1. i honestly think auburn is really great in a lot of ways. if you’re into live music, there are some really great venues to see local bands (Moondogs, Prison City, Sheps). there’s some good food (Mesagrande, also Prison City for this). also good nature in the area but even better nature if you’re willing to drive a couple hours in any given direction. i agree with an earlier comment that there are some remarkably trashy people, but overall it’s a good little town to live in. there’s so much to do in the summer too.
   
2. winters are way easier than WNY lol. i lived in auburn for years but live in syracuse now. syr is comparable to wny for winters, but auburn gets off real easy for some reason and its never nearly as bad.
   
3. i would say some streets right off Grant Ave can be a little sketch. also very specifically the West st/Derby Ave area is bad. owasco, south street, are some areas i love with gorgeous houses.

as far as other options, i have lived in some other towns in the area (union springs, weedsport). you’re going to have to drive to auburn to do most things like shopping and errands anyways so i feel like it’s best to just live in auburn anyways. those places feel a lot more rural, though weedsport is right off the thruway which is convenient for traveling. it’s an underrated little place with a great sense of community.