Albany, NY Homes For Rent

Homes for Rent in Albany, NY: What You Need to Know

Albany, in east-central New York, is the state capital. It may very well be in the shadow of the Big Apple as New York’s business hub, but it remains the center of power in the state.

A Storied Local History

In 1609, English explorer Henry Hudson arrived in the area where Iroquois Native Americans lived and the Dutch operated a trading post. In 1664, when the English took control of the area, they named it after the duke of York's Scottish title, Duke of Albany. The city became the capital of New York in 1797. It boasts of four New York governors who became U.S. president: Martin Van Buren, Grover Cleveland, Theodore Roosevelt, and Franklin D. Roosevelt.

The Cost of Living in Albany

For a small city, Albany (population: 96,460) is expensive. Its cost of living is 11.7% higher than the national average. At least food and transportation costs are 14.1% and 13.6% lower than the national average, respectively. The median gross rent in Albany is $951. New York’s progressive tax system relies on the rich, charging 4% in income tax to low earners and up to 8.82% to high earners. The state’s sales tax rate ranges from 4% to 8.875%.

Know Your Neighborhoods

Downtown Albany offers a variety of housing options: renovated Victorian buildings turned into apartments, townhouses, and apartment complexes. A vast majority of downtown Albany residents are renters. Young families are attracted to Menands, just outside of Albany, for its topnotch schools. The majority of the town’s residents are renters. Altamont is farther away (18 miles), but it has great schools, and it’s located at the foot of the beautiful Helderberg Mountains.

Job Opportunities in the City

Albany is at the heart of the state’s Tech Valley, a technological and educational hub with a focus on biotech, nanotechnology, and life sciences. Tech Valley consists of Adirondacks and North Country, Hudson Valley, and Mohawk Valley. It spans more than 250 miles north of New York City all the way up to the Canadian border. GlobalFoundries, a computer chip manufacturing plant, is a key player in the local economy. The Colleges of Nanoscale Science and Engineering (SUNY Poly CNSE) and the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) are also important players for their research and for providing a pool of young talent.

The Local Weather

If you’re moving to Albany, be prepared for freezing and snowy winters. The city gets an average of 52 inches of snow per year, a lot more than the national average of 28 inches. On Dec. 1-3, 2019, Albany received a record snowfall of 22.6 inches. There are usually 182 sunny days per year in Albany, compared with the U.S. average of 205 sunny days.