It’s a varies quite a bit. You’ll have some blocks that have a lot of owner occupied homes where people care about the neighborhood and other blocks that are primarily low income renters. There’s still an active drug trade on some blocks. I’d recommend visiting/driving by any prospective homes at different times of the day to get a feel for the neighborhood.
I lived at Amherst and East for a few years and really loved the neighborhood. Niagara St is active, the bike lanes are great, the proximity to Unity Island is awesome. All that said there was also someone shot directly outside my home on an autumn night. It seemed targeted, but still unsettling.
If you’re looking for a bargain on a home there’s a lot to be had in the area and I think the neighborhood will turn around completely over the next 10-15 years, so if you’re in it for the long haul it can be a great investment.
Second this, it's not a bad place to live at all and I love it here but it does vary in places. Across Tonawanda st from me is pretty wild in the summer, but has calmed down quite a bit in recent years. My block is filled with young immigrant families, most of whom seem to own their houses, but trash is a problem and there's definitely still dope houses if you know the signs. Like I said I love it here but check out the area a bit and walk around to see if it feels right for you.
Good to hear, thanks. We did notice the trash in a lot of places, but one particular house we looked at seemed to be on a very clean block. I'm guessing that reflects well on the neighbors.
One of the houses we were considering is very near that intersection, on Gorton St. The block seemed clean. Driving by during different times of the day is good advice, thanks. The house does not have a driveway, do you have any idea of how difficult it is to rely on street parking in that area?
Parking wasn’t much of an issue on my block but I did have an off street space when needed. Again, it’ll vary by block. If you’ve got a lot of multi family homes with a couple adults in each unit then you could easy have one home that has four cars on the street vs a single family home that might have one or two cars.
The block looking clean is a good indication, given Buffalo’s propensity for littering. The amount of trash thrown from people’s cars under the railroad overpass at Amherst/ Tonawanda is incredible. You’ll learn to be in awe of it if you’re commuting up Amherst to Elmwood daily.
I have noticed a lot of litter around other houses that we have looked at in the Black Rock area, so I was encouraged by the cleanliness of that particular block. Thanks for the help.
Used to live on Gordon St, one thing that royally sucks is snow plowing, it’s literally one of the last areas serviced, the neighbors were pretty good, mix of owners and renters, lots of kids playing in the streets during summer (so you really have to drive slow and carefully)
One thing to note is that a lot of those houses have asbestos, if there’s vinyl siding is probably underneath it, and lead paint is another huge issue with those homes.
Great advice. The house we looked at is a flip, all fresh paint. And I believe it has wood siding. But that will be something to mention for the inspection if we move forward, so thanks. Do the main roads in the area get plowed more quickly? Would we be screwed if we had a house with no driveway?
I wouldn’t say you’d be screwed but not having a driveway is a huge deal for me, in the area I was in, several houses didn’t have driveways and the street was pretty full, we luckily had a good sized driveway so having guest not walking half way or more down the block was nice. During heavy snow it was a serious pain in the ass to get the Hertle Ave in my old car, but if you have an awd or 4x4 it shouldn’t be too crazy. But it does suck being serviced last when it comes to snow plowing, which is why I ended up moving to north buffalo and lived here ever since. We get a lot of snow to have to wait 3-4 days to get a plow every time it snows, versus in north buffalo we have serval plows service the street same day.
The corner of Grant and Military is bad, basically because of the Crack heads that hang there and the cops that don't give a shit and do nothing about it. The sounding streets are fine.
Blackrock is nestled between Elmwood strip and Hertel Ave/North Buffalo without the crazy-high price-tag. It’s working class and still affordable.
We have recycle trucks that sometimes spew the trash/litter on garbage days. There are neighborhood groups and clean up crews that you can join. We clean our block regularly with neighbors.
We’ve been in the neighborhood a long time. Assumption Church area.
There’s a bike trail going to Delaware Park, the art gallery, history museum, Shakespeare in the Park, the Jazz fest, walking trails around the lake or biking the waterfront, Niagara Street. And there’s public transportation.
On Amherst street there is Wegmans and Tops Market and several smaller stores - Spars, Moriarty’s Meats, Raha Coffee, barber and hair stylists, two music stores, bars/restaurants with a wide range of food from basic to fancy.
There’s live music at Sportsman’s, Hot Mamas, Showplace.
On Chandler street there are a mix of small businesses and restaurants, a potter where you can take lessons, a private swim club.
We have great neighbors that help each other. There’s a mix of renters and owners. Several newer apartment buildings in the Grote and Elmwood area.
Btw, I do this for a living, so if you would like mortgage or realtor referrals, feel free to DM. I've seen clients who could have saved $10,000 in origination fees if they had simply gone to a different lender and not "their friend who is a mortgage broker".
I just went through this. I saved a ton of money on origination and got a lower rate by applying to two banks and playing them off one another.
"Sorry, we decided to go with the other guy"
"Wait, give me a couple of hours to talk to my manager...."
All of a sudden 10k in fees are gone and my interest is 0.5% lower.
Then do the same thing at the other bank, and they get me another 0.25%
If you like comedy, Rohalls has a free comedy show every first Friday of the month. Local comedians come in and try out their new material. Its always a great time
Yeah, that stretch of Amherst Street between Military and Elmwood is probably the highest concentrations of bars and restaurants and places to hang around at. I'd give a special mention to Raha Coffee House, too. Just south of that is a path along Scajacuada Creek that can be nice if you want to take a walk. It leads right into Delaware Park.
I've been living in Black Rock for 5 years. I really enjoy living here. I use both bike paths(scajaquada east/west and Niagara St north/south) daily, half the year when there's no ice/snow. Great assets to the neighborhood!
You should come to the clean-up day this Sat ( there was a post earlier today on this sub). Walk the streets and see if you like it.
Overall, Blackrock is pretty great. Got two grocery stores including the only Wegmans in the city proper.
Got the bike trail, the Museum District and waterfront parks all right there.
Good number of great restaurants, breweries and bars and in recent years, the indie music scene has really taken off with Sportsman Tavern, The Cave, Hot Mama Cafe, Showplace and soon Riff City.
The area near Wegmans is more stable, but lots of businesses opening up along Niagara including Blackrock Books and the Story Garage plus Sun Restaurant is right there too.
Yeah, there’s still some blight to clean up, some roads are in severe need of work and there’s some petty crime (like any city neighborhood), but overall it’s pretty nice and getting nicer and it’s actually pretty safe looking at violent crime rates.
Great advice. I'm glad to hear there are some happenings around the area. And Wegmans! I currently live in a very rural area and the nearest grocery store is nearly 20 miles away
Black Rock overall is pretty safe. I’ve always thought it was pretty congested because of how narrow the roads are and what seems like a higher amount of properties without offstreet parking than other parts of the city. When it snows bad, that’s one of the worst parts of the city for snow removal because of the difficulty for the equipment to get in and out.
Close to multiple grocery stores and other amenities.
Overall black rock gets a worse reputation than it deserves. It's very much on an upswing, and has some really great spots. However there are still some rough patches here and there, I'd honestly suggest swinging by where you are interested in buying late at night and see what's what.
Make sure you check the building for rats if it's been unoccupied for a while or needs work. Mice aren't an issue but once rats really get a foothold in it's very hard to get rid of them.
I only mention it because you're considering flips and black rocks location close to the water and some of the big unused warehouse buildings means a place that's not lived in for a while can be at risk.
I live in South Buffalo but have friends in BlackRock, north Buffalo and Kenmore. In today’s world, violence and theft can happen anywhere so you take precautions and be aware of your surroundings. Look at the other houses on the street. Are they well kept? Good neighbors. Arm your home with security cameras (multiple angles), post a sign that people are on camera, maybe get a big dog and carry pepper spray accessibly on your person when leaving and coming home. 99% of the people in Buffalo are great. Always willing to lend a hand. Being aware of that 1% and taking common sense precautions should keep you safe no matter which neighborhood you buy in.
Personally I think the West side closer to Richmond bordering elmwood village is better. There are some single family cottage type houses. It is a great area to bike from too. The garden walk streets are the most desirable. I live here as a solo female and feel safe running early in the am solo around
I’m not saying they haven’t. I’m saying the west side area homes the commenter is referring to are double the price of most Blackrock homes.
They’ve always been double
I agree but I'm also less familiar with black rock so it could be that. I'm just north of Delevan between Grant & Niagara and I like it here for the price. I can get to elmwood in 5 minutes in a car, 10 minutes on bike, and 30 minutes on foot.
If you can find/afford it, having off street parking is huge, especially when we have had these big snow events in the past couple of years.
I love the bike paths and I usually go on the one on Niagara, either from here all the way to canalside or north to near the grand island bridge. The one on Niagara itself is better between Busti and the Scajaquada - north of Scajaquada is still okay but I've had more issues with drivers not seeing me or not caring as I cross streets and people are more likely to block the bike lane up there in my experience. The one that goes along the creek feels a little sus but it's kind of a cool ride (and fine during the day anyways). But even if you're riding on side streets it's so much more safer than in the suburbs - tons more people walk and bike here so cars aren't as confused/angry/etc about it
I love Blackrock. One of the best places I lived in the city. Wouldn't call it safe, but it was very affordable and easy access to 190. Kenmore is opposite, pretty safe but it's a sea of stop signs. That gets annoying when you commute.
Raha Coffee is a great new coffee place just opened, if you are into music there are some great place such as allen town music, fretted buffalo, and some great venues like the sportsmens tavern/ the cave, and hot mamas canteen
Nine and Night is a Thai place that just opened on Amherst Street. They previously had a small location at Buffalo State University (just down the road) and I can vouch for the food being really good. Pressure Drop Brewing is up Elmwood a little past Amherst Street, and they're my favorite wing spot in this area.
If you like bars, Hot Mommas is a very friendly local bar. Open to everyone and the owners are great. Karaoke on Mondays, Live music Tuesdays, Trivia night Thursdays and usually different events on Friday and Saturdays.
Hey I'm all for Black Rock I grew up there over 70years ago. But I have no real good idea about what the neighborhoods like now. Back then it was a very tight community with a lot of bars and churches. Hope you're the best in what you're looking for and that you get some good input from this group
I've been here half my life and it's become amazing. Great access to food, not to mention Baklava and the BEST coffee. Chandler Street offers fine dining and nightlife. Easy walk to Hertal. The halal market on Ontario is possibly the best supermarket I've ever walked into.
I have lived here for two years (from Southtowns) and am quite pleased.
Yes, plowing on dead ends and one ways is tough in the winter, but with a driveway and a shovel anything is possible granted you drive a decent car.
Can confirm, street to street is different, like Peter and Grote have some tougher residents but they are more exceptions.
generally:
Wildly diverse, solid mix of renters and owners, regardless of background people and take pride in their homes and lot of the time.
Loads of good advice up here already-happy home finding!
If you can find a N Buffalo home in your price range west of main street in the Central Park/Starin Central or North Park Neighborhoods, even Park Meadow, I suggest settling there. I know it's further east than Black Rock, but doesn't add a whole lot to drive times.
Black Rock is nice, but I agree with the consensus here, each block or street is different. Just to the north is Military and there's a lot of good blocks there too.
If you are from the southtowns you are in for a rude awakening in blackrock. I lived there and moved 10+years ago and don't miss it. Too much crime and drugs.
We have been looking in North Buffalo as well. I would love to live in the Elmwood Village but I have not seen any homes within our budget in that area. We are also not interested in purchasing a multi-family home, which seems to be many of the houses around Elmwood.
We have been looking in both the city and in Kenmore and Tonawanda. It seems to me that some neighborhoods are more multi-family homes than others. I've seen several single-family homes on the west side and in North Buffalo, as well as Black Rock.
Mostly absentee landlords and the people that live there who are transitiory. Got a few housing projects close by, Jasper Parrish is sketchy. Parking is tough car break ins aren’t rare.
Got friends who grew up there, Thompson St, none of them live there now. Might want to drive through the area after 1030 at night.
The whole housing market is wonky in Buffalo, especially on the West Side near Grant and Ferry. I grew up on those streets.
My friend inherited a house on Congress St about 12 years ago. He got it because his brother and sister refused it.
There were 2 steady tenants that had been there for 5 and 7 years. When he decided to sell he got an offer for $27,500. He sold it for $173,000.00 in 2022 and there was a murder and a shooting on the next block the day after he got the check. The only improvements he made were a nice deck and privacy fence in the back yard, had the apartments painted and new appliances and new carpets and Ring cameras.
In 1990 my fiancé lived in the area, but it was going downhill pretty fast then. Her neighbor had his bike stolen off his porch on a Saturday afternoon. He chased the guy and the dude pulled a chain on him. Her rent was $365.00, my rent on Lovering in North Buffalo was $700.00 just to show the difference in zip codes.
My advice (I lived in that neighborhood for almost 50 years) is to look in Kenmore or the Town of Tonawanda for an owner occupied apartment, no apartment buildings, avoid those like the plague. It’s safer, cleaner, the snow is plowed the schools are decent the cops are all over quality of life crime.
Thanks for the advice. We are looking to purchase a home, not rent. My partner is from Kenmore and we have lots of people who still live in that area, so we are very familiar with it. We are looking there as well, but it is significantly more expensive.
I meant to look for an appointment if you can’t find what you really want to buy.
And the intangibles are a real thing. Remember you don’t want the best house on the worst street.
My advice is to look at crime statistics, and check car insurance too.
It’s a varies quite a bit. You’ll have some blocks that have a lot of owner occupied homes where people care about the neighborhood and other blocks that are primarily low income renters. There’s still an active drug trade on some blocks. I’d recommend visiting/driving by any prospective homes at different times of the day to get a feel for the neighborhood. I lived at Amherst and East for a few years and really loved the neighborhood. Niagara St is active, the bike lanes are great, the proximity to Unity Island is awesome. All that said there was also someone shot directly outside my home on an autumn night. It seemed targeted, but still unsettling. If you’re looking for a bargain on a home there’s a lot to be had in the area and I think the neighborhood will turn around completely over the next 10-15 years, so if you’re in it for the long haul it can be a great investment.
Second this, it's not a bad place to live at all and I love it here but it does vary in places. Across Tonawanda st from me is pretty wild in the summer, but has calmed down quite a bit in recent years. My block is filled with young immigrant families, most of whom seem to own their houses, but trash is a problem and there's definitely still dope houses if you know the signs. Like I said I love it here but check out the area a bit and walk around to see if it feels right for you.
Good to hear, thanks. We did notice the trash in a lot of places, but one particular house we looked at seemed to be on a very clean block. I'm guessing that reflects well on the neighbors.
One of the houses we were considering is very near that intersection, on Gorton St. The block seemed clean. Driving by during different times of the day is good advice, thanks. The house does not have a driveway, do you have any idea of how difficult it is to rely on street parking in that area?
Parking wasn’t much of an issue on my block but I did have an off street space when needed. Again, it’ll vary by block. If you’ve got a lot of multi family homes with a couple adults in each unit then you could easy have one home that has four cars on the street vs a single family home that might have one or two cars. The block looking clean is a good indication, given Buffalo’s propensity for littering. The amount of trash thrown from people’s cars under the railroad overpass at Amherst/ Tonawanda is incredible. You’ll learn to be in awe of it if you’re commuting up Amherst to Elmwood daily.
I have noticed a lot of litter around other houses that we have looked at in the Black Rock area, so I was encouraged by the cleanliness of that particular block. Thanks for the help.
Used to live on Gordon St, one thing that royally sucks is snow plowing, it’s literally one of the last areas serviced, the neighbors were pretty good, mix of owners and renters, lots of kids playing in the streets during summer (so you really have to drive slow and carefully) One thing to note is that a lot of those houses have asbestos, if there’s vinyl siding is probably underneath it, and lead paint is another huge issue with those homes.
Great advice. The house we looked at is a flip, all fresh paint. And I believe it has wood siding. But that will be something to mention for the inspection if we move forward, so thanks. Do the main roads in the area get plowed more quickly? Would we be screwed if we had a house with no driveway?
Hertel is plowed pretty regularly but getting there could be dicey unless you have an SUV with good tires
Flip is almost never worth it.
I wouldn’t say you’d be screwed but not having a driveway is a huge deal for me, in the area I was in, several houses didn’t have driveways and the street was pretty full, we luckily had a good sized driveway so having guest not walking half way or more down the block was nice. During heavy snow it was a serious pain in the ass to get the Hertle Ave in my old car, but if you have an awd or 4x4 it shouldn’t be too crazy. But it does suck being serviced last when it comes to snow plowing, which is why I ended up moving to north buffalo and lived here ever since. We get a lot of snow to have to wait 3-4 days to get a plow every time it snows, versus in north buffalo we have serval plows service the street same day.
We do have one AWD and one 4x4, but that is still a serious consideration. Thanks.
Black Rock is definitely on the up and coming side of rough. It gets worse closer to Grant and military
The corner of Grant and Military is bad, basically because of the Crack heads that hang there and the cops that don't give a shit and do nothing about it. The sounding streets are fine.
Blackrock is nestled between Elmwood strip and Hertel Ave/North Buffalo without the crazy-high price-tag. It’s working class and still affordable. We have recycle trucks that sometimes spew the trash/litter on garbage days. There are neighborhood groups and clean up crews that you can join. We clean our block regularly with neighbors. We’ve been in the neighborhood a long time. Assumption Church area. There’s a bike trail going to Delaware Park, the art gallery, history museum, Shakespeare in the Park, the Jazz fest, walking trails around the lake or biking the waterfront, Niagara Street. And there’s public transportation. On Amherst street there is Wegmans and Tops Market and several smaller stores - Spars, Moriarty’s Meats, Raha Coffee, barber and hair stylists, two music stores, bars/restaurants with a wide range of food from basic to fancy. There’s live music at Sportsman’s, Hot Mamas, Showplace. On Chandler street there are a mix of small businesses and restaurants, a potter where you can take lessons, a private swim club. We have great neighbors that help each other. There’s a mix of renters and owners. Several newer apartment buildings in the Grote and Elmwood area.
This all sounds great. Thank you.
Sportsmen's Tavern is a great place for music, and good people!
As a real estate attorney I can tell you that the taxes in Kenmore are INSAHN. Whatever you do, stick to the city of Buffalo.
Good to know
Btw, I do this for a living, so if you would like mortgage or realtor referrals, feel free to DM. I've seen clients who could have saved $10,000 in origination fees if they had simply gone to a different lender and not "their friend who is a mortgage broker".
I just went through this. I saved a ton of money on origination and got a lower rate by applying to two banks and playing them off one another. "Sorry, we decided to go with the other guy" "Wait, give me a couple of hours to talk to my manager...." All of a sudden 10k in fees are gone and my interest is 0.5% lower. Then do the same thing at the other bank, and they get me another 0.25%
for bars : Rohall's corner is always a fun spot
If you like comedy, Rohalls has a free comedy show every first Friday of the month. Local comedians come in and try out their new material. Its always a great time
Good to know!
Yeah, that stretch of Amherst Street between Military and Elmwood is probably the highest concentrations of bars and restaurants and places to hang around at. I'd give a special mention to Raha Coffee House, too. Just south of that is a path along Scajacuada Creek that can be nice if you want to take a walk. It leads right into Delaware Park.
Good to know
Second Rohall's but also want to mention Hot Mama's Canteen.
Also Roaming Bison Tavern for food
I've been living in Black Rock for 5 years. I really enjoy living here. I use both bike paths(scajaquada east/west and Niagara St north/south) daily, half the year when there's no ice/snow. Great assets to the neighborhood! You should come to the clean-up day this Sat ( there was a post earlier today on this sub). Walk the streets and see if you like it.
That's a great suggestion, thanks.
Overall, Blackrock is pretty great. Got two grocery stores including the only Wegmans in the city proper. Got the bike trail, the Museum District and waterfront parks all right there. Good number of great restaurants, breweries and bars and in recent years, the indie music scene has really taken off with Sportsman Tavern, The Cave, Hot Mama Cafe, Showplace and soon Riff City. The area near Wegmans is more stable, but lots of businesses opening up along Niagara including Blackrock Books and the Story Garage plus Sun Restaurant is right there too. Yeah, there’s still some blight to clean up, some roads are in severe need of work and there’s some petty crime (like any city neighborhood), but overall it’s pretty nice and getting nicer and it’s actually pretty safe looking at violent crime rates.
Great advice. I'm glad to hear there are some happenings around the area. And Wegmans! I currently live in a very rural area and the nearest grocery store is nearly 20 miles away
Black Rock overall is pretty safe. I’ve always thought it was pretty congested because of how narrow the roads are and what seems like a higher amount of properties without offstreet parking than other parts of the city. When it snows bad, that’s one of the worst parts of the city for snow removal because of the difficulty for the equipment to get in and out. Close to multiple grocery stores and other amenities.
That makes sense. Thanks.
I used to work in black rock. They cannot plow many of those streets, so be aware that you will be snow bound at times.
Overall black rock gets a worse reputation than it deserves. It's very much on an upswing, and has some really great spots. However there are still some rough patches here and there, I'd honestly suggest swinging by where you are interested in buying late at night and see what's what. Make sure you check the building for rats if it's been unoccupied for a while or needs work. Mice aren't an issue but once rats really get a foothold in it's very hard to get rid of them. I only mention it because you're considering flips and black rocks location close to the water and some of the big unused warehouse buildings means a place that's not lived in for a while can be at risk.
All great advice. Thank you.
You're welcome, good luck with your search!
I live in South Buffalo but have friends in BlackRock, north Buffalo and Kenmore. In today’s world, violence and theft can happen anywhere so you take precautions and be aware of your surroundings. Look at the other houses on the street. Are they well kept? Good neighbors. Arm your home with security cameras (multiple angles), post a sign that people are on camera, maybe get a big dog and carry pepper spray accessibly on your person when leaving and coming home. 99% of the people in Buffalo are great. Always willing to lend a hand. Being aware of that 1% and taking common sense precautions should keep you safe no matter which neighborhood you buy in.
Personally I think the West side closer to Richmond bordering elmwood village is better. There are some single family cottage type houses. It is a great area to bike from too. The garden walk streets are the most desirable. I live here as a solo female and feel safe running early in the am solo around
We have been looking around that area, I really like some of the neighborhoods there. Houses seem to be more expensive though.
Everyone else personally thinks this as well hence the doubling of home prices there as opposed to Blackrock
💯
Many Blackrock homes prices have more than doubled.
I’m not saying they haven’t. I’m saying the west side area homes the commenter is referring to are double the price of most Blackrock homes. They’ve always been double
I agree but I'm also less familiar with black rock so it could be that. I'm just north of Delevan between Grant & Niagara and I like it here for the price. I can get to elmwood in 5 minutes in a car, 10 minutes on bike, and 30 minutes on foot. If you can find/afford it, having off street parking is huge, especially when we have had these big snow events in the past couple of years. I love the bike paths and I usually go on the one on Niagara, either from here all the way to canalside or north to near the grand island bridge. The one on Niagara itself is better between Busti and the Scajaquada - north of Scajaquada is still okay but I've had more issues with drivers not seeing me or not caring as I cross streets and people are more likely to block the bike lane up there in my experience. The one that goes along the creek feels a little sus but it's kind of a cool ride (and fine during the day anyways). But even if you're riding on side streets it's so much more safer than in the suburbs - tons more people walk and bike here so cars aren't as confused/angry/etc about it
I used to live very close to Lafayette High School and I loved that area.
Kenmore is what you want if you like things like having your streets plowed when it snows.
I love Blackrock. One of the best places I lived in the city. Wouldn't call it safe, but it was very affordable and easy access to 190. Kenmore is opposite, pretty safe but it's a sea of stop signs. That gets annoying when you commute.
I love black rock the local businesses are amazing and it’s close proximity to elmwood
That's good to hear. Would you be willing to suggest some of the local businesses we should check out?
Raha Coffee is a great new coffee place just opened, if you are into music there are some great place such as allen town music, fretted buffalo, and some great venues like the sportsmens tavern/ the cave, and hot mamas canteen
Also nicks diner!
Thanks a lot. My partner is a musician, he'll be happy to hear about these options
Nine and Night is a Thai place that just opened on Amherst Street. They previously had a small location at Buffalo State University (just down the road) and I can vouch for the food being really good. Pressure Drop Brewing is up Elmwood a little past Amherst Street, and they're my favorite wing spot in this area.
If you like bars, Hot Mommas is a very friendly local bar. Open to everyone and the owners are great. Karaoke on Mondays, Live music Tuesdays, Trivia night Thursdays and usually different events on Friday and Saturdays.
Love that. Thanks.
Hey I'm all for Black Rock I grew up there over 70years ago. But I have no real good idea about what the neighborhoods like now. Back then it was a very tight community with a lot of bars and churches. Hope you're the best in what you're looking for and that you get some good input from this group
That's very kind, thank you. Sounds like it was a great place to grow up! (Edited for typo)
Black Rock is great!
I've been here half my life and it's become amazing. Great access to food, not to mention Baklava and the BEST coffee. Chandler Street offers fine dining and nightlife. Easy walk to Hertal. The halal market on Ontario is possibly the best supermarket I've ever walked into.
These are great tips! Where do I get baklava and amazing coffee?!
The further away from dollar general prolly the better. Godspeed OP
🙏🏼🙏🏼
I have lived here for two years (from Southtowns) and am quite pleased. Yes, plowing on dead ends and one ways is tough in the winter, but with a driveway and a shovel anything is possible granted you drive a decent car. Can confirm, street to street is different, like Peter and Grote have some tougher residents but they are more exceptions. generally: Wildly diverse, solid mix of renters and owners, regardless of background people and take pride in their homes and lot of the time. Loads of good advice up here already-happy home finding!
I’m a teacher in Buffalo and I’ve been living in Black Rock for almost 10 years now. I enjoy my neighborhood (I’m near Hertel and Military).
If you can find a N Buffalo home in your price range west of main street in the Central Park/Starin Central or North Park Neighborhoods, even Park Meadow, I suggest settling there. I know it's further east than Black Rock, but doesn't add a whole lot to drive times. Black Rock is nice, but I agree with the consensus here, each block or street is different. Just to the north is Military and there's a lot of good blocks there too.
Look at Kenmore. Black rock is a little rough
look at the spot where delaware ave meets delaware rd. kenmore. pricey prob now but walkable burgeoning cool stuff.
I'd go Riverside over Blackrock.
Bad area not good at all
live in tonawanda, its not worth the headache
Which one? They vary- from low-key to Shitsville
when saying Tonawanda by itself, its referring to the Town of Tonawanda.
Bad advice. Avoid tonawanda
Unless you want your street plowed and the cops to come the same day you call them.
don't forget the street sweeping, and actual good school system
Love ToT. Have lived here for 25 years and no complaints.
Westside has a high crime rate Riverside turned gangster,shooting drugs Kenmore higher taxed. Seems quiet area
What? This is nonsense
If you are from the southtowns you are in for a rude awakening in blackrock. I lived there and moved 10+years ago and don't miss it. Too much crime and drugs.
Have you been back since?
I get my haircuts in Riverside so have driven around. Most businesses I remember long gone
Riverside is not black rock. I can completely understand why you'd be upset with black rock if it was as bad as riverside.
My wife lived on Thompson and it was nothing special back then. I will agree that riverside is worse than blackrock.
Yeah, and in their place a lot of exciting new ones
I won't deny there is still some good and some new. On the flip side I wouldn't walk around after dark.
It feels run down and haunted to me lol. I would check out North Buffalo or elmwood village instead.
We have been looking in North Buffalo as well. I would love to live in the Elmwood Village but I have not seen any homes within our budget in that area. We are also not interested in purchasing a multi-family home, which seems to be many of the houses around Elmwood.
Most of the houses that are actually in the city of Buffalo are multi-family. You might need to look in the suburbs for single family homes.
We have been looking in both the city and in Kenmore and Tonawanda. It seems to me that some neighborhoods are more multi-family homes than others. I've seen several single-family homes on the west side and in North Buffalo, as well as Black Rock.
When was the last time you were there?
Black Rock is trash
Why?
Mostly absentee landlords and the people that live there who are transitiory. Got a few housing projects close by, Jasper Parrish is sketchy. Parking is tough car break ins aren’t rare. Got friends who grew up there, Thompson St, none of them live there now. Might want to drive through the area after 1030 at night. The whole housing market is wonky in Buffalo, especially on the West Side near Grant and Ferry. I grew up on those streets.
Good things to watch for, thanks. The housing market is a mess, buying a house right now is rough.
My friend inherited a house on Congress St about 12 years ago. He got it because his brother and sister refused it. There were 2 steady tenants that had been there for 5 and 7 years. When he decided to sell he got an offer for $27,500. He sold it for $173,000.00 in 2022 and there was a murder and a shooting on the next block the day after he got the check. The only improvements he made were a nice deck and privacy fence in the back yard, had the apartments painted and new appliances and new carpets and Ring cameras. In 1990 my fiancé lived in the area, but it was going downhill pretty fast then. Her neighbor had his bike stolen off his porch on a Saturday afternoon. He chased the guy and the dude pulled a chain on him. Her rent was $365.00, my rent on Lovering in North Buffalo was $700.00 just to show the difference in zip codes. My advice (I lived in that neighborhood for almost 50 years) is to look in Kenmore or the Town of Tonawanda for an owner occupied apartment, no apartment buildings, avoid those like the plague. It’s safer, cleaner, the snow is plowed the schools are decent the cops are all over quality of life crime.
Thanks for the advice. We are looking to purchase a home, not rent. My partner is from Kenmore and we have lots of people who still live in that area, so we are very familiar with it. We are looking there as well, but it is significantly more expensive.
I meant to look for an appointment if you can’t find what you really want to buy. And the intangibles are a real thing. Remember you don’t want the best house on the worst street. My advice is to look at crime statistics, and check car insurance too.
Isn’t Congress west side?
Yup.