Troy

Located just blocks from downtown Troy, South Central is a neighborhood steeped in history. “Troy was the fourth wealthiest city during the Industrial Revolution, and we have a high density of Victorian architecture,” says Heather Hamlin Martin, a licensed real estate associate broker with Keller Williams Capital District who lives in the neighborhood. “Many of the shots for ‘The Gilded Age’ were just filmed here. Hallmark filmed a movie here, ‘The Age of Innocents’ was filmed around here, ‘The Time Machine’ was filmed around here. It’s very historic.” Alongside its architecture and the lingering sense of history it brings with it is a community that makes South Central feel like home for many. “There’s a really strong community of neighbors who are committed, welcoming and care about the area,” Martin says. “I love my neighborhood. We have so many nice people here, it’s really great.” South Central has a distinctly urban feel thanks to its walkable, sidewalk-lined streets and historical row houses. These homes often date back to the 1800s and sport architectural features like Tiffany glass and box bay windows with nooks perfect for curling up in with a book. There’s also a handful of detached Craftsman and colonial-style homes in the neighborhood. South Central has a mixture of single-family and multi-family homes, which some residents choose to buy so they can live in part of the home while renting the rest out. Its homes also tend to be bigger than those in the neighboring area of South Troy, often pushing well over 2,000 square feet. It’s possible to find a fixer-upper for as little as $80,000, but home prices can climb upwards of $650,000 for a large, updated home. With so many older homes in South Central, residents often take on renovation or maintenance projects. “A lot of people are working on their homes and doing projects, and it’s fun to share that type of experience with people,” Martin says. “It’s a fun place to be.” Because of this, the market is competitive. Martin says that most homes take between three and 14 days to sell. For residents of the 52 keyholding 1840s row houses across from Washington Park, its gated and tree-shaded 1.8 acres are an ideal place to sit and read when the weather is nice. The historic park is one of only two privately owned ornamental parks in New York State. From April to November, most residents get their regular dose of sunshine at the 80-acre Prospect Park. The park offers nature trails and a playground with a splash pad where children can cool off and have fun during the summer as well as tennis, handball and basketball courts, a disc ball course and softball and soccer fields. Other projects are in the works to give South Central residents even more places for recreation. “The Little Italy Quality of Life Committee has received $875,000 to renovate the historic marketplace, which is where people used to come and sell vegetables, so we’re making it into a really functional community space with bocci, pickleball courts, seating, lighting and an area for community events like concerts and neighborhood garage sales,” Martin says. Jefferson Street Deli and Grocery and several other small bodegas offer a place to grab a few essentials close to home. Residents often drive to Price Chopper about a mile away or Market 32 just over 2 miles away for bigger grocery trips. On Saturdays, it’s common to find many residents out at the Troy Waterfront Farmers Market less than a mile away. The market, which moves indoors for the winter but keeps meeting, is a feature of life in the community. Residents start their days with fresh juice at Collar City Cold Pressed or get their first dose of caffeine at Alias Coffee. De Fazio’s is a favorite spot to pick up pizza or Italian hangover cake and La Capital Tacos is known for its bright exterior and delicious street-style tacos. For Earth Day, South Central residents gather to clean up the neighborhood together – as do neighborhoods across Troy. South Central’s location just blocks from downtown Troy also means that residents are close to countless events throughout the year. One of the biggest of these is the Victorian Stroll. “It’s the first weekend in December every year and it’s beautiful,” Martin says. “Lots of people get dressed up and it’s a big festival.” Summertime concerts and food festivals like Chowder Fest are also big events in downtown Troy. South Central is served by the Troy City School District, which Niche gives a B rating and places among the top 3 districts in Rensselaer County. Children can attend P.S. 14, which has a B, and Troy Middle School, which was recently renamed from W. Kenneth Doyle Middle School and has a B-minus on Niche. Students then attend Troy High School, which has a B rating and makes Niche’s top standout high school in the Albany area. The school offers students extracurricular activities like sports and robotics, yearbook and student council clubs. The small, private Russell Sage College is located in the neighborhood, while Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, one of the world’s leading technological research universities, is less than a mile away. Hudson Valley Community College is just over 2 miles away. South Central also enjoys easy highway access. Route 4 runs through the neighborhood, branching into 3rd Street and 4th Street, and residents can easily hop on State Route 2 to cross the river into Watervliet. Downtown Albany is just under 7 miles away, a trip that takes less than 15 minutes.

Walking up the steep, mile-long incline from historic downtown Troy to the top of Prospect Park, it’s easy to understand why locals call their neighborhood The Hill. Located a few blocks east of the Hudson River, The Hill is home to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, a private research university and the oldest technological university in the Western Hemisphere. Rensselaer occupies 265 acres at the center of the neighborhood, bracketed to the north and south by small residential communities. “It’s definitely a college-town neighborhood, which brings a lot of energy and culture,” says James Perniciaro, an Associate Broker with Heer Realty and a top salesperson in the Capital Region. “Most of the residents are renters, but this keeps the prices of the single-family homes lower than in surrounding areas.” Much of the inventory within The Hill’s diverse housing market is geared towards investors, including investment-generating rental properties and older fix-and-flip single-family homes. Investment properties consist of turn-of-the-century Victorian and colonial duplexes with multi-level front-facing decks, Federal-style rowhouses and newly remodeled homes subdivided into multiple rental units. Over 70 percent of The Hill’s residents rent their homes – a mix of residents and off-campus RPI students – but single-family homes often become available, including three-story Victorians with wrap-around porches and American Foursquare homes, most of which were built between 1890 and 1920. Single-family homes typically sell for $150,000 to $250,000, while investment properties can sell for upwards of $400,000. The Hill is within walking distance of several bars and restaurants, but locals must drive east on Hoosick Street or use public transportation to access supermarkets like ALDI and Hannaford. De Bonis convenience store offers snacks, daily essentials and homemade deli sandwiches, and several other upscale markets are available along 4th Street in downtown Troy. Breakfast is served at Mumu’s Pastry and Cafe, a family-run bakery serving pastries, gourmet paninis, breakfast bagels and homemade European desserts. The neighborhood’s most popular restaurant is The Hill Beer & Wine Garden, a Polish and American eatery with a charming European-style hidden garden outdoor space modeled after a cozy ski lodge. Restaurant Guru awarded The Hill Beer & Wine Garden the top prize for “Best Atmosphere” and “Best Outdoor Seating” in 2021. Locals visit The Hudson River Commons or the locally owned boutiques in nearby downtown Troy for retail shopping. Students in The Hill attend Troy City Schools, typically beginning their education at Troy School 14, a B-rated school on Niche with a student-teacher ratio of 9-to-1. From there, students move to Troy Middle School – a B-minus-rated school on Niche – and Troy High School, a B-rated school on Niche with an average SAT score of 1170. Graduates of Troy High School regularly attend prestigious local universities like Syracuse and NYU. Prospect Park is the jewel of the Troy Parks System, an 80-acre park atop Mount Ida providing breathtaking panoramic views of the Hudson River Valley that stretch nearly 20 miles in all directions. Visitors come to Prospect Park to observe the rare species of beech and magnolia trees along winding nature trails, play sports in one of the many fields and courts spanning the park’s 80 acres, cool off in the splash pad, or meet friends for a picnic and playdate at the playground. Beman Park sits at the heart of the neighborhood, and the city recently approved a $1.1 million makeover for the 144-year-old park, with plans for a dog park, pedestrian trails and a permanent spot for the park’s Putnam Grounds monument dedicated to the Troy Trojans, a Major League Baseball team from 1879 to 1882 most famous for hitting the first ever Grand Slam home run, and most infamous for once playing in a game attended by only six fans, the lowest attendance ever recorded at a Major League game. Located only minutes east of downtown Troy, The Hill rests atop Mount Ida on the banks of the Hudson River less than 10 miles north of Albany’s business district, a commute that takes only 15 minutes via Interstate 787. Residents enjoy convenient access to public transportation from the bus stops lining Hoosick Street and the connecting roads, and the Albany-Rensselaer Amtrak Station provides direct access to Boston and New York.

Sycaway sits atop Mount Ida on the eastern banks of the Hudson River in New York’s Capital District, a small enclave of school campuses, cemeteries and quiet residential streets just north of the Poesten Kill. The community acts as a buffer between the downtown riverfront district of Troy – a historic industrial town that was once the fourth wealthiest city in America – and the rolling pastures and family farms of Rensselaer County. “It’s the closest neighborhood to downtown Troy that offers a true suburban feel,” says James Perniciaro, an Associate Broker with Heer Realty. “It’s a quiet residential neighborhood with walkable streets, especially around St. Mary’s Cemetery.” The western half of Sycaway is occupied by bustling campuses, including Troy High School and the East Campus Athletic Village of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, around which the sizeable historic fraternity and sorority buildings of RPI are located. On Saturdays in the fall, residents can hear the fight songs pouring out of Stadium Field from the front porches of their homes, prominent among the neighborhood’s well-appointed craftsman homes. Other housing options include three-story American Foursquares, modest bungalows and the occasional Dutch Colonial. Homes in Sycaway typically sell for $150,000 to $300,000, far less than the national average. “The price point is really appealing for many different buyers, particularly those trying to break into the market for the first time,” says Perniciaro.” Retail space accounts for less than 5 percent of acreage throughout Sycaway, so residents must drive a short distance west to downtown Troy or east on Hoosick Road to find the nearest shopping and dining options. Residents pick up groceries from Market 32 - which conveniently shares a parking lot with Walmart Supercenter on Hoosick Road -- or grab those hard-to-find international items from Viejo San Juan, praised online as “a little taste of Puerto Rico.” The Hill Beer & Wine Garden offers Polish and American dishes in an outdoor European garden modeled after a cozy ski lodge, and Restaurant Guru Magazine awarded The Hill Beer & Wine Garden the top prize for “Best Atmosphere” and “Best Outdoor Seating” in 2021. Locals visit The Hudson River Commons or the locally owned boutiques in nearby downtown Troy for retail shopping. Sycaway is zoned within the Troy City Schools District, a highly-rated school district with some of the best teachers in the Albany area. Students begin their education at PS 14, a B-rated school on Niche. From there, students move to Troy Middle School – a B-minus-rated school – and Troy High School, a B-rated school on Niche with an average SAT score of 1170. Graduates of Troy High School regularly attend prestigious local universities like Syracuse and NYU. Sycaway is conveniently located between Frear Park and Prospect Hill, Troy’s largest, oldest and most picturesque city parks. Frear Park was donated to the city by the family of William Frear in 1917, and the Frear Park Conservancy has been dedicated to preserving the beauty and historic integrity of the park ever since. Frear Park has several unique features and amenities – notably an 18-hole golf course, restaurant and hockey rink – in addition to sports facilities, playgrounds and nature trails. Prospect Park is the jewel of the Troy Parks System, an 80-acre park atop Mount Ida providing breathtaking panoramic views of the Hudson River Valley that stretch nearly 20 miles in all directions. Visitors come to Prospect Park to observe the rare species of beech and magnolia trees along winding nature trails, play sports in one of the many fields and courts spanning the park’s 80 acres, cool off in the splash pad, or meet friends for a picnic and playdate at the playground. In the near suburbs east of downtown Troy, Sycaway is bracketed between the Poesten Kill and Hoosick Street on the hills overlooking the Hudson River. Residents enjoy an easy 10-minute commute into downtown Albany via Interstate 878 and can drive north to the Adirondack Mountains on Interstate 87. Bus stops are situated along Hoosick Street, with service to downtown Troy and the Greater Albany Area, and the Albany-Rensselaer Amtrak Station provides direct access to Boston and New York.

South Troy offers its residents a wide variety of housing options less than 2 miles from downtown Troy and other local touchstones like nearby colleges. For many, though, it’s the neighborhood’s warm, involved community that truly makes it special. “There’s just a great sense of community – a very strong community,” says Heather Hamlin Martin, a licensed real estate associate broker with Keller Williams Capital District who lives just north of South Troy in the Central South neighborhood. “It has very active neighborhood groups and there’s a willingness from long-standing residents to welcome new people and share experiences. It has heart.” A small section of South Troy, situated to the west of 4th Street and north of High Street, feels more urban thanks to the businesses and rowhouses that line its streets. Beyond this little slice, the neighborhood gives way to a distinctly suburban feel. Detached Cape Cods, colonial-style homes and ranch-style homes with yard space make up most of the neighborhood. “Homes here are easily over a hundred years old,” Martin says. These homes can go for as little as $75,000 if they need a lot of renovation, while a fully renovated house sells for as much as $350,000. People who buy a two-family home in the neighborhood often live in part of it and rent out the other half. “I can’t stress enough the opportunity for people who want to invest and participate in an active community,” Martin says. South Troy also has a few new constructions, from townhouses with small yards and two-car garages to large Modern Farmhouse- or colonial-style homes that can cost as much as $925,000. Martin says that the market is competitive, and while homes sell at different rates depending on how well they’re priced, most go in 5 to 21 days. Residents pick up essentials at Market 32 and Rite Aid. The classically chrome-decked Alexis Diner offers breakfast all day long, while Junior’s Bar & Grill is a sports bar known for its moonshine wings. Nearby, the Tipsy Moose Tap & Tavern offers a relaxed pub atmosphere with macaroni and cheese that locals swear by. South Troy has an active community Facebook page, and regular events like a Christmas tree lighting ceremony and an Earth Day cleanup give residents the chance to engage with their community. Events for the larger community of Troy, such as the Victorian Stroll, also bring the community together. Niche gives the Troy City School District a B on Niche and places it among the top 3 districts in Rensselaer County. Children can attend Carroll Hill School, which has a C-plus, and Troy Middle School, which was recently renamed from W. Kenneth Doyle Middle School and has a B-minus, before moving on to Troy High School. With a B rating, Troy High makes Niche’s top standout high school in the Albany area. Students at the school can participate in athletics and a wide range of extracurricular activities, including student council, robotics and yearbook clubs. Hudson Valley Community College is also in South Troy, offering over 80 degree and certificate programs close to home. North Greenbush Town Park offers baseball fields where Twin Town Baseball, a local Little League club, has its games and practices. Burden Environmental Park also hosts local baseball games. “The city has money from federal funds to redo the park on the corner of Canal and 3rd Street,” Martin says. “It was a little park, but they’re making it really nice now.” A few hiking trails in South Troy offer residents options when they want to hike or walk their dogs through the woods. The Narrows Cascade & Heritage Trail winds along the Wynants Kill stream, providing pretty views of the woods and water. During the summer, locals flock to South Troy Swimming Pool, which has two small water slides for the kids, for a chance to cool off and have fun despite the heat. About 9 miles from home, Peebles Island State Park offers 191 acres on an island where the Hudson and Mohawk rivers meet full of hiking trails and fishing spots, with plenty of gorgeous rapids and little waterfalls to capture visitors’ attention. During the winter, residents head to the park for snowshoeing and cross-country skiing. South Troy is less than 2 miles from downtown Troy and has easy access to major highways. Route 4 runs north-south through the length of the neighborhood and curves up onto its northern border, while High Street crosses the Hudson River and provides access to Interstate 787 in just a few minutes. Thanks to this, the 5.5-mile drive to downtown Albany takes just 9 minutes.

Eastside Troy is a suburb located seven miles north of Albany with a small-town America vibe. The neighborhood sits on elevated terrain and provides a quiet community with quick access to amenities. “The city of Troy is getting a lot of restaurants and development,” says Lisa Walsh, Broker/Owner of Capital Tech Real Estate Group, who’s been selling homes in the area for over 15 years. “Eastside Troy is up on the hills, but it’s close enough that you can still go down and enjoy what the city offers.” Homes in Eastside Troy are congregated along traditional suburban gridded streets with cul-de-sacs. Sidewalks and streetlights line the roads, and manicured lawns are decorated with mature oak and pine trees. The neighborhood primarily features 20th-century home styles with up to six bedrooms. There are also some row houses and properties with larger lot sizes available. Homes in Eastside Troy typically sell for between $200,000 to $500,000. The Troy City School District serves the neighborhood’s students. Kids may start at P.S. 14, which gets a B rating from Niche, before transitioning to Troy Middle School, which has a B-minus. Students may then attend Troy High School, which earns a B-plus rating and offers the Troy Booster Club, which aims to get students more engaged in the local community. Prospect Park is the largest outdoor attraction in the area. This 80-acre park sits along a cliffside and is highlighted by its hiking trails that provide stunning views of the area’s natural beauty from the bottom of the hill, and a birds-eye view of Troy and Albany from up top. Prospect Park also offers over a dozen tennis courts, a disk golf course, a picnic area and a playground. Poestenkill Gorge Park is nearby and also offers hiking trails with views of the natural area. Even more hiking trails can be found in the John B. Staalesen Vanderheyden Preserve. Residents will do most of their retail shopping in downtown Troy. The city offers a variety of chain stores, as well as a host of local grocers and restaurants. Additionally, a Hannaford supermarket is located just south of the neighborhood on Pawling Avenue. Eastside Troy also has its own popular local restaurants, like A Bite of Xian, which offers a variety of Chinese dishes. There’s also The Cookie Factory with a diverse selection of baked goods. The Troy Waterfront Farmers Market is a year-round marketplace, open every Saturday, that offers locally-made food and products. “They close off the streets for it,” says Walsh. “Everyone goes and it’s always a wonderful time.” The neighborhood is mostly car-dependent, with State Route 4 and Interstate 90 being the major connectors in the area. There are also several public bus stops with daily service along Pawling Avenue. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute is a private university closer to downtown that specializes in engineering and computer sciences. Samaritan Hospital is also close to Eastside Troy in case of an emergency.