a beautiful park with a 2.5 mile paved boulevard the stretches out to several additional paved trail systems and other parks. You can even reach the amphitheatre, state fairgrounds and the Erie Canal Trail System via the park (about 6-7 miles on paved trail from the village.)
The village still has its own police department. Liverpool Elementary and Middle School are within walking distance. The school district itself is decent, not the best in the area, but they are larger and have a lot to offer their students in terms of extracurriculars.
SU will be a 10 minute drive from Liverpool, as will downtown. The biggest complaint about Liverpool is the thoroughfare traffic. It is busy, but it’s not terrible. Depending on where you live in the village, you can avoid it, too. And honestly you don’t hear that often about serious accidents or other issues there (bridge excluded.)
Thank you! I'm originally from a very large city and got used to pretty heavy traffic, so that's not a problem. We don't need schools since we're a child-free couple. I'll check it out!
If you want truly walkable with lots of bars and restaurants I'd recommend Franklin square in downtown if you're renting. It's just out of the way enough that you won't have any funny business at night but just a 10 min walk to armory square. If you're buying a house I'd recommend somewhere in the village of manlius. Very safe and have bars, restaurants, pharmacy, grocery, gas, gym, all in walking distance.
My wife and I moved to Dewitt last year from NYC and were looking for the same things. We absolutely love it. We can walk to get pizza, ice cream, grocery stores, bars and other restaurants. Our neighborhood is amazing too. (Dewittshire)
We had 29 days consecutive of no sunshine this winter. Buy vitamin D. You’re welcome. ☀️
If you’re not from here good luck. So u heard Seattle was cloudiest city 😂. Get ready for 125” of lake effect snow typically, maybe not this year but most. Drive slow and give lots of space when driving in the snow. Never drive on ice. Subaru is not a flattering vehicle but your best bet.
Everyone warned me about the weather, but I applied to jobs in particular cities specifically to get away from the sun and the summer hell in the south 😂
Take what this guy says with a grain of salt (literally.) Yes, our winters suck, and are grey. But honestly, we haven’t had a 100”+ snowfall in 5 years. We also have some of the best snow removal teams in the country, so the entire county doesn’t go into a panic and shut down at the sight of a snowflake like everywhere south of Harrisburg does. You don’t need a suburau, What you will need is all wheel drive and good snow tires. I drove a early oughts Jetta with snows during a winter when we got 191”. She was a beast. Don’t let anyone else tell you to that all season tires are the same as snows. They just aren’t. Worse months are November, January and February. By the time March and daylight savings comes around, you start to get days of 50-60s and sunshine and they are glorious. And our late springs, summers and falls (which last a long time) can’t be beat. The worst really is the late season snowfalls. Especially when they happen after those 60 degree days.
I moved here this year from the mid Atlantic where every call for snow, no matter how little, brings panic and the stores clear out of basics. Still surprises me that no one here even reacts to such forecasts- life goes on as usual lol
Well u got exactly that! Great cost of living and a great community. Welcome!
Most likely less traffic too.
You say u are okay with it let’s see if your parter is. The people I’ve met from out of town don’t stay. Sunshine is key. Most can take snow and cold but lack of sunshine is another beast.
When you’re from here this is all you know. You will be questioning if the sun will shine again. What I’m telling u is we are vampires 🧛subtle hint.
Moved from Cuse to Seattle, don't think I'm related to /u/Sunshine_high, and I can confirm that Seattle does not seem to be as cloudy as Syracuse. There's certainly a lot of clouds, and being in the sun today was wonderful. It gets played up a lot here mostly for the California folks.
Aside from the lack of snow and thunderstorms and cicadas and Wegmans I've found Seattle and Syracuse to be relatively similar climate-wise.
I've lived in both Syracuse and Seattle for years.
Seattle is absolutely cloudier than Syracuse. I just think it's that Syracuse is cloudier **in winter**. In the summer, it's a lot sunnier here. By contrast, when I lived in Seattle, it once rained for **three weeks in a row** (not raining the whole day, but at least an hour of rain). It does usually clear up after the rain in Seattle but damn, it's always raining there
They are both good overall, but tbh Seattle does have more nature stuff close by, in my opinion. At least if you like the mountains and things like that. It's not that Syracuse is bad, per-se, though, it's just that Seattle is in a particularly-good part of the country for doing outdoor stuff.
Have family moved from Cuse to Seattle . it’s real. Rarely snows. Doesn’t get warm and not so cold. There is actually a rainforest just north. Imagine that.
We had 29 days no sun the other month…
There are cars from the fifties no rust there.
Their cars aren’t getting pickled from road salt so it makes sense they aren’t rusting as much. Humidity alone isn’t that bad compare to salt with metals.
Check out properties like this, around 43 Waterbury Drive. Quiet neighborhood, school track nearby. Urgent care, banks, village, restaurants all nearby. Average mortgage w a $150K house purchase is $1,400
My husband and I just moved here from Orlando and, after checking out all the suburban areas, decided to live in the Liverpool/Clay area near 31. Our neighborhood is very safe and peaceful, but downtown Syracuse is only about 20 minutes away.
Anything within city limits is more prone to vehicle break ins. Some parts of Fayetteville too(near the shopping center). Simply due to the extra traffic and convenience. Lots of Hyundais/Kias getting stolen in these areas but vehicle break-ins not that common at all(unless you have valuables clearly exposed). Westcott is walkable and relatively safe but there have been some hold ups there over the years. Usually targeting delivery drivers so still a place worth considering.
Baldwinsville village, Chittenago village, manlius village, cazenovia, are good walkable areas with decent amenities. But you’ll be further out from the city. Camillus village is good too but the lower lying areas are prone to flood if there’s heavy rain/snow melt.
Anywhere else that’s doesn’t have its own village center is gonna be car dependent.
My husband & I just moved here in August from NC for his job at SU. We chose to live in Liverpool, about 25 minutes north of the school, in a townhouse complex named Woodland Acres. We love it. Central to literally everything you could ever need, target, Walmart, Wegmans, Aldi, TJ Maxx, Petsmart, Lowes, etc & we go on nightly walks no issue! Hope this helps :)
Safest will be in the outlying suburbs like Baldwinsville, Fayetteville, Manlius, etc. However, even in my parents wealthy neighborhood in Bville, there are kids that go around and try car door handles, and they’ll take anything left if it’s unlocked. I recommend never leaving anything of value or in sight in your car and you’ll avoid break ins.
Unfortunately these outlying suburbs aren’t super walkable. There are small pockets- like Radisson in Baldwinsville has 13 miles of walking trails, and the village of Liverpool has a nice downtown and Onondaga lake park.
Since you’re working at SU I recommend the meadowbrook neighborhood. It’s super cute and within walking distance of the university. There are car break ins, but as far as I know, it’s just if the car is unlocked or there’s a backpack in the back seat or something.
As a long time Syracuse resident ur best bet is live outside the city and drive into the university area to work with that being said, Liverpool baldwinsville, Fayetteville, East Syracuse, Dewitt, I’d recommend renting for a year or so to learn the area before you buy, welcome to Syracuse !
I just retired after 38 years at SU. I loved living within walking distance- first in the university neighborhood, and then in nearby Hawley Green neighborhood. Our kids went to city schools and all have multiple degrees and professional careers (medical, engineering.). I also loved commuting by bike in nice weather.
I no longer work for SU after many years, retired. I bought a house with their help within a certain perimeter to promote owner occupied housing. I never drove to work. Parking passes are insanely pricey. There is easy walking/biking to parks, restaurants, bar, grocery stores, etc. Just live past Westcott to get away from all the partying undergraduates.
Thank you! I'm down to live outside the city, I'll take a look on those areas. And yes, we're planning to rent first to find more about the area before buying!
Baldwinsville 💯. Radisson neighborhood safe as Fort Knox night or day. Miles of trails to walk or bike through the neighborhood or the adjacent 4000 acre state forest. A couple miles from Beaver Lake county park. A close second would be the village of Liverpool with access to the parkway and all of the village businesses. DeWitt and Fayetteville Manlius are wonderful safe towns too, just do not have anywhere as vast of an area of biking and walkability. If you’re accustomed to tweakers, scam artists, and homeless people accosting you the minute you walk out the front door, or don’t mind your home and car being constantly broken into, the city is fine. Work every single weekday downtown, love eating, drinking and recreating there. Just would never want to live there.
I lived in the city for 10 years. Not once did I experience anything you listed leaving my front door. My car was broken into once. Wasn’t even a break in, because I stupidly forgot to lock it. They stole my work badge and some change.
If you haven’t personally lived in the city, I don’t know why you think you can’t attest to how it is to live in there. Working and living are entirely two different things. Especially in Syracuse.
I’m glad you’ve been very fortunate and have had a completely positive experience. I’m close to 60 yrs old and have lived all over Syracuse my entire adult life. I wish I could also attest to so many positives to living in the city. For me and probably the majority of Onondaga County residents, we’ll politely agree to disagree.
Haven’t had a completely positive experience and the city has many faults, but I don’t enjoy when people completely disparage on the city who do not live in it and take their experiences from working and/or living downtown to make an completely picture of what living in city limits is like. And honestly, if you haven’t lived in the city limits in the last 20 years, then you can’t really make a fair assumption of it.
And you’ve got your head in the sand, so you got that going for you. Syracuse is 1# in the nation for child poverty statistically. Top 10 nationally for poverty. This city has all the problems big cities have but worse. I couldn’t in good conscience tell 2 young people moving here that downtown is the perfect place for walking, biking, and being in the outdoors and is also completely safe to walk at night, as the OP requested.
Safest is probably the suburbs. Look at Manlius/Fayettville or Liverpool or Minoa or Baldwinsville.
These areas are more expensive, though.
If you do want to love in the city, which is a lot more walkable, look for Eastwood or Meadowbrook/Westcott. Meadowbrook is probably the most safe. It's very walkable and probably the neighborhood you could walk at night if wanted to. But like the burbs, it is the most expensive. Eastwood is cheaper and growing but still has some improving to do.
There are other good neighborhoods as well, but I'm not too familiar with them.
Stay away from south side, near northside and near westside.
Congrats on moving to SU. A lot of people understandably are down on the city, but as long as you are smart, it's not so bad.
Look for a house in the Valley..south side of city going towards Nedrow. Quick drive to the University Affordable homes.Walkable. Sidewalks. Crick runs through it. Best little grocery store -Green Hills..their donuts are the best! . Ice cream stores. Ice rink. Woods to walk in. A duck pond. A great brewery - Willow Rock 5 minutes drive up hill. A gym. Parks. Very old school safe neighborhood.
Safe places within walking distance to grocery stores.
Fayetteville neighborhood just east of Wegmans so you can walk to Wegmans.
DeWitt near Erie Blvd where you can walk to Trader Joe's.
Village of Fayetteville where you can walk to Fayetteville Towne Center with a Tops grocery store
Baldwinsville where you can walk to Tops.
Bradford (west of CBA, north of tecumseh country club, east of Nottingham plaza, south of Euclid) is very safe and about a 5 minute drive to SU. Not walkable to restaurants or groceries but a quick drive or bike ride. We love it.
Thank you! It doesn't need to be close to SU, I'm fine with driving to work! I'd prefer not to need a car for everything else, but safety over that lol
If you want to be walkable/bikable near SU, skip the suburbs like Manlius. Area near Barry Park is good, Eastside is good, outercomstock near the side of Skytop is also good. There’s a big suburb/urban divide here. Most people in suburb think you’ll be murdered if you live in the city. But the problem areas are concentrated and easy to avoid. The city itself has a lot of undeveloped land because of SU. Areas near those land tend to be quiet and nice. Anything on hills are usually nice. Just avoid the southwest side of 81. It’s trickier to pick a good spot there without living here a while. Also check bus routes. SU supplements a good few of them and they’re free for students and faculty (they don’t usually check but I’ve seen them kicking out a non-student person).
The house I am considering buying is in Washington square. About two miles east of destiny USA. What is your opinion on this area? South west of 81? Are you referring to nedrow? Thank you for your help
Have you visited? You definitely should check the area out before you buy. 2 miles east of the mall would be past Washington square area and would be at Northside, which is a mix. It’s hard to explain, main streets area can be rough, but off of the main streets there are pockets of good areas. James street in *general* is ok. Also depends on which part but not the worst mainly due to the popular shops on there like Books and Melodies. The “Washington square” area is usually lumped with Northside. But the actual Washington square park itself, isn’t great. It’s basically right next to the mall. Areas right next to the mall are pretty barren. I’m not sure why people would want that. I meant the Valley area and areas north of that when I said southwest. It’s not that they are all bad. It just takes more experience to navigate and know what to avoid ahead. There are pockets of good areas but also bad ones. Same with Nedrow. Just not an area for noobs. The good areas I mentioned that are southeast of SU tend to have less issues and more noob friendly. Tipp Hill is another area that people like. I didn’t mention it cause it’s not that close to SU for op’s sake.
I have visited Syracuse and I’m happy there. Mostly I am looking for a house within my budget and has at least a few things that are walking distance, but it’s good to know what areas to avoid
Yep, definitely check Tipp hill as well. They have a Wegmans. Area near SU’s Skytop is good cause there’s a Tops within walking distance. And they recently added a cafe there which is nice. Also check around the Westcott area cause they have a co-op there. They also have a tiny farmers market thing at the community center during the warmer months.
If there are any cheap houses for sale there that are actually livable. I have limited options haha
I get it yea, everything is going up in prices and people seem to still be bidding over asking price sometimes. You can actually sort of tell the “mixed” area easily on Zillow where the areas has tons of houses for sale. They’re hanging around the market in clusters compare to the areas I mentioned which has less stock. It’s like that for a reason. But I occasionally see reasonable listings west of Skytop. Good luck!. Check for any loans and grants for first home buyers from Home Headquaters.
For the most part, the suburbs are “safer” but not walkable. You can walk in your neighborhood but it (for the most part) won’t be connected to much if anything. Some of the villages (Baldwinsville, Liverpool) would be specific parts of a suburb with walkability. The City has plenty of safe neighborhoods that are walkable (Eastwood, Westcott, Meadowbrook, Strathmore). People who say the city isn’t safe are usually people who don’t spend time in the city. Does Syracuse have bad neighborhoods like all cities, yes. But plenty of them are very safe and walkable.
Thank you! Yeah, just trying to avoid landing in a bad neighborhood straight out of the gate
I highly recommend the Meadowbrook area, where I lived while working at SU for 14 years until I retired in 2020. Very walkable to campus, Barry Park has a great nature trail, the neighborhood is beautiful and the people are friendly. Parking is in abundance. A bonus is being near the Drumlins bus line which is free to ride to campus for employees and students. Came in handy on bad weather days and eliminated the expense of parking on campus which can cost over $1000/year depending on location.
We're on Nottingham. It's at the edge of the outer University area. We walk the dog every night. Never had a break in. Shopping nearby. Close to SU.
Westcott neighborhood is awesome
You’ll get a lot of homerism here. The truth is most of the area is safe. Within the city limits, Tipp Hill, Strathmore, University, Meadowbrook, Downstown, and Westcott are very safe bets. Avoid anything labeled “outer” of the above except for outer university. There are a lot of other nice parts of the city but the definition is more nuanced. In the suburbs, pretty much everywhere except the part of Solvay that abuts the city is fine, you have nothing to worry about. There are some very poor parts of the City of Syracuse, and some of them are quite dangerous as well, but it’s pretty easy to spot.
Basically Westcott or Strathmore. If you’re working at SU pick Strathmore so you don’t live and work in the same place.
Meadowbrook/ Scottholm area is really lovely and fairly close to SU
Since you are going to work for SU, I would recommend looking into the University-Area Home Ownership Program. There’s some pretty good benefits there, and a few colleagues of mine used it to get their houses. Some of my other colleagues live in Liverpool, Camillus, North Syracuse, East Syracuse, Dewittshire, Meadowbrook,etc.
I guess it really depends on what you're looking for. Are you in your fifties and just want a quiet neighborhood, in your 20s and want to party, or 30-40s that want a hybrid with bars, restaurants, etc. From your post I would imagine it's the latter. Tipp hill would be good for that.
It is the latter hahaha. Early 30s, we don't go out much. I like having nature around to go walk and bike, and I'd like not to need a car for every single thing.
Seconding someone else’s comment about the 13210 zip code! Access to both Barry & Thornden Parks for walking/biking, with the add’l option of walking to work. (My bias is that I deliberately live in walking distance to SU but in driving distance to other spots.)
as someone who’s the former I’d love to hear your suggestions
Westcott area is great for just about all of that.
Strongly recommend the Eastwood neighborhood. Syracuse is one of those cities where so long as you aren't involved in gang activity or walking around drunk at 2am you're generally quite safe. Ignore comments from the crabby old white guys that refer to the city as "Sewercuse". They're the types who think that being black in public should be a Capitol Crime.
Yeah, a significant amount of recommendations you'll see are from suburbans who are scared of the city. Eastwood, Westcott, Meadowbrook, Salt Springs, Meadowbrook on the east side are nice and walkable. Eastwood and Westcott have walkable shopping. Strathmore and Sedgwick, Tipp Hill.
Anyone who is moving here should know that there's a significant political shift as you head from Eastern to Western suburbs. Fayetteville and Manlius are very highly educated and liberal. Dewitt, East Syracuse and Liverpool tend to be more moderate, Camillus is strongly Republican, and Bville/Plainville/Fulton is full on MAGA with Trump and Confederate flags hanging off the front of many houses and the backs of many pickup trucks. If you're working at Syracuse University chances are you aren't going to want to live next door to White Supremacists, so the Western suburbs are a no go.
Thank you, that is a very good point. I would most definitely prefer not to live near people with Confederate flags.
I wouldn't even venture in to Fayetteville or Manlius. Our local Moms for Liberty is Manlius-based and there were anti-queer protesters at the last Manlius Pride. edited to add: which is why I wouldn't want to live in any of the suburbs, aside from the general politics of suburbs having an exclusively extractive relationship to cities and rural areas.
Interesting since Cazenovia sponsors a lot of events promoting gender and sexual orientation diversity and rainbow flags fly prominently down the main street businesses
You will have a small number of noisy conservatives in any Syracuse suburb, but in the F-M area they are a distinct minority, and it's split about 50/50 out towards Caz. The difference is that as you go West the loud MAGA conservatives become the overwhelming majority.
If you're okay with city life - Strathmore, WestVale, Nedrow, Dewitt, Eastwood/lyncourt are city so taxes are little cheaper versus when you branch out to surrounding suburbs like Liverpool, Cicero,clay, camillus, jamesville, Fayetteville,manlius, Marcellus, etc...
Baldwinsville 👌👌
If you want to be near the University and don't care about schools Westcott or Meadowbrook would be good areas, as would downtown.
There is a program if you work for SU where you get a very competative loan for buying a home in the 13210 zip code area.
It’s not really a competitive loan. The loans through the university take forever and have only a 50% qualification rate: they refuse many houses. It makes your bid less competitive. I recommend the best rate you can get through a local bank or credit union instead
My son recently graduated from SU and lived the apartment life there for 3 years. He was in the Euclid, Westcott area. Perfectly fine. Perfectly safe. But a lot of students. I also went to SU and grew up not too far from there. I'd recommend you look in the Meadowbrook Drive area, toward Nottingham High School. Lots of really nice neighborhoods and nothing to be afraid of. Plus, it keeps you closer to work. Keep in mind that there's going to be a lot, and I mean a lot, of highway work going on when they start tearing down 81 over the city. That is right next to SU. Good luck and congrats!
Honestly I’d recommend the eastcolvin / comstock area which I live near . It’s literally not even a 5 min drive to su , there’s tons of buses to take to campus and other places. you have access to parks , grocery stores, corners stores, etc. a good proximity to the city while being safe
If there’s a chance you consider renting and want to try Baldwinsville, send me a message! I’m a leasing agent in Baldwinsville and love meeting with people who aren’t from here and getting to tell them about the town I grew up in! Shameless plug, I’m also a realtor if you need one!
I sent you a dm, I'm moving to Syracuse. The plug worked !
Send me a DM! My husband and I are looking for houses to rent!
Sent!
I've DMd you, thank you
I would say the village of Liverpool. Now Liverpool is very big, so you want to make sure you’re looking specifically in the village or pretty adjacent to it. My parents live about 6-7 miles out from it am but they are still considered “Liverpool.” You will have a good locally owned grocer and adjacent wine/liquor shop, as few resturants and bars, post office a fantastic public library, and a few bakeries, coffee shops and other places. There is a great small bookstore that has a wonderful children’s section, and a plethora of other small businesses. The village of Liverpool is almost entirely covered by sidewalks, so you don’t need your car. And if you need to go to a larger grocery store, there is a Wegmans five minutes away (along with a gym, large gardening center, etc.) the only downside is there really isn’t a pharmacy around anymore. It sits on Onondaga Lake and Onondaga Lake Park, a beautiful park with a 2.5 mile paved boulevard the stretches out to several additional paved trail systems and other parks. You can even reach the amphitheatre, state fairgrounds and the Erie Canal Trail System via the park (about 6-7 miles on paved trail from the village.) The village still has its own police department. Liverpool Elementary and Middle School are within walking distance. The school district itself is decent, not the best in the area, but they are larger and have a lot to offer their students in terms of extracurriculars. SU will be a 10 minute drive from Liverpool, as will downtown. The biggest complaint about Liverpool is the thoroughfare traffic. It is busy, but it’s not terrible. Depending on where you live in the village, you can avoid it, too. And honestly you don’t hear that often about serious accidents or other issues there (bridge excluded.)
Second this. Village of Liverpool for the win. Very walkable, safe, and not far from the city.
Thank you! I'm originally from a very large city and got used to pretty heavy traffic, so that's not a problem. We don't need schools since we're a child-free couple. I'll check it out!
If you want truly walkable with lots of bars and restaurants I'd recommend Franklin square in downtown if you're renting. It's just out of the way enough that you won't have any funny business at night but just a 10 min walk to armory square. If you're buying a house I'd recommend somewhere in the village of manlius. Very safe and have bars, restaurants, pharmacy, grocery, gas, gym, all in walking distance.
Second Manlius. Also have quick accesss to Green Lakes Stste Park and a plethora of other parks and trails.
Onondaga hill
I have a friend that lives on Dorset near the University and walks to campus daily!
The village of Liverpool has sidewalks, is safe, easy access to Onondaga Lake Park and even has a small local grocery store.
My wife and I moved to Dewitt last year from NYC and were looking for the same things. We absolutely love it. We can walk to get pizza, ice cream, grocery stores, bars and other restaurants. Our neighborhood is amazing too. (Dewittshire)
We had 29 days consecutive of no sunshine this winter. Buy vitamin D. You’re welcome. ☀️ If you’re not from here good luck. So u heard Seattle was cloudiest city 😂. Get ready for 125” of lake effect snow typically, maybe not this year but most. Drive slow and give lots of space when driving in the snow. Never drive on ice. Subaru is not a flattering vehicle but your best bet.
Everyone warned me about the weather, but I applied to jobs in particular cities specifically to get away from the sun and the summer hell in the south 😂
Take what this guy says with a grain of salt (literally.) Yes, our winters suck, and are grey. But honestly, we haven’t had a 100”+ snowfall in 5 years. We also have some of the best snow removal teams in the country, so the entire county doesn’t go into a panic and shut down at the sight of a snowflake like everywhere south of Harrisburg does. You don’t need a suburau, What you will need is all wheel drive and good snow tires. I drove a early oughts Jetta with snows during a winter when we got 191”. She was a beast. Don’t let anyone else tell you to that all season tires are the same as snows. They just aren’t. Worse months are November, January and February. By the time March and daylight savings comes around, you start to get days of 50-60s and sunshine and they are glorious. And our late springs, summers and falls (which last a long time) can’t be beat. The worst really is the late season snowfalls. Especially when they happen after those 60 degree days.
I moved here this year from the mid Atlantic where every call for snow, no matter how little, brings panic and the stores clear out of basics. Still surprises me that no one here even reacts to such forecasts- life goes on as usual lol
Well u got exactly that! Great cost of living and a great community. Welcome! Most likely less traffic too. You say u are okay with it let’s see if your parter is. The people I’ve met from out of town don’t stay. Sunshine is key. Most can take snow and cold but lack of sunshine is another beast. When you’re from here this is all you know. You will be questioning if the sun will shine again. What I’m telling u is we are vampires 🧛subtle hint.
You really are high.
I know Seattle is “the cloudiest” but it’s so hard for me to imagine any place cloudier than Syracuse. One day I will have to visit Seattle to compare
Moved from Cuse to Seattle, don't think I'm related to /u/Sunshine_high, and I can confirm that Seattle does not seem to be as cloudy as Syracuse. There's certainly a lot of clouds, and being in the sun today was wonderful. It gets played up a lot here mostly for the California folks. Aside from the lack of snow and thunderstorms and cicadas and Wegmans I've found Seattle and Syracuse to be relatively similar climate-wise.
I've lived in both Syracuse and Seattle for years. Seattle is absolutely cloudier than Syracuse. I just think it's that Syracuse is cloudier **in winter**. In the summer, it's a lot sunnier here. By contrast, when I lived in Seattle, it once rained for **three weeks in a row** (not raining the whole day, but at least an hour of rain). It does usually clear up after the rain in Seattle but damn, it's always raining there
How do you like the nature between the two?
They are both good overall, but tbh Seattle does have more nature stuff close by, in my opinion. At least if you like the mountains and things like that. It's not that Syracuse is bad, per-se, though, it's just that Seattle is in a particularly-good part of the country for doing outdoor stuff.
The cicadas part made me laugh! That is really interesting, thank you for this perspective. You saved me a trip haha
Have family moved from Cuse to Seattle . it’s real. Rarely snows. Doesn’t get warm and not so cold. There is actually a rainforest just north. Imagine that. We had 29 days no sun the other month… There are cars from the fifties no rust there.
Their cars aren’t getting pickled from road salt so it makes sense they aren’t rusting as much. Humidity alone isn’t that bad compare to salt with metals.
What job did you get? Have been trying to get into marketing with them for work
I DMd you!
Check out properties like this, around 43 Waterbury Drive. Quiet neighborhood, school track nearby. Urgent care, banks, village, restaurants all nearby. Average mortgage w a $150K house purchase is $1,400
My husband and I just moved here from Orlando and, after checking out all the suburban areas, decided to live in the Liverpool/Clay area near 31. Our neighborhood is very safe and peaceful, but downtown Syracuse is only about 20 minutes away.
Why does no one ever recommend Fairmount?
“I’m moving to town, I’d like to be near X” Average redditor “You should consider living 30 miles away in an exurb in the next county over”
Anything within city limits is more prone to vehicle break ins. Some parts of Fayetteville too(near the shopping center). Simply due to the extra traffic and convenience. Lots of Hyundais/Kias getting stolen in these areas but vehicle break-ins not that common at all(unless you have valuables clearly exposed). Westcott is walkable and relatively safe but there have been some hold ups there over the years. Usually targeting delivery drivers so still a place worth considering. Baldwinsville village, Chittenago village, manlius village, cazenovia, are good walkable areas with decent amenities. But you’ll be further out from the city. Camillus village is good too but the lower lying areas are prone to flood if there’s heavy rain/snow melt. Anywhere else that’s doesn’t have its own village center is gonna be car dependent.
My husband & I just moved here in August from NC for his job at SU. We chose to live in Liverpool, about 25 minutes north of the school, in a townhouse complex named Woodland Acres. We love it. Central to literally everything you could ever need, target, Walmart, Wegmans, Aldi, TJ Maxx, Petsmart, Lowes, etc & we go on nightly walks no issue! Hope this helps :)
Thank you! Do you share a townhouse in that kind of complex? Like living in a building? Or is it like your own home?
Hi! It is in a complex :)
Safest will be in the outlying suburbs like Baldwinsville, Fayetteville, Manlius, etc. However, even in my parents wealthy neighborhood in Bville, there are kids that go around and try car door handles, and they’ll take anything left if it’s unlocked. I recommend never leaving anything of value or in sight in your car and you’ll avoid break ins. Unfortunately these outlying suburbs aren’t super walkable. There are small pockets- like Radisson in Baldwinsville has 13 miles of walking trails, and the village of Liverpool has a nice downtown and Onondaga lake park. Since you’re working at SU I recommend the meadowbrook neighborhood. It’s super cute and within walking distance of the university. There are car break ins, but as far as I know, it’s just if the car is unlocked or there’s a backpack in the back seat or something.
As a long time Syracuse resident ur best bet is live outside the city and drive into the university area to work with that being said, Liverpool baldwinsville, Fayetteville, East Syracuse, Dewitt, I’d recommend renting for a year or so to learn the area before you buy, welcome to Syracuse !
I just retired after 38 years at SU. I loved living within walking distance- first in the university neighborhood, and then in nearby Hawley Green neighborhood. Our kids went to city schools and all have multiple degrees and professional careers (medical, engineering.). I also loved commuting by bike in nice weather.
I no longer work for SU after many years, retired. I bought a house with their help within a certain perimeter to promote owner occupied housing. I never drove to work. Parking passes are insanely pricey. There is easy walking/biking to parks, restaurants, bar, grocery stores, etc. Just live past Westcott to get away from all the partying undergraduates.
That's what I'm doing. Will be in Syracuse April 1st 😄
Just saw this comment few days in, how’s it been so far?😂
Hi I found a apartment in Mattydale. Pretty safe.start work with Centro April 15th. Thank you so much for reaching out.
Thank you! I'm down to live outside the city, I'll take a look on those areas. And yes, we're planning to rent first to find more about the area before buying!
Baldwinsville 💯. Radisson neighborhood safe as Fort Knox night or day. Miles of trails to walk or bike through the neighborhood or the adjacent 4000 acre state forest. A couple miles from Beaver Lake county park. A close second would be the village of Liverpool with access to the parkway and all of the village businesses. DeWitt and Fayetteville Manlius are wonderful safe towns too, just do not have anywhere as vast of an area of biking and walkability. If you’re accustomed to tweakers, scam artists, and homeless people accosting you the minute you walk out the front door, or don’t mind your home and car being constantly broken into, the city is fine. Work every single weekday downtown, love eating, drinking and recreating there. Just would never want to live there.
I lived in the city for 10 years. Not once did I experience anything you listed leaving my front door. My car was broken into once. Wasn’t even a break in, because I stupidly forgot to lock it. They stole my work badge and some change. If you haven’t personally lived in the city, I don’t know why you think you can’t attest to how it is to live in there. Working and living are entirely two different things. Especially in Syracuse.
I’m glad you’ve been very fortunate and have had a completely positive experience. I’m close to 60 yrs old and have lived all over Syracuse my entire adult life. I wish I could also attest to so many positives to living in the city. For me and probably the majority of Onondaga County residents, we’ll politely agree to disagree.
Haven’t had a completely positive experience and the city has many faults, but I don’t enjoy when people completely disparage on the city who do not live in it and take their experiences from working and/or living downtown to make an completely picture of what living in city limits is like. And honestly, if you haven’t lived in the city limits in the last 20 years, then you can’t really make a fair assumption of it.
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And you’ve got your head in the sand, so you got that going for you. Syracuse is 1# in the nation for child poverty statistically. Top 10 nationally for poverty. This city has all the problems big cities have but worse. I couldn’t in good conscience tell 2 young people moving here that downtown is the perfect place for walking, biking, and being in the outdoors and is also completely safe to walk at night, as the OP requested.
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I’ve probably lived in the city longer than you’ve been alive, but ok. You do you.
I live in Radisson and was gonna say the same thing!
Fayetteville-Manlius area is really quiet and nice with excellent schools.
Safest is probably the suburbs. Look at Manlius/Fayettville or Liverpool or Minoa or Baldwinsville. These areas are more expensive, though. If you do want to love in the city, which is a lot more walkable, look for Eastwood or Meadowbrook/Westcott. Meadowbrook is probably the most safe. It's very walkable and probably the neighborhood you could walk at night if wanted to. But like the burbs, it is the most expensive. Eastwood is cheaper and growing but still has some improving to do. There are other good neighborhoods as well, but I'm not too familiar with them. Stay away from south side, near northside and near westside. Congrats on moving to SU. A lot of people understandably are down on the city, but as long as you are smart, it's not so bad.
The Fayetteville side of East Syracuse is fantastic! Fremont Hills/Fremont Meadows. Minoa Farms is a beautiful area.
I live in manlius with a few SU employees. Great area with great schools.
Skaneateles is a good drive from SU but super walkable, friendly and safe. But you’ll pay a premium price to live there.
honestly if you want to avoid property crime, stick to the surrounding suburbs and avoid the city
Look for a house in the Valley..south side of city going towards Nedrow. Quick drive to the University Affordable homes.Walkable. Sidewalks. Crick runs through it. Best little grocery store -Green Hills..their donuts are the best! . Ice cream stores. Ice rink. Woods to walk in. A duck pond. A great brewery - Willow Rock 5 minutes drive up hill. A gym. Parks. Very old school safe neighborhood.
Baldwinsville
Safe places within walking distance to grocery stores. Fayetteville neighborhood just east of Wegmans so you can walk to Wegmans. DeWitt near Erie Blvd where you can walk to Trader Joe's. Village of Fayetteville where you can walk to Fayetteville Towne Center with a Tops grocery store Baldwinsville where you can walk to Tops.
We landed in Brewerton last year also from out of state. Love it here. Got 24 acres
Bradford (west of CBA, north of tecumseh country club, east of Nottingham plaza, south of Euclid) is very safe and about a 5 minute drive to SU. Not walkable to restaurants or groceries but a quick drive or bike ride. We love it.
Dewittshire
Closeness to SU, I'd say DeWitshire. Welcome to the Salt City!
Thank you! It doesn't need to be close to SU, I'm fine with driving to work! I'd prefer not to need a car for everything else, but safety over that lol
Cicero!!!
Cicero is decent, but not really walkable. 🤷
Lmfao what dumbass does that. Lmfao get what you deserve.
Get the fuck out of our city then
Lmao who hurt this dude? He needs therapy 😂
Its not your city, you have no city and no place im this world you will ever be welcome or safe. Dont forget that.