FHA Loans in New York
About This State and its People, Places, and Industries
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States and is the nation's third most populous. The state is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east. The state has a maritime border with Rhode Island east of Long Island, as well as an international border with the Canadian provinces of Ontario to the west, and Quebec to the north. New York is often referred to as New York State to distinguish it from New York City.New York City, which is geographically the largest city in the state and most populous in the United States, is known for its history as a gateway for immigration to the United States and its status as a financial, cultural, transportation, and manufacturing center. According to the U.S. Department of Commerce, it is also a destination of choice for many foreign visitors. Both state and city were named for the 17th century Duke of York, James Stuart, future James II and VII of England and Scotland.
New York was inhabited by the Algonquin, Iroquois, and Lenape Native American groups at the time Dutch and French nationals moved into the region in the early 17th century. In 1609, the region was first claimed by Henry Hudson for the Dutch, and built Fort Orange near the site of the present-day capital of Albany in 1614. The Dutch eventually settled the Albany, Hudson River Valley, and Manhattan areas, establishing the colony of New Netherland. The British took over the colony by annexation in 1664.
The borders of the British colony, the Province of New York, were roughly similar to those of the present-day state. About one third of all of the battles of the Revolutionary War took place in New York. New York became an independent state on July 9, 1776, and enacted its constitution in 1777. The state ratified the United States Constitution on July 26, 1788 to become the 11th state.
As of 2006, New York was the third largest state in population after California and Texas, with an estimated population of 19,541,453 as of July 1, 2009. This represents an increase of 513,481, or 2.7%, since the last census in 2000. It includes a natural increase since the last census of 803,680 people (that is 2,072,765 births minus 1,269,085 deaths) and a decrease due to net migration of 698,895 people out of the state. Immigration from outside the United States resulted in a net increase of 876,969 people, and migration within the country produced a net loss of 1,575,864 people.
In spite of the open land in the state, New York's population is very urban, with 92% of residents living in an urban area.
New York is a slow growing state with a large rate of domestic migration to other states. In 2000 and 2005, more people moved from New York to Florida than from any one state to another. However, New York state is one of the leading destinations for international immigration and thus has the second largest immigrant population in the country (after California) at 4.2 million as of 2008. Although Upstate New York receives considerable immigration, most of the state's immigrants settle in and around New York City, due to its more vibrant economy and cosmopolitan culture.
The center of population of New York is located in Orange County, in the town of Deerpark. New York City and its eight suburban counties (excluding those in New Jersey, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania) have a combined population of 13,209,006 people, or 68.42% of the state's population.
The major ancestry groups in New York state are African American (15.8%), Italian (14.4%), Irish (12.9%), and German (11.1%).According to a 2004 estimate, 20.4% of the population is foreign-born.
New York is home to the largest African American population and the second largest Asian American population in the United States. In addition it is home to the largest Puerto Rican, Dominican and Jamaican American populations in the continental United States. The New York City neighborhood of Harlem has historically been a major cultural capital for African-Americans of sub-Saharan descent, and Bedford Stuyvesant is the largest such population in the United States.
Queens, also in New York City, is home to the state's largest Asian-American population, and is also the most diverse county in the United States. The second concentration of Asian-Americans is in Manhattan's Chinatown. Queens is home to the largest Andean population (Colombian, Ecuadorian, Peruvian and Bolivian) population in The United States of America.
In the 2000 Census, Italian Americans made up the largest ancestral group in Staten Island and Long Island, followed by Irish Americans. Albany and southeast-central New York also have populations with many of Irish-American and Italian-American descent. In Buffalo and western New York, German Americans are the largest group; in the northern tip of the state, French Canadians are. New York State has a higher number of Italian Americans than any other U.S. state.
6.5% of New York's population were under 5 years of age, 24.7% under 18, and 12.9% were 65 or older. Females made up 51.8% of the population. According to the 2000 U.S. Census, 13.61% of the population aged 5 and over speak Spanish at home, while 2.04% speak Chinese (including Cantonese and Mandarin), 1.65% Italian, and 1.23% Russian.
New York's gross state product in 2007 was $1.1 trillion, ranking third in size behind the larger states of California and Texas. If New York were an independent nation, it would rank as the 16th largest economy in the world behind Turkey. Its 2007 per capita personal income was $46,364, placing it sixth in the nation behind Maryland, and eighth in the world behind Ireland. New York's agricultural outputs are dairy products, cattle and other livestock, vegetables, nursery stock, and apples. Its industrial outputs are printing and publishing, scientific instruments, electric equipment, machinery, chemical products, and tourism.
A recent review by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities found 13 states, including several of the nation's largest, face budget shortfalls for FY2009. New York faces a deficit that could be as large as $4.3 billion.
New York exports a wide variety of goods such as foodstuffs, commodities, minerals, computers and electronics, cut diamonds, and automobile parts. In 2007, the state exported a total of $71.1 billion worth of goods, with the five largest foreign export markets being Canada ($15 billion), United Kingdom ($6 billion), Switzerland ($5.9 billion), Israel ($4.9 billion), and Hong Kong ($3.4 billion). New York's largest imports are oil, gold, aluminum, natural gas, electricity, rough diamonds, and lumber.
Canada is a very important economic partner for the state. 21% of the state's total worldwide exports went to Canada in 2007. Tourism from the north is also a large part of the economy. Canadians spent US$487 million in 2004 while visiting the state.
New York City is the leading center of banking, finance and communication in the United States and is the location of the New York Stock Exchange, the largest stock exchange in the world by dollar volume. Many of the world's largest corporations are based in the city.
The state also has a large manufacturing sector that includes printing and the production of garments, furs, railroad equipment and bus line vehicles. Many of these industries are concentrated in upstate regions. Albany and the Hudson Valley are major centers of nanotechnology and microchip manufacturing, while the Rochester area is important in photographic equipment and imaging.
New York is a major agricultural producer, ranking among the top five states for agricultural products such as dairy, apples, cherries, cabbage, potatoes, onions, maple syrup and many others. The state is the largest producer of cabbage in the U.S. The state has about a quarter of its land in farms and produced US$3.4 billion in agricultural products in 2001. The south shore of Lake Ontario provides the right mix of soils and microclimate for many apple, cherry, plum, pear and peach orchards. Apples are also grown in the Hudson Valley and near Lake Champlain.
New York is the nation's third-largest grape-producing state, behind California, and second-largest wine producer by volume. The south shore of Lake Erie and the southern Finger Lakes hillsides have many vineyards. In addition, the North Fork of Long Island developed vineyards, production and visitors' facilities in the last three decades of the 20th century. In 2004, New York's wine and grape industry brought US$6 billion into the state economy.
The state has 30,000 acres (120 km2) of vineyards, 212 wineries, and produced 200 million bottles of wine in 2004. A moderately sized saltwater commercial fishery is located along the Atlantic side of Long Island. The principal catches by value are clams, lobsters, squid, and flounder. These areas of the economy have been increasing as environmental protection has led to an increase in ocean wildlife. As of January 2010, the state's unemployment rate was 8.8%.
New York hosted the 1980 Winter Olympics at Lake Placid, the Games known for the USA-USSR hockey game dubbed the "Miracle on Ice" in which a group of American college students and amateurs defeated the heavily favored Soviet national ice hockey team 4–3 and went on to win the gold medal against Finland. Lake Placid also hosted the 1932 Winter Olympics. Along with St. Moritz, Switzerland and Innsbruck, Austria, it is one of the three places to have twice hosted the Winter Olympic Games.
New York is the home of one National Football League team, the Buffalo Bills, (based in the suburb of Orchard Park). Although the New York Giants and New York Jets represent the New York metropolitan area and were previously located in New York City, they play in New Meadowlands Stadium, which is located in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The Meadowlands stadium will host Super Bowl XLVIII in 2014. There has been much controversy over the building of several building proposals for a new New York Jets football stadium, the owners of the New York Jets were willing to split the $1.5 billion cost of building a new football stadium over Manhattan's West Side rail yards however the proposal never came to fruition.
New York also has two Major League Baseball teams, the New York Yankees (based in The Bronx), and the New York Mets (based in New York City borough Queens). New York is home to three National Hockey League franchises (the New York Rangers in Manhattan, the New York Islanders on Long Island and the Buffalo Sabres in Buffalo, New York). New York has a National Basketball Association team, the New York Knicks in Manhattan. The former New York Nets from 1968 to 1977 is now titled as a New Jersey team however plans to relocate to New York City are in the works. There are a variety of minor league teams that can be found all through the State of New York such as the Long Island Ducks.
Choose Your City >>>
- Afton
- Airmont
- Akron
- Albany
- Albertson
- Alexandria Bay
- Amherst
- Amityville
- Amiyyville
- Amsterdam
- Andover
- Arcade
- Ardsley
- Armonk
- Astoria
- Athens
- Attica
- Auburn
- Averill Park
- Babylon
- Baldwin
- Baldwinsville
- Ballston Lake
- Batavia
- Bath
- Bay Shore
- Bayport
- Bayshore
- Bayside
- Bayville
- Bedford
- Bedford Hills
- Bedford Villaage
- Belivale
- Belle Harbor
- Belle Terre
- Belleharbor
- Bellerose
- Bellmore
- Bellport
- Berne
- Bethpage
- Binghamton
- Bklyn
- Black River
- Blasdell
- Bloomfield
- Bloomingburg
- Bloomington
- Blue Point
- Bohemia
- Bohenia
- Bolivar
- Bolton Landing
- Bradford
- Breezy Point
- Brentwood
- Brewerton
- Brewster
- Bridgehampton
- Bridgeport
- Brier Hill
- Brockport
- Bronx
- Bronxville
- Brooklyn
- Buffalo
- Bullville
- Burnt Hills
- Cairo
- Calverton
- Cambria Heights
- Camillus
- Canandaigua
- Canastota
- Canton
- Carmel
- Castleton
- Cazenovia
- Centereach
- Centerport
- Central Islip
- Chappaqua
- Chautauqua
- Checktownga
- Cheektowaga
- Cheektowage
- Cherry Valley
- Chester
- Chestnut Ridge
- Chittenango
- Cicero
- Clarence
- Clark
- Clifton Park
- Clinton
- Cobleskill
- Coeymans
- Cohoes
- Cold Springs Harb
- Commack
- Congers
- Conklin
- Copiague
- Coram
- Corning
- Cortland
- Cortlandt Manor
- Croton On Hudson
- Croton-On Hudson
- Dansville
- Deer Park
- Deerfield
- Delanson
- Delhi
- Delmar
- Depew
- Dewitt
- Dix Hill
- Dix Hills
- Douglaston
- E. Greenbush
- E. Northport
- E. Syracuse
- East Amherst
- East Aurora
- East Elmhurst
- East Farmingdale
- East Green Bush
- East Greenbush
- East Isli
- East Islip
- East Meadow
- East Moriches
- East Northport
- East Norwich
- East Patchogue
- East Rockaway
- East Setauket
- East Syracuse
- Eden
- Elbridge
- Elmhurst
- Elmira
- Elmont
- Elmsford
- Endicott
- Endwell
- Fabius
- Fairpont
- Fairport
- Fallsburg
- Far Rockaway
- Farmingdale
- Farmingville
- Fayettevelle
- Fayetteville
- Fishkill
- Floral Park
- Florida
- Florida Park
- Flushing
- Flusing
- Forest Hills
- Forestburgh
- Fort Edward
- Frankfort
- Franklin Square
- Fredonia
- Freehold
- Freeport
- Fresh Meadows
- Gansevoort
- Garden City
- Garden City Park
- Garden Dcity
- Geneseo
- Geneva
- Germantown
- Glasco
- Glen Cove
- Glen Spey
- Glendale
- Glenfield
- Glenmont
- Glens Falls
- Glenville
- Glenwood
- Gloversville
- Goshen
- Grand Island
- Granite Springs
- Great Neck
- Greenport
- Greenville
- Greenwich
- Greenwood Lake
- Hamburg
- Hampton Bays
- Harriman
- Harrison
- Hartsdale
- Hauppauge
- Haverstraw
- Hempstead
- Henrietta
- Hensonville
- Hewlett
- Hicksville
- Highland
- Highland Mills
- Hilton
- Hinsdale
- Holbrook
- Holley
- Hollis
- Holmes
- Holtsville
- Homer
- Honeoye
- Honeoye Falls
- Hoosick Falls
- Hopewell Junction
- Horseheads
- Hortonville
- Howard Beach
- Hudson
- Hudson Falls
- Hughsonville
- Huntington
- Hurley
- Hyde Park
- Ilion
- Inwood
- Island Park
- Islandia
- Islip
- Islip Terrace
- Ithaca
- Jackson Heights
- Jamaica
- Jamaica Estates
- Jamestown
- Java Village
- Jefferson
- Jericho
- Johnson City
- Katonah
- Kattskill Bay
- Kenmore
- Kerhonkson
- King Ferry
- Kings Park
- Kingston
- Lafargeville
- Lagrangeville
- Lake Grove
- Lake Katrine
- Lake Peekskill
- Lake Placid
- Lake Ronkonkoma
- Lakewood
- Lancaster
- Lansing
- Larchmont
- Latham
- Laurelton
- Lawrence
- Leroy
- Levittown
- Lewiston
- Lindenhurst
- Little Neck
- Liverpool
- Livingston Manor
- Livonia
- Lockport
- Long Beach
- Long Island
- Loudonville
- Lowville
- Lynbrook
- Lyons Falls
- Macedon
- Mahopac
- Mahopac Falls
- Malone
- Malverne
- Mamaraneck
- Mamaroneck
- Manhasset
- Manlius
- Manorville
- Marcellus
- Margaretville
- Maspeth
- Massapequa
- Massapequa Park
- Mastic
- Mastic Beach
- Mayfield
- Mayville
- Mecklenburg
- Medford
- Medina
- Melville
- Merrick
- Merrill
- Middle Island
- Middle Village
- Middleton
- Middletown
- Miller Place
- Millport
- Milton
- Mineda
- Mineola
- Mohegan Lake
- Moneola
- Monroe
- Monsey
- Montauk
- Montgomery
- Monticello
- Moriches
- Morrisonville
- Mount Kisco
- Mount Sinai
- Mount Vernon
- Mountain Dale
- Mt. Kisco
- Mt. Vernon
- N Babylon
- N Valley Stream
- N. Bellmore
- N. Massapequa
- N.Babylon
- Nanuet
- Naples
- Neponsit
- Nesconset
- New Berlin
- New City
- New Hartford
- New Hyde Park
- New Paltz
- New Rochelle
- New Windsor
- New York
- New York Mills
- Newark
- Newburgh
- Niagara Falls
- Niskayuna
- North Babylon
- North Bellmore
- North Collins
- North Massapequa
- North Merrick
- North Syracuse
- Northport
- Northville
- Norwich
- Nyack
- Oakdale
- Oakland Gardens
- Oceanside
- Oceonside
- Ogdensburg
- Old Bethpage
- Olean
- Oneida
- Oneonta
- Orchard Park
- Ossining
- Otego
- Owego
- Oyster Bay
- Ozone Park
- Patchogue
- Patterson
- Pearl River
- Peekskill
- Pelham
- Penfield
- Penn Yan
- Phillipsport
- Philmont
- Phoenix
- Pine Bush
- Pittsford
- Plainview
- Plattsburgh
- Pleasant Valley
- Pleasantville
- Point Lookout
- Pomona
- Port Ewen
- Port Jefferson
- Port Jefferson St
- Port Jevis
- Potsdam
- Poughkeepsie
- Poughquaq
- Purchase
- Putnam Valley
- Queens Village
- Queensbury
- Ramsey
- Red Hook
- Rego Park
- Remsenburg
- Rensseiaer
- Rensselaer
- Rew Rochelle
- Rhinebeck
- Richford
- Richmond Hill
- Ridge
- Ridgewood
- Riverhead
- Rochester
- Rock Hill
- Rock Tavern
- Rockaway Park
- Rockville Centre
- Rocky Point
- Rome
- Ronkonkoma
- Roosevelt
- Roslyn Heights
- Rotterdam
- Rye
- Rye Brook
- Sag Harbor
- Saint James
- Salem
- Salt Point
- Saranac Lake
- Saratoga Springs
- Saugerties
- Sauquoit
- Sayville
- Scarsdale
- Schenectady
- Schoharie
- Schroon Lake
- Schuylerville
- Scotia
- Sea Cliff
- Seaford
- Selden
- Selkirk
- Seneca Falls
- Setauket
- Shirley
- Shortsville
- Shrub Oak
- Skaneateles
- Slate Hill
- Slingerlands
- Smithtown
- Sodus
- Somers
- Sound Beach
- South Glens
- South Glens Falls
- South Huntington
- South Ozone Park
- South Salem
- South Setauket
- Sparkill
- Spring Valley
- Springfld Gardens
- Springville
- St. Albans
- St. James
- Stanley
- Stanten Island
- Staten Island
- Stony Brook
- Stony Point
- Stormville
- Suffern
- Sugar Loaf
- Sunnyside
- Sylvan Beach
- Syosset
- Syracuse
- Tallman
- Tampton Bays
- Tarrytown
- Terryville
- Ticonderoga
- Tillson
- Tonawanda
- Tribes Hill
- Troy
- Trumansburg
- Tuckahoe
- Tully
- Uniondale
- Utica
- Valatie
- Valhalla
- Valley Cottage
- Valley Stream
- Verbank
- Vestal
- W Babylon
- W Hampton Beach
- W. Babylon
- Walden
- Wallkill
- Wantagh
- Warsaw
- Warwick
- Washingtonville
- Waterloo
- Watertown
- Watervliet
- Waverly
- Webster
- Wesley Hills
- West Babylon
- West Chazy
- West Hempstead
- West Hurley
- West Islip
- West Islop
- West Nyack
- West Onconta
- West Seneca
- West Shokan
- West Valley
- Westbrookville
- Westbury
- Westhampton
- Westhampton Beach
- Wheatley Heights
- White Lake
- White Plains
- Whitesboro
- Whitestone
- Williamson
- Williamsville
- Williston Park
- Windsor
- Wolcott
- Woodbourne
- Woodmere
- Woodstock
- Wurtsboro
- Wynantskill
- Yaphank
- Yonkers
- Yorktown Heights









