Is State College friendly or snobby? (Pittsburgh, Bellefonte: how much, house, employment)

[snowfriend]

Re:

I would suggest Altoona and Indiana. Johnstown is a dump. Typically, western PA is going to be far more down to earth than eastern pa. I would put Harrisburg and State College in a similar position with Eastern PA. Very similar to the Lehigh Valley vibe. Williamsport is northeast of State College and is an amazing town. I really like it there a lot. Very rural though. Lebanon is also a nice rural town. Also, you might want to look at York and Lancaster.

I tend to disagree with some of these suggestions. Have you visited these towns lately? Both Altoona and Williamsport recently have had increasingly high rates of substance abuse and drug related crime, and have not really been good places to live for a while. I would say much the same of Lebanon. Of these three towns, Altoona might be the best option, but still not very desirable. I would not choose to move my family to any of these towns.

[newuser222]

Yea i totally agree with snowfriend. i attended penn college in williamsport and williiamsports a crap hole. seemed like once a week there was a shooting and everyone i know that didn't live on penn colleges campus got robbed at some point; and altoonas drug related crime has really sky rocketed in the past couple of years. ive lived in state college for 23 years and love it. great place to raise kids, plenty of parks, very, VERY safe; place is like a bubble. people of all different wealth. very welcoming. no snobbier than any other town but i could see how some might feel that way because some areas of the town are incredibly wealthy

[pcc09]

In Western Pa., anybody with an education and a full set of teeth is declared snobby.

[jblake78728]

My family moved from NEPA to State when I was in 5th grade & I stayed until I graduated HS & left for college. I never got the impression that State was a snobby town, in fact the locals are extremely friendly ..... the college students on the other hand are a mixed bag (but you'll get that in any town with a school the size of PSU). State is also the nicest town in central PA ... by far! The comment made above about being in a bubble is very accurate IMO. Bellefonte & Lewistown are drug infested ****holes. Most of the other towns within 30 miles are tiny, one traffic light type towns with absolutely nothing going on. Williamsport is awful. It has the crime, drug & poverty problems of a city 3x's its size. Pretty much the same story with Altoona.

[Lion11]

Originally Posted by jblake78728

Bellefonte & Lewistown are drug infested ****holes.

I agree with everything, besides this. Bellefonte has changed a lot and it is much different than it was even 10 years ago. It's a nice place to live and visit.

[HeadedWest]

Originally Posted by hopefulpamom

We're hoping to move to State College and would like to be around friendly folks, families of average means, not snobby, kids who are nice, and a community that is welcoming to new transplants.

You will get that. State College is the best place we (me and my family) ever lived.

[drshang]

State College is very snobby by central PA standards (everyone in the surrounding communities thinks State College is snobby). If you are coming from any mid-sized or major city, it will seem very friendly to you and not at all snobby.

[sunsetcliff]

Originally Posted by drshang

State College is very snobby by central PA standards (everyone in the surrounding communities thinks State College is snobby). If you are coming from any mid-sized or major city, it will seem very friendly to you and not at all snobby.

If you want a down home type of crowd- heading toward Lock Haven will be more the humble crowd....prices tend to be less too.

SC is a VERY NICE place tho- assuming you don't live in the canyon. (college kid rentals)

[sunsetcliff]

Originally Posted by jblake78728

My family moved from NEPA to State when I was in 5th grade & I stayed until I graduated HS & left for college. I never got the impression that State was a snobby town, in fact the locals are extremely friendly ..... the college students on the other hand are a mixed bag (but you'll get that in any town with a school the size of PSU). State is also the nicest town in central PA ... by far! The comment made above about being in a bubble is very accurate IMO. Bellefonte & Lewistown are drug infested ****holes. Most of the other towns within 30 miles are tiny, one traffic light type towns with absolutely nothing going on. Williamsport is awful. It has the crime, drug & poverty problems of a city 3x's its size. Pretty much the same story with Altoona.

Not snobby, sheltered. The locals have a method to their madness.

Just don't try to change the locals and things will be fine.

[NicoleWorks4u]

Having been born and raised locally (and having lived here most of my life), I can honestly say State College and all of Central Pennsylvania has seen many changes over the years. Like all places, some are for the better and some are not - but that also depends upon your perspective.

University Park itself IS very student-dominated/oriented. However, there are MANY nice surrounding family-friendly communities, still in the highly-rated State College School District - some outside of SCSD. That's not to say University Park isn't friendly, but if you choose to live near the PSU campus, you have to realize you WILL be dealing with students and their lifestyle - there's no getting around it - esp with the number of students attending Penn State.

Central Pennsylvania - and State College in particular - has been attracting a wide diversity of people and cultures from all over the world - literally. As a general rule, you find what you're looking for here. Many people are very friendly and easy to get along with. Like anywhere else, there are always rude people.

The trend I've noticed over the past 10 years or so is that many people are coming here from larger cities - in NJ and NY mostly. The cost of living in Centre County has been on the rise and unfortunately, there aren't many big employers moving in to the area - or any of the surrounding communities. In fact, we've lost quite a number of jobs in recent years. Part of what's is driving the higher costs are the retirees and alumni coming back here after having made their money (or selling more expensive houses) other places.

But there are houses in all price ranges and locations - right in towns or out in the woods. My only advice is to really look at the job situation here and secure employment first. There are many "service industry" jobs, but other positions are sometimes difficult to come by.

I hope this was helpful - feel free to contact me if I can be of any further assistance in your relocation. In closing, let me just say, overall, I still find Central PA to be one of the friendliest places on earth. Are there snobs here? Absolutely - but again, it's nothing you won't find other places and quite frankly, I think they're in the minority.

Best wishes whatever you decide,
Nicole