Military Family in Need of Info (Pittsburgh, Plum: apartments, rentals, crime)

[CaptainObvious]

Originally Posted by kellyava1

I'm still having the hardest time finding a "NICE" place to rent. The houses are all so old and run down. This is sooo frustrating. Also very hard not being in the area and not able to get there anytime soon and our move is getting closer. Agghh!!

I did a pretty extensive search of the area, and here are a few I found...

Rental Properties
That one is in Bethel Park, an area nobody couldn't consider "nice", but might be a bit more of a drive than you are looking for- about 35 minutes.

Property Results
This one is in Murrysville- I don't know that neighborhood specifically, but overall Murrysville has many nicer areas. This would be about 25 minutes to North Versailles.

Greensburg/Hempfield 2 Bed, 1.5 Bath Townhouse
Here's a townhouse in Greensburg that looks nice... About 30 minute-drive

Let me know if something like those is what you're looking for and I am sure I could find more...

Also, the areas "to definately avoid" in that area are...well, North Versailles isn't the greatest place around, McKeesport you'd definately want to avoid, Duquesne, Braddock, and Homestead too. Wilkinsburg is definitely out. There are OK sections of SOME of those areas, but being from out-of-town it would be hard to get into the minutia of which block is the "better block", etc. Best to just look elsewhere for your initial search anyway until you know the area better.


Cap

[kellyava1]

Originally Posted by CaptainObvious

I did a pretty extensive search of the area, and here are a few I found...

Rental Properties
That one is in Bethel Park, an area nobody couldn't consider "nice", but might be a bit more of a drive than you are looking for- about 35 minutes.

Property Results
This one is in Murrysville- I don't know that neighborhood specifically, but overall Murrysville has many nicer areas. This would be about 25 minutes to North Versailles.

Greensburg/Hempfield 2 Bed, 1.5 Bath Townhouse
Here's a townhouse in Greensburg that looks nice... About 30 minute-drive

Let me know if something like those is what you're looking for and I am sure I could find more...

Also, the areas "to definately avoid" in that area are...well, North Versailles isn't the greatest place around, McKeesport you'd definately want to avoid, Duquesne, Braddock, and Homestead too. Wilkinsburg is definitely out. There are OK sections of SOME of those areas, but being from out-of-town it would be hard to get into the minutia of which block is the "better block", etc. Best to just look elsewhere for your initial search anyway until you know the area better.


Cap

THANK YOU! The first house is out of our price range. Unfortunately the military doesnt give us very much for housing. I'm going to call about the 2nd house in Murrysville and the 3rd one didnt allow pets. But this was a great help. Thank you. If you know of anymore I greatly appreciate it. Thank you for the list of "not" to live. I will put them on my list to avoid. It's so hard being out of state and knowing nothing of PA. There's so many little towns it's confusing and not knowing where any of them are in relation to where he'll be working is even harder. I mapquest and get the mileage but I mean in actual driving time and how bad traffic is a such. You were a great help.

[CaptainObvious]

Originally Posted by kellyava1

I mapquest and get the mileage but I mean in actual driving time and how bad traffic is a such. You were a great help.

You probably want to stay east of North Versailles. Living closer to Pittsburgh (west of exit 5 on I-376) would put you going through the Squirrel Hill Tunnels (bottleneck) each day. Even though you'd going aginst traffic- leaving the city in the morning and going back in at night, the traffic would still add 10+ minutes to what Mapquest says.

I will search more tonight after work and let you know what I come up with. Are you opposed to living in an apartment building? Does it have to be a house? How about a townhouse?

Cap

[MLN2603]

I will look in the local papers for listings...(Cap, not sure where you live so not sure what papers you get but I'm in Plum and will check the Pennysaver and Advance Leader)

Kelly... I just need to know exactly what you are looking for (apartment, townhome, house) and price range. PM or email me with this info if you want to keep it private.

[CaptainObvious]

Thought I would post a few more, though I don't know exactly what you are looking for The more I think about it, the more I think Monroeville might be the best place for you...its a normal and nice average suburb. Little bit of everything to do there. The Plum area that the previous poster is from wouldn't be a bad area either...nice place too.

Here's some in Monroeville (about a 20 minute drive tops)...

One bedroom in an apartment building...Ready for Immediate Move In--Renovated One bedroom Apartment

A house in Wall, PA (that area can get a tad dicey, but it is hit or miss, It's probably worth a look-see)...HOUSE FOR RENT - 1 mile from Monroeville

An apartment "carriage home" community...very nice...Apartment Model At A Glance Page

Again, don't know if you'd like an apartment complex or not. I lived in a place very similar to this for a number of years and couldn't say enough good things about it. It is alot less "apartment complex" than you'd think...Eagle Ridge - 1500 Eagle Ridge Drive Monroeville PA 15146 - Apartment Unit For Rent (broken link)

You're right! Its tough going out there. I will continue to look, however, if you want to do your own search, I would continue to look in the following areas (rush hour drive times)...Monroeville (20 mins), Murrysville (30 mins), North Huntington (20 mins), South Park (40 mins), Churchill (be very careful...Churchill is very nice, but the "Wilkinsburg-side" of Churchill gets rough pretty quick (20 mins).

I'll keep my eye out for you

CaptainO

I

[CaptainObvious]

Oh, by the way, gas heating... Natural gas has gotten pretty darn expensive around here as of late. I have gas heat (but electric everything else) and my gas bill is about $160/month or so in winter (about 1,400 sq ft). I wouldn't call my home well-insulated at all, so prices may go down for better-insulated homes.

Also, I see you are from North Carolina. I lived in Smithfield (just outside of the Fayetteville area) for a number of years. You are probably in for a bit of shock weather wise. It is cold here. For those that have lived here a long time, they say "not too bad". I say it is like the Arctic being from NC. Lots of 25-30 degree days in winter. Snows an inch or so about every week with the occassional 10"-20" snow (1 or 2 times a year). Lots of little 2" and 3" snows all winter. Summer is usually 80-85 and not muggy at all compared to NC. One of the funny things I remember after moving here is not seeing "severe thunderstorm warnings" every summer night like in NC. Another funny thing- no locusts (we called them "catydids") buzzing all night (which actually put me to sleep) and no "mosquito sprayer"...do they still have those? We actually had a truck that would come around every night and spray chemicals into the air to help control mosquitoes! That's probably why I am the way I am now Anyway...hope you find what you are looking for!

And you may be the only one that appreciates this because everyone up here thinks football rules all, but....GO DUKE!!!

Cap

[kellyava1]

Originally Posted by CaptainObvious

Oh, by the way, gas heating... Natural gas has gotten pretty darn expensive around here as of late. I have gas heat (but electric everything else) and my gas bill is about $160/month or so in winter (about 1,400 sq ft). I wouldn't call my home well-insulated at all, so prices may go down for better-insulated homes.

Also, I see you are from North Carolina. I lived in Smithfield (just outside of the Fayetteville area) for a number of years. You are probably in for a bit of shock weather wise. It is cold here. For those that have lived here a long time, they say "not too bad". I say it is like the Arctic being from NC. Lots of 25-30 degree days in winter. Snows an inch or so about every week with the occassional 10"-20" snow (1 or 2 times a year). Lots of little 2" and 3" snows all winter. Summer is usually 80-85 and not muggy at all compared to NC. One of the funny things I remember after moving here is not seeing "severe thunderstorm warnings" every summer night like in NC. Another funny thing- no locusts (we called them "catydids") buzzing all night (which actually put me to sleep) and no "mosquito sprayer"...do they still have those? We actually had a truck that would come around every night and spray chemicals into the air to help control mosquitoes! That's probably why I am the way I am now Anyway...hope you find what you are looking for!

And you may be the only one that appreciates this because everyone up here thinks football rules all, but....GO DUKE!!!

Cap

You mean to tell me I wont have any summer days that when I walk outside you can cut the air with a knife? Darn. lol. It was 106 here yesterday!! I cant stand the humidity. Yes, we have the mosquito sprayer truck. I love that guy!! HAHA. Ok so winter will be hard for us. My daughter was born in Nov. 2005 and it was 80 degrees the day she was born. We dont buy coats here. Ya'll better look out...North Carolinians in our big truck driving in the winter snow of PA. Stay off the roads. LMAO.

Ok here's what I need. 2+ bedrooms and I dont really care how many baths although more than 1 is always nice. They give us $1039 for living. So that has to include rent, water, electric etc. I really do not want an apartment but we aren't against a townhome. Our main concern is our pets. 3 small dogs all under 10 lbs. Thank you Cap for all your links. I will be looking at those shortly.
BTW...we're under a severe thunderstorm watch today. And I didnt know there were any other teams other than Duke out there. hmm. Learn something new everyday.

Again and BIG, BIG, Thank you to you both.

[CaptainObvious]

Originally Posted by kellyava1

And I didnt know there were any other teams other than Duke out there.

There aren't as far as I am concerned.

Here's a few more for you now that I know more about what you're looking for...

Greensburg - 3BR House in Hempfield School District
Townhouse located in Ramparts in Plum - Duquesne Blvd
2 Bedroom Perfect Apartment
End Unit Townhouse with Game Room
dont rent an apartment, rent a house
View Payne Hill Townhomes Apartments For Rent in Jefferson Hills, Pennsylvania - ForRent.com
View Heritage Hills Apartments For Rent in Jefferson Hills, Pennsylvania - ForRent.com

Getting harder to find decent places, but I'll keep looking!

Cap

[jeg22]

Hi Kelly:

Having sold real estate in western PA for the past 8 years, I can tell you from experience that it is not necessarily better to rent than buy, even for the short term. While it is true you can't count on making a huge profit on any real estate sale, home prices in this area are among the lowest in the nation. Only you can decide if it would be worth it to buy rather than rent based on rent versus mortgage payments. If you like small towns we have many that might appeal. I personally live in a small town (population 1500), our schools are small and the teachers know all of the kids and the kids know all of their classmates. Many people don't know this but the Kiski school district, has test scores that are as good as or better than those of the wealthy suburb of Fox Chapel. (in case you don't know, this is where Teresa Heinz Kerry lives). Many people speak ill of places like New Kensington and their schools, but again, no one is looking at the evidence of their scores and talking to the administration to get the complete picture. My point is try to look at a wide variety of areas and see which one feels right for you and your family. We have many small towns and rural areas that while it might add to your husbands commute, could be well worth it for your family.

[Katiana]

Originally Posted by kellyava1

I'm still having the hardest time finding a "NICE" place to rent. The houses are all so old and run down. This is sooo frustrating. Also very hard not being in the area and not able to get there anytime soon and our move is getting closer. Agghh!!

I grew up in the PIttsburgh area. Many of the houses to buy are also of the "old, run down" variety. With your housing allowance you should do OK. I'd think twice about buying for three years. It took us close to a year to sell my mom's house in Beaver Falls. There is another thread on this forum about buying/renting that you should read. I think the title is something about Gettysburg. I also think perhaps you should go out there and look around, even if it has to be at your expense. It will be money well spent.

You mean to tell me I wont have any summer days that when I walk outside you can cut the air with a knife? Darn.

Yes, there are days like that in the Burgh. And, you will have to learn to be a Pitt fan, at least for the duration. Also a Steeler's fan.