Relocating to PA From Los Angeles (Philadelphia, Pittsburgh: appointed, real estate, condo)
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Hello all as the title of my post says we are thinking about moving to PA from Southern California. We currently have our house on the market and as soon as it sells we are moving. I'm married and have two younger daughters. We have been looking at the housing market and the houses seem to be priced very well. I have been reading these forums alot lately and getting a bit confused to where in PA is a safe place close to town and has good schools and that is safe to raise my kids. I have been in the IT industry for the past 8 years working on server hardware etc. Anyone in these forums work in IT that can give me some advise on the job market out there. Also how far is PA from New York as my wife is dieing to visit there. Also I have a sportsbike and love to ride and was wondering if there is plenty of places to ride out there? Any input would be greatly helpfull. Also what is the hispanic population out here in PA? I'm hispanic and my wife is Sicilian. Once again thanks in advance.
What part of PA are you looking at? PA is a pretty big state. If you want to be able to drive to NYC regularly, you'll want to stick to the eastern section, which is about 2.5 - 3 hours to NYC. Overall PA has a ton of local and state parks and you should have no problems finding a place to bikeride. PA has tons of Italians; not quite so many Hispanics but they are there too, certainly moreso around the larger towns.
Pennsylvania is a state that is probably just as geographically diverse as California! We have major cities, small farming villages, mountains, valleys, upscale suburbs, lake communities, and everything in between (The fact that we, along with Vermont, are the only two land-locked Northeastern states is probably a drawback though). Without a bit more specific information on what you want for your family, I truly can't pinpoint a "best" area to suggest to you!
As far as the IT market is concerned, my father is an IT analyst, and the job market in much of PA for that realm is a bit on the bleak side (although there are indeed a number of opportunities in Philadelphia and its suburbs,as my dad was offered two opportunities in Willow Grove). He used to work for IBM's Scranton installation before it packed its bags and moved to India (unethically forcing him to train his Asian replacements before being terminated), leaving him unemployed for a year-and-a-half before finding work again in a similar field at CONVERGYS in Wilkes-Barre at a much lower salary.
Basically, most of Northern and Central New Jersey is a gold mine for IT-related opportunities, especially around Morristown, Edison, and Parsippany. However, the cost-of-living in New Jersey is so outrageous that I'd never recommend anyone moving there (Among the highest housing prices in the nation behind CA).
As of right now, two areas come to my mind for you to consider: The Lehigh Valley (Allentown, Bethlehem, Easton), and the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre region (Including the Pocono Mountains). There are some parts of these areas that would only be about an hour from IT opportunities in New Jersey, yet housing prices across our state border (The Delaware River) are a world apart! The Lehigh Valley is decidedly much more expensive than Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, but it's also just an hour from Philly and 90 minutes from New York City (wheras Scranton/Wilkes-Barre is two hours or so from both).
I would recommend the Philadelphia suburbs to you due to its wonderful quality-of-life, but housing prices in Bucks County and Montgomery County are overinflated, in my opinion, and I'd hate to see you paying $400,000 for a three-bedroom home that's truly only worth $200,000 (Whereas you're just paying for the "prestige" of living near Philadelphia). What I can tell you though is that Scranton/Wilkes-Barre is supposed to have a fully-operational, high-speed commuter rail line between Scranton and Manhattan (with stops in New Jersey), in the upcoming years, which will make commuting to work in North Jersey possible from Scranton and the Poconos.
I also think the Lehigh Valley is a great place to call home, assuming you don't mind paying for overinflated housing prices (Yes, they are a true bargain coming from CA where you might pay $600,000 for a 2 BR condo in some areas, but I see some of the same homes currently on the market in Palmer Township, the Saucon Valley area, etc. selling for much less for similarly-sized and appointed homes in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre).
There are other nice parts of the state to call home as well; I just tried steering you towards the two closest parts of our state to New York City. Please reply with some more requests (what housing price range you're willing to pay for, how far you're willing to commute to work, what type of setting you want to live in as far as being urban, rural, or suburban, etc.), and I'll pinpoint a perfect part of our beautiful Commonwealth for your family to consider!
well the housing market anywhere compared to cali will look great, lol well except north jersey and new york. 3 of the best communities to check out are havertown, newtown square and radnor they have good schools are with 30 minutes of philly and 2 hours to new york. All considered safe neighborhoods and are certainly racially mixed. the closer you get to philly the worse the crime rate and the schools. when looking at housing prices remember the price reflects the house and neighborhood. If it looks to good to be true than it is!! Nice single home with 3 bedrooms in a good area is around 300,000. IT business is strong in the and around philly. alot of pharma companies in the area that need good people especially in networking. best bet is to contact some local headhunters for some good leads and interviews.
I used to be in IT till about 5 years ago when i got into Real estate. I used to use main line personel they always worked well for me. but check online there will be more options.
Thanks for all your responses. Well I don’t see a need to drive down to NYC regularly as we would like to drive down there once in a while even if its a 8 hour drive as I have done that many times so that’s not a issue. As far as where in PA I want to live that’s still up in the air. We do like the look of Pittsburgh and I figured there is probably allot of IT jobs there. As far as price range on homes I don’t want to spend more than $170,000 as I would like to have my wife stay home while I work. Right now she has to work and help me as the cost of living here is getting worse and worse. I do thank you for your support and I hope to have a neighbor has friendly as you. Currently my commute to work is about an hour from where I live so I really don’t mind the commute especially if I have a chance to ride my motorcycle back and forth if that is possible. As far as living we don’t mind the Suburbs as we are currently living in the suburbs. My wife loves the look of Squirrel Hill and Regent Square of Pittsburgh. I do see one common complaint is the real estate taxes in PA are pretty high. Do you see any solution to that anytime soon? As far as Scranton/Wilkes-Barre that seems like a nice town to live and having a subway go to NY is a plus as well. I take it Scranton is where that show the Office is filmed huh? Well I hope I provided you enough information.
Pittsburg is quite far from New York City. It's a lovely area with rolling hills and nice areas surrounding the Pittsburg Area. The Pittsburg airport is wonderful! Our old neighbors moved back to that area and love it.
You are closer to Ohio there than NY.
Now if you want to be closer to New York, you would need to be looking in NEPA. Check out the Allentown area. That is not too far from NYC or Jersey.
There are alot of younger families there and plenty of nice communities too!
Thanks for all your responses. Well I don’t see a need to drive down to NYC regularly as we would like to drive down there once in a while even if its a 8 hour drive as I have done that many times so that’s not a issue. As far as where in PA I want to live that’s still up in the air. We do like the look of Pittsburgh and I figured there is probably allot of IT jobs there. As far as price range on homes I don’t want to spend more than $170,000 as I would like to have my wife stay home while I work. Right now she has to work and help me as the cost of living here is getting worse and worse. I do thank you for your support and I hope to have a neighbor has friendly as you. Currently my commute to work is about an hour from where I live so I really don’t mind the commute especially if I have a chance to ride my motorcycle back and forth if that is possible. As far as living we don’t mind the Suburbs as we are currently living in the suburbs. My wife loves the look of Squirrel Hill and Regent Square of Pittsburgh. I do see one common complaint is the real estate taxes in PA are pretty high. Do you see any solution to that anytime soon? As far as Scranton/Wilkes-Barre that seems like a nice town to live and having a subway go to NY is a plus as well. I take it Scranton is where that show the Office is filmed huh? Well I hope I provided you enough information.
Cheers,
Alex
The job climate in Pittsburgh is very stable, and the city always impressed me whenever I visited it. However, BamboosMom is right; NYC is roughly eight hours away by car! The housing range you mentioned would definitely be possible in the Pittsburgh area, as it's much less expensive overall than Philadelphia. The Pittsburgh area may just be a perfect fit!
Scranton/Wilkes-Barre is still a contender too if that new rail service gets established before you move (if not, then it's probably out of the running because you'd be talking about a 90-minute drive each way to work in NJ). You're correct; Scranton is indeed the setting from "The Office!" I love seeing the little nuances on the set that remind me of home!
Allentown/Bethlehem/Easton and Pittsburgh, at this point, would probably be your two best choices in the Commonwealth. The cost-of-living in both areas is comparable (Pittsburgh may still be a bit cheaper), and you're within an hour's drive to plenty of IT work.
As far as the real estate taxes are concerned, they're supposed to be drastically reduced in a couple of years as revenue from the newly-opened casinos starts to pour into state coffers. Just Friday, Governor Rendell was in Wilkes-Barre to accept the first $50 million check for the first slot license sold in PA for the Mohegan Sun Casino, which is slated to open on November 14. As more and more casinos begin opening up across the Commonwealth, this new revenue is supposed to be used to offset residential property taxes, which are indeed a valid complaint in the state.
Best of luck to you, and by the way, I'm not a "nice neighbor" by any means! I run around the neighborhood in spandex on sunny days, blinding people left and right! LOL!
Thanks for all your responses. Well I don’t see a need to drive down to NYC regularly as we would like to drive down there once in a while even if its a 8 hour drive as I have done that many times so that’s not a issue. As far as where in PA I want to live that’s still up in the air. We do like the look of Pittsburgh and I figured there is probably allot of IT jobs there. As far as price range on homes I don’t want to spend more than $170,000 as I would like to have my wife stay home while I work. Right now she has to work and help me as the cost of living here is getting worse and worse. I do thank you for your support and I hope to have a neighbor has friendly as you. Currently my commute to work is about an hour from where I live so I really don’t mind the commute especially if I have a chance to ride my motorcycle back and forth if that is possible. As far as living we don’t mind the Suburbs as we are currently living in the suburbs. My wife loves the look of Squirrel Hill and Regent Square of Pittsburgh. I do see one common complaint is the real estate taxes in PA are pretty high. Do you see any solution to that anytime soon? As far as Scranton/Wilkes-Barre that seems like a nice town to live and having a subway go to NY is a plus as well. I take it Scranton is where that show the Office is filmed huh? Well I hope I provided you enough information.
Cheers,
Alex
Pittsburgh will not be close to NYC .....but, you could take a long weekend visit. It would be approx. 5 to 6 hours to get to NYC from there. .........The problem I hear with the train from Scranton will be the stops. Most people who take the buses from the Poconos are in the city in an hour and a half. The discusions I hear,are that the stops that a train makes will prolong that trip and the commuters will not go for it.
Lehigh Valley is our upcoming area of the state. The Saucon Valley is working out to be the most hip and areas are looking like the City Walk in Palm Beach, Florida ( New Promenade Mall, Saucon Valley)......From Lehigh it is a short bus ride into the city. There is park and rides for the bus trips. Route 78 is a direct route into NJ and the many people who get jobs in that area but live in Pa......I have to admit to you that finding a home for that price will be a bit difficult. You don't want to head into a gated community in this region.....they sound good......but I know from experience it does not work for most families I know. Pittsburg may have homes in that price.....I have not visited that region. If you do get to the East side of Pa.....look further out for a home of your price range. I know how you feel. My daughter bought the smallest home in the neighborhood so as to stay home with her kids too.
Good Luck........return to let us know your success........Thanks
Pittsburgh is a very easy flight from New York........
You might try Bucks County/ Bensalem areas....east of Philadelphia.
Bucks County is somewhat more countrified and upscale in general --as you get further from Philly....not far to NYC either; The Bensalem area (lower Bucks) is a bit more suburban and closer to Center City Philadelphia.....my cousin lives there and is quite content....
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We have major cities, small farming villages, mountains, valleys, upscale suburbs, lake communities, and everything in between (The fact that we, along with Vermont, are the only two land-locked Northeastern states is probably a drawback though). Without a bit more specific information on what you want for your family, I truly can't pinpoint a "best" area to suggest to you! 
Hi
East area
