As someone who has moved back to Buffalo from the DC area, I found this article interesting. New York has an allure to millions of people, and I've always wondered if people were truly happy living in a city so congested and expensive. Don't get me wrong, I love NYC (I'll be making my annual pilgrimage this October).

I am curious to hear what native New Yorkers have to say about the prospect of moving away, particularly to a city that gets such a bad rap...

http://nymag.com/realestate/features/49491/

I grew up here in the borough of Staten Island.

I didn't realize how transient NYC is until I started working in finance in NY.

People have always left NY for the quality of life. At the same time, the airports are jammed with people willing to replace them.

If there is a point where people really need to consider "staying" or "going" it's when the kids come along and the reality of schools start to set-in.

We've had multiple friends bolt the city for the burbs as soon as their older was ready for kindergarten.

Many peopel don;t leave NYC of quality of life - but they often do for quality of schools.

Unless your kids are very gifted and get into one of the top 2/3 school tracks you really don;t want them in public schools - and private schools are typically from $25,000 per year up per child. And getting into many is very difficult. So - many families move TO the suburbs (not AWAY from the city) once the oldest child reaches school age.

This has been a typical pattern in Manhattan for at least the last 30 years or more (population is younger, early married, or quite high income - or quite low income. Middle income retreats to a place they can afford good schools for their kids).

WC Fields said it appropriately, "Once you leave New York, everyplace else is Philadelphia". That says it all. AND I LIVE IN MARYLAND!

That was an interesting article. My perception of Buffalo has always been that it is so cold in the winter and so far away. I know a few people who went to SUNY Buffalo and when they graduated, they left and never looked back. I don't want to live anywhere but NY. I've always said that it's not always easy living here, but I still love it. We were very lucky when it came to school for our kids. Both went through the best of the public system. I wonder if I could have navigated the system as successfully if they were entering school today. Many of our friends headed to the suburbs then - it's a personal choice - and now that their kids are out of college, they are moving back and embracing everything that the city offers. I think it is harder today for young people to live here. A much bigger chunk of their income goes to rent than years ago. I think NY is a good place to grow old in (except for the winters). There are so many stimulating activities for seniors in this city. Some of NY may be transient, but I feel that I live in a very stable neighborhood with shopkeepers and neighbors who have been here forever.

I will probably be alone in this view - and may not qualify since I grew up in suburban NJ, lived briefly in NYC. I left because I did not like the congestion, noise, grime and could not afford to live in a comfortable manner in NYC.

My grandfather, however, fit into the scheme of it being a great place for older affluent people to live. In his last years he had a wonderful apartment near Lincoln Center. He walked everywhere, took cabs everywhere else, ate out at fascinating restaurants. I loved to visit him.

But even now, I even prefer to visit smaller cities and could not imagine myself living in NYC.

I'm from Buffalo, and I also left as quickly as I could. I don't hate Buffalo. I doubt that I will ever move back there, but I do have friends who have returned, and it does have a certain appeal. One couple is similar to the couple in the story. They lived in NYC, and he traveled to Buffalo often...and the prices are so low, the people are friendly, the houses are just great....parts of Buffalo are just gorgeous.

It's a fun city with a lot of culture and it is close to so much! Three hours to the Finger Lakes, less than an hour to Niagara on the Lake, Chautauqua, Canadian beaches,etc...

Affordability has a strong appeal these days.

The cost of school - I never considered that as an issue. The Buffalo Public School system is probably no better than NYC's unless your child tests into City Honors or another gifted school. But, private schools are infinitely cheaper at an average of $8K a year or so.

I just always wondered how middle class families survive in cities like NY. As I mentioned, we moved back to Buffalo from the DC area. Even with two combined incomes near $100K we couldn't afford a single family house unless we wanted to live an hour outside DC. What's the point of being near such a great city but so far away it makes it a hassle to get to work/visit museums etc. The trade off is then convenience for personal space.

I guess every city has its trade offs...

greed helps to make once stable NY neighborhoods transient. in Park Slope developers and landlords have made it just about impossible for kids of long time residents to stay here, to find affordable rents (or to buy). those same high rents keep shops either empty or with a high turnover.

building has gone forward at such a high rate, not much thought has gone into whether the infrastructure can absorb it. and lower income residents who sold their homes to developers for what they thought was an astronomical price, find out that they don't have it so easy relocating in this very expensive city.

what happens to all these apartments no one can, in the end, afford to rent or buy?

New Yorkers should fight for their neighborhoods, should pay attention to what the local politicians are doing. It's a great place with much to offer. I don't have kids, and don't plan to. Hard for me to envision living anywhere else.