Editor’s Note
While New York City’s sky-high prices dominate headlines, significant value exists across the state. This analysis highlights more affordable housing markets, ranked by livability, for those looking beyond the metro area.
There are housing deals to be found in New York state — especially once you get away from the big city.
Across the state, the average value of a single-family home is $489,352. But that is driven up by homes in New York City, which average nearly $800,000, according to the Zillow Home Value Index. So there are plenty of housing markets in New York state that come in well below the state average.
GOBankingRates has identified these locales and sorted them by livability and other factors to produce a list of the state’s top hidden housing market gems. To compile its list, GBR analyzed data from Zillow, AreaVibes, Sperling’s BestPlaces, the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the Federal Reserve. Cities were weighted based on how they rank in multiple categories, and an overall score was determined — producing a list of the best blends of affordability and livability.
Here’s a rundown of the top 15.
Average home value in city: $290,139
Amount below average home value in state: $199,213
Average monthly mortgage: $1,661
Livability: 79
Median household income: $57,688
Troy is located just north of Albany in eastern New York state, along the western edge of the Hudson River. The total cost of living here comes in around $3,800 a month.
Average home value in city: $117,783
Amount below average home value in state: $371,569
Average monthly mortgage: $674
Livability: 71
Median household income: $48,810
Massena sits in northern New York state, right near the Canadian border and roughly 80 miles southwest of Montreal. Massena is the least populous city in the list, with about 10,200 residents. It has the highest percentage of residents age 65 and up (about 21%). The average monthly mortgage here is less than $700.
Average home value in city: $198,777
Amount below average home value in state: $290,575
Average monthly mortgage: $1,138
Livability: 75
Median household income: $55,368
You’ll find Cortland in central New York state, about 35 miles south of Syracuse and roughly 20 miles northeast of Ithaca. Cortland’s average monthly cost of living comes in around $3,100.
Average home value in city: $331,603
Amount below average home value in state: $157,748
Average monthly mortgage: $1,898
Livability: 82
Median household income: $62,111
Cohoes is located in eastern New York state, just north of Albany. Cohoes has about 18,000 residents. It is tied with two other cities for the second-highest AreaVibes livability score.
Average home value in city: $129,371
Amount below average home value in state: $359,981
Average monthly mortgage: $741
Livability: 72
Median household income: $49,003
Dunkirk sits along the southeastern shore of Lake Erie, about 45 miles southwest of Buffalo and just west of Fredonia. Dunkirk is a relatively inexpensive place to live, with average monthly mortgages coming in around $740 and an average monthly cost of living of about $2,600.
Average home value in city: $213,545
Amount below average home value in state: $275,806
Average monthly mortgage: $1,222
Livability: 77
Median household income: $45,845
Syracuse sits in central New York state, about 150 miles east of Buffalo and 145 miles west of Albany. With about 146,000 residents, Syracuse is the second most populous city in GBR’s list. Average monthly expenditures here come in around $2,100.
Average home value in city: $312,583
Amount below average home value in state: $176,768
Average monthly mortgage: $1,789
Livability: 82
Median household income: $55,897
Watervliet sits on the western bank of the Hudson River, directly across from Troy and just north of Albany. Watervliet’s AreaVibes livability score of 82 ties for second highest in the list. Its average monthly cost of living sits just below $4,000.
Average home value in city: $245,489
Amount below average home value in state: $243,863
Average monthly mortgage: $1,405
Livability: 79
Median household income: $48,050
New York’s second-largest city, Buffalo is located in the western part of the state, right on the eastern shore of Lake Erie. The average total cost of living in Buffalo comes in around $3,500 a month.
Average home value in city: $219,763
Amount below average home value in state: $269,589
Average monthly mortgage: $1,258
Livability: 77
Median household income: $68,242
Geneva is found in central New York state, about 45 miles southwest of Syracuse and roughly 50 miles southeast of Rochester. It costs about $3,300 a month to live here, on average.
Average home value in city: $236,658
Amount below average home value in state: $252,694
Average monthly mortgage: $1,355
Livability: 79
Median household income: $50,193
Amsterdam is located in eastern New York state, about 30 miles northwest of Albany and roughly 20 miles west of Schenectady. Amsterdam has a fairly high population of retirees, with just over 19% of its residents age 65 and up.
Average home value in city: $198,777
Amount below average home value in state: $290,575
Average monthly mortgage: $1,138
Livability: 75
Median household income: $55,368
You’ll find Binghamton in central New York state, about 35 miles south of Syracuse and roughly 20 miles northeast of Ithaca. Binghamton’s average monthly cost of living comes in around $3,100.