East Amherst 14051: The Money Issue
By Jay Rey, The Buffalo News, N.Y.
Mar. 14–Beverly Hills 90210 it’s not. But East Amherst 14051 is the region’s wealthiest ZIP code, so to speak, with a median household income of $88,317. That’s the largest of any local ZIP and more than double what the median is countywide.
Bisected by a bustling Transit Road — which would never be confused with Rodeo Drive — the 14051 ZIP code spans a 15-square-mile area. The ZIP includes more than 6,000 households between Millersport Highway in East Amherst and the western end of Clarence. It runs south to Klein Road, near Transit Middle School, and as far north as Tonawanda Creek, along the Niagara County border.
The intersection of Transit and North French roads, at the Tops plaza, is the heart of the ZIP. There’s a mix of ’80s and ’90s housing subdivisions, and old homes built long before Amherst boomed.
Colleen Bogdan admits she’s a little puzzled by the ritzy mystique of 14051.
“The perception of East Amherst is almost urban legend,” says Bogdan, who resides in 14051. “People think we’re playing tennis and getting our hair done all day.”
“There’s a high number of two wageearners in these homes,” says Bogdan, who’s active in civic matters. “The only thing different out here is people have bigger mortgages. But in today’s market $300,000 is nothing for a new patio home.”
Venture off the main thoroughfares a bit and you’ll find more than a few stately brick homes rising from some of the cul-de-sacs.
East Amherst developer Donna Briceland built homes on her street, Brownstone Court, selling for $1.2 and $1.4 million.
“Most of the people in the bigger homes are, believe it or not, transfers,” Briceland says, “or they’re doctors.”
It’s a well-educated ZIP code, and more than 10 percent of the households pull in more than $200,000 a year, according to Census data.
And it’s no wonder the roads are so busy, considering nearly a quarter of the households have three or more vehicles — no doubt a BMW or two.
A word of caution, though: Don’t visit East Amherst looking to snare a rich boyfriend or girlfriend.
Nearly three-quarters of the adults living in 14051 are married.
Jay Rey covers higher education and demographics for The News. His e-mail is jrey@buffnews.com.
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Copyright (c) 2007, The Buffalo News, N.Y.
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Business News.
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