I have a somewhat small 3 bedroom house, and my total electric and gas bill goes about $150/month in the winter. It’s a little steep, but you’re not going to get killed.
I don’t see any reason to look outside Saratoga county for a place to live, and I certainly can’t recommend Schenectady in any case. Just iin terms of rent prices, you’re probably better off someplace like Halfmoon or Charlton. That would give your boyfriend a really short commute to the nuke training facility or whatever. Trouble is, the employment situation for you might not be that great.
Landing a job in Albany is probably a better bet, but like kanicbird said the Northway commute is painful. Lots of people work in Albany but live in Saratoga county, and theres really just the one practical route.
Don’t worry too much about the cold and snow. I complain a lot, but it’s really not bad.
ShadiRoxan, I live in Saratoga Springs (actually just outside the town), and I love it here. I live in the Philadelphia area before moving, and it was a big change going from large city to small town, but Saratoga is fairly cosmopolitan for its size. There are a lot of great restaurants and bars. Albany and Troy are within driving distance for an evening out, while Montreal, Boston, and New York are all close enough for day trips or weekend escursions. Adirondack Park has a lot to offer in terms of outdoor activities.
I live in a two bedroom apartment that runs $625/month, and my electric bill (including heat) runs less than $150 during the winter. The Navy has a housing base (not sure that’s the correct term) just west of the town, so maybe you’d qualify for that. I think there are a number of Navy personnel in my apartment complex. Email me, and I’ll send you some contact information for apartment buildings and realtors.
Maybe we’ll have a Doper welcome party when you arrive.
Some thing must be trying to warn me against going to New York. Two posts eaten, the thread seemed to get stuck down at the bottom of the page for a while even though it had more posts, and then when I last tried to post my electricity went out.
Anyway, a Doper welcoming party sounds like fun. That way I could meet some people and get a better feel for the area.
I’m not sure if he’s qualified for base housing. I know that I won’t be until we’re married in April. He’s in Charleston right now. I know that they make them move out of the BEQs when they’re done with power school. I’m not sure if that’s a space issue or if the navy just wants them living in the community and taking on those types of responsibilities. He’s supposed to be briefed over everything soon.
We won’t qualify for base housing. We’re only there for six months. It’s a four month minimum, I have to have dependents (read, spouse and/or children) to qualify… Should have about 2 months left in the normal training pipeline when we get married.
What are petrol prices like up there? How good are they about plowing/salting the roads? Snow chains, yes/no?
Have you considered Malta? It’s a nice area, right near the Northway, and not too far from Sratoga Springs.
The area is pretty good about plowing and salting, even though smaller roads take longer. I don’t know if you need snow chains, but I’d definately get snow tires.
Aren’t chains usually illegal in most populated areas (aside from snow emergencies)?
Snow tires are a serious cnsideration for rear-wheel-drive cars (and especially light-assed pickup trucks), but I haven’t put snow tires on a car since 1977 when I got my first front-wheel-drive and I’ve travelled Michigan’s UP and I live near (and drive through) the Northeast Ohio snowbelt with its lake effect snows. (Of course, I don’t make a habit of attempting to drive through 12"+ snowfalls, but up to 6" or even 8" of unplowed roads, my successive VW Rabbits and Dodge Caravans (and Deb’s old Chevy Citation and Dodge Omni–she has since moved on to 4X4s) have been able to get me home.)
Yeah, you DEFINETLY do not need snow tires on any FWD car. Just take it slow, and you’ll be fine. The roads in the capital region are usually plowed pretty well.
He’s nuke?
My husband and I lived there from August 2002-April 2003. I really liked it and we’re hoping that if he reenlists, that he gets stationed up there again.
We lived in navy housing, so I can’t tell you anything about living out in town, or about other areas. We did have some friends that lived in Ballston Spa, and they liked it. It’s very close to work as well. He won’t qualify for base housing until you guys are married.
I am originally from the south myself (Texas) so dealing with winter was a whole new thing to me. Get some shoes with good tread, and salt for your sidewalk. They take care of the roads really well, so driving isn’t as scary as I’d expected. Snow is nice for the first day or so, but it gets old really quickly. I didn’t buy a winter coat or anything, just made do with what I already had. I was also very pregnant when we lived there (we were supposed to leave in January, but were stuck there for baby leave.), so I didn’t have a lot of options as far as clothes went. Gloves were a must, at least for me.
I really liked the people in the town. Everyone was really nice. BTW, if you guys are into tattoos/piercing, check out Needlewurks in Saratoga. The people there are great.
Neither one of us really consider ourselves southerners. I’m an army brat (who swore I’d never have anything to do with the military again. Gotta love how life works.) I lived in Germany for a good deal of my childhood so I’m familiar with snow. I remember sledding a lot as a child. I can’t wait to do that again.
Does any one know of a place where we can get decent furniture without spending a lot? My stuff is old and not worth taking. He doesn’t have furniture at all.
angelicate, how do you deal with being a navy wife? How bad is it when he’s on a ship? Or does he even go?
Well, due to all of the training and the fact that the ship he’s on wasn’t scheduled to go out as soon as he was assigned to it, after about 2 1/2 years of being a navy wife, I’m finally getting to experience taking him up to work and not seeing him for 3 weeks or 6 weeks or however it may be. It’s hard, I’m not going to lie, but it’s do-able. It’s a lot easier than boot camp, since he can call and he is able to email me almost every day. I don’t know if your boyfriend is sub or surface, but I do know that he was told that if he were sub, he wouldn’t be able to call or email until they were in port somewhere.
I think it would be a lot easier if we didn’t have a child, and I know it would be a lot easier if I had friends in the area, but I’m kind of shy, and don’t really know how to go out and meet people.
He doesn’t know yet if he’s sub or surface. There’s a good chance that he’ll be able to decide which one he goes on. I’ve asked him to go surface and he seems to be leaning towards picking that. Something about the idea of him being trapped underwater for months at a time scares the crap out of me. I also think it would be easier to deal with it all if I can get at least one email a day.
Something about the idea of being trapped on the surface in a billion dollar bullseye scares the crap out of me… well, not really. Each has its advantages and disadvantages. I am SubVol, but I’m going to request a carrier when the time comes. Needs of the Navy, etc. etc.
Would anyone living in the area be willing to drive by and check out some of the apartments in the area? Nothing in depth necessarily, just look at the conditions of the buildings, parking lots, tennant’s cars, etc… get a feel and report your impressions.
They are great about plowing the roads. Mrs. Z’s parents live in Saratoga Springs and last Christmas there was, what I would call a blizzard, what you would call the begining of an ice age, what they called a nice snow fall.
At 1 am, as soon as the major snow fall stopped everyone was outside with their snow blowers and the plows were clearing the streets. The residential streets were clear within an hour I’d say.
(which was a drag because we wanted to go sledding.
Get an ice scraper, for the windshield, and a ratty old blanket for the trunk of your car in case you get stranded, in addition to the good advice from the other Dopers. Enjoy upstate New York–my brother lives there (Newburgh, about halfway up from the city to you) and loves it. Don’t forget you’ll also be near the Berkshires and their summer theater festivals, North Adams modern art museum, southern Vermont with its lovely drives…
Wow… looks like everybody covered anything I might have wanted to say. My wife is from Ballston Spa, I’ve been up there a number of times and I’m pretty familiar with the area. I’m from Nashville, so I’ll give you my 'Southerner’s Take on the Capital Region"
Lots of little towns.
Here Nashville is the entire Davidson County Metropolitan area and in the last ten years tendrils of our suburbs have snaked into every surrounding county… you get alot of AREA in which people say they live in Nashville. Up there, if you drive down a street for a mile and a half you’ll pass through two distinct little towns and they all have their own taxes and everything… my inlaws complain about the various tax problems all the time.
It’s old.
The vast majority of large cities in the south, and surburban areas as well, were built up after WWII. I was astonished to see the sheer NUMBER of beautiful victorian buildings falling apart from neglect up there. If you were to take those same buildings and move there here they would be on a historic register and command very hefty prices. The economy isn’t great up there and there are alot of run down areas, alot more regional stores than the big chains.
It’s cold.
Last time I was up there was last christmas. It started snowing on christmas eve, I was enchanted… a real white christmas. Now, it snows here in Nashville… the city shuts down and everyone enjoys the inch or two of snow untill it melts a couple days later. So I’m watching it snow… it gets dark… it’s still snowing. Right before dinner the power goes out. It’s still snowing. The next morning there is over 2 feet of snow on the ground. I was scared that the damned roof would collapse from the weight. Lesson learned, the pretty snow we treasure so much in Tennessee becomes a mighty nuisance in the amounts and time it lasts up north.
It’s not a bad place to visit… the people are by and large pretty friendly. The area looks ALOT like east Tennessee as far as the lay of the land goes, it only makes since… it’s the northern end of the same mountain chain that goes all the way down to north Georgia. I hope you like living there.
Hey, ShadiRoxan! I don’t have much to add, except to add a warm welcome from another Capital District Doper (I’m from Glenville/Burnt Hills, which is about halfway between Saratoga Springs and Schenectady). Personally, I prefer the areas that are closer to Saratoga than to Schenectady; the former has a much friendlier atmosphere, although I love the Stockade in the latter… and now I’m getting a little homesick thinking about it all (I’m at college in Boston at the moment). To any extent, I hope your move goes smoothly.
Both of us are from around the Nashville area. He actually lived within the city. I lived in Clarksville.
I’m starting to get a little bit more of an idea of how things are up there. Basically I’m just going to start stocking up on things to keep me warm. Maybe invest in a little space heater to put near my computer to keep me warm without having to keep the rest of the place near 80 degrees.
I need to start dropping hints for sweaters and thick blankets for Christmas.
One more question. I know it’s going to sound a little odd. Do they have Dr Pepper up there? I’m a Dr Pepper freak. Have to have at least one a day. With all the traveling I’ve done lately, I’ve noticed that not every town has it. I searched forever in Waukegan before I found some. I’ve yet to see it in Charleston.
