Do you miss Pennsylvania? (Altoona, Harrisburg: real estate, house, unemployment rate)

[Adream]

Originally Posted by BeenAroundTheBlock

I miss the Philadelphia suburbs A LOT! I've been in FL for almost 2 yrs now. I don't miss winters in PA, but I would move back if my husband would go!
He lived there his whole life so he's not interested in moving back there.
I've lived other places and know that after a few years you change your mind. There is no perfect place to live but Bucks & Montgomery Counties have some really nice towns. Miss the Jersey Shore too! Nothing compares to the atmosphere, no, not even FL!

AMAZING - I could have typed that answer! I live at the Jersey Shore, which isn't too bad, but I do miss PA.

And what is it with these husbands? Mine also is PA born and bred, and is stubbornly refusing to ever move back to any town in PA. I lived there, too, fella! There are nice places and some nice people there.

[bamboosmom]

I am in Florida too and we are selling the house and moving to PA.
We always went to Lancaster and the Pocono's for vacation and we love it there.
Now I convinced the hubby to move!!!!!
Horray

[blcapdee]

I certainly don't miss PA!!! I'm so glad I moved to New England. I find PA's economy so depressing. I have relatives that bought a house 20 years ago for the same price I paid for one about 20 years ago in MA and now mine has gone up to the point where I'm nesting in a goldmine and my poor PA relatives are just that, poor. Their house only went up 100K in 20 years. SAD. Clearfield County has to be the armpit of the US.

[loose cannon]

Im getting ready to leave for good but I just dont have this vitriol that blacpdee has. You live in New England for pete's sake! What's the big deal about that?

[BeenAroundTheBlock]

Not all of PA has a depressed economy, it's a big state! My home appreciated 70k the 2 years I lived in PA, during 2002-2004. Granted, real estate is down everywhere right now, but PA still got a lot going for it. If you live near large cities, there is plenty of work also.

I may live in what people perceive as beautiful Florida, try and get a decent paying job here. I make 30k less than what I made in PA. I wouldn't call that "depressed". It's not good to make such a blanket statement for those who may be considering a move there.

[sundance35]

Do I miss Pennsylvania? About as much as I would miss WARTS! I was born and raised in Pittsburgh (Mt. Washington) My husband was born and raised about 40 miles N of Pgh. The last winter we were living in PA the temperature got down to 55 below 0 (with the wind chill factor). I called a real estate agent in Nashville TN and asked him to find us a home. QUICK!! We moved here 15 years ago and we love it! The last thing my brother-in-law said as we were pulling out of the driveway for the last time was "you'll be back." Well, it's been 15 years. Would I move back?......when donkeys fly!

[ScranBarre]

Not all places in PA are economically-stagnant and depressing! My parents bought our three-bedroom ranch home here in the Scranton 'burbs for $110,000 back in 1996. As of 2006, it is now valued at around $180,000. The real estate market here in NEPA/Poconos is red-hot and about to get even steamier (Assuming that these New Yahkers and New Joisians keep piling in! LOL!) Scranton's downtown is also bouncing back quite a bit from being the armpit it was back in the mid-1990s. It is now home to several upscale boutiques, MANY pubs, nightclubs, and restaurants, a theater, a shopping mall, several hotels, a cultural center, parks, and a business incubator that has already been successful in the restoration of several buildings on account of new business ventures leaving the incubator and flourishing on their own. Scranton may have that "eewwww" connotation to it, but we're making a comeback, and I'm excited about what our city will look like ten years from now. Heck, we're even the setting now of a hit NBC sitcom! Woooo!!!

[jackooboy]

I went to school up in Lock Haven for a year, and then transferred to Temple but grew up in Lancaster. Pretty much the economy from Adams County east to Philadelphia is on fire. From Harrisburg down to Philly seems to be the corridor of economic expansion. Lock Haven was an armpit. Williamsport was an armpit. Clearfield was an armpit. State College is a bastion of economic expansion! I don't know about the western part of the state, but I hear their economy is much harder than it is in the east due to appilachia and the collapse of traditional industries. However; the Pittsburgh region seems to be recreating itself as an education center and the high tech industries that come with it.

[jenne03]

I lived in South Jersey and got transferred out to pittsburgh. I thought i was going to hate it out there. I was wrong. Once I moved , I realized how much I loved it. The people were friendly..kinda looked out for one another..Yea there are some ignorant people..but every state has those. I live in Maryland now...and wooo..there are definitely ignorant people here. I miss the hills and winding roads. Although , Maryland is very pretty too.

I felt safe going into Pittsburgh with my children...I wouldn't even consider taking them into Philly..blah.

I really didn't think the winters were all that bad...we got a few inches everyday..but they are great at clearing the roads..By 9 am ..i could drive on any of the roads..Here in maryland they didn't plow our cul de sac until 2 days later! And if it threatens to snow here? Just threatens..they close the schools...then add it on to the summer...so my kids got out later than other schools. And I'll tell ya ...pittsburghers LOVE to complain about the winter...but it was real cold last winter here in Md...and actually pitt was warmer alot of the time .. The summers were great...perfect weather.

Blah..obviously I can't wait to go back..Right now it looks like I may end up in Chicago..Go Bears??? Can't do it!!

[jenne03]

I lived there in Pitt for three years..and it never got to 55 below..so i don't know if that was a fluke for the poster..or a fluke that 3 years they have been having milder winters..