Relocating from Virginia to Pensylvannia (Pittsburgh, Allentown: best neighborhood, real estate, health insurance)

[Pippilotta]

Can you suggest the best neighborhood for a growing family, good schools, small community/surburb any where in PA?
My family is looking to move some time in the Spring of next year, as soon as we sell our property. We have a budget of up to $250,000 for a 4 bedroom (or more, 2 bath (or more) home. We plan to make a trip every month to PA to look at the areas we like to give us an idea in preparation for the move.

Just FYI, the sort of home I would like would have white kitchen cabinets with lots of kitchen and bathroom space, lots of flowers and plants and green grass, walk in closets, garage, his and hers sink in bathrooms, fantastic quiet tree-lined neighborhood close to amenities-shopping, bank, P.O.

[ki0eh]

How tied are you to job prospects?

If not so much, there are a number of small towns in northern/western PA with "elm street" type homes that the doctors built in the 1920's. Don't really know about the "his and hers sink" in the bathrooms unless subsequent owners/heirs put these in.

I suggest northern and western PA because the older treelined neighborhood homes tend to have larger lot sizes for the "green grass" as opposed to southern/eastern PA where jobs tend to be more plentiful, but old town lot sizes smaller, or out of your price range.

[Pippilotta]

Thank you so much for your reply ki0eh. I really appreciate it. I will check out neighborhoods in the north and west.

Jobs are in the future when we move but not immediately. I will take 1 year off to look after my babies and then look for work for medical insurance purposes. My husband is retired due to illness and hopefully will be able to babysit once I start to work again. We are moving because property taxes here are really high and we have limited space in the house. We love where we live at the moment - safe, family friendly, tree-lined neighborhood (which is why I am spoiled and would love a replica of this neighborhood but with less expense. We live in Vienna).

[ki0eh]

How tolerant are you of cold? If you can bundle up, northern/western NY state can also offer programs for children's health insurance for working families, and housing perhaps even cheaper.

[Pippilotta]

oooo! I don't think I can deal with the cold in NY state. It is bad enough here in VA in the winter, and esp. having grown up in the tropics. Weather in two extremes - too hot, too cold is not good for my husband either (MS). We preferred PA because it is a commonwealth much like VA is and I absolutely love the greenery in VA and PA.
I am looking at western PA. Any ideas for neighborhoods?
Thanks again for your responses.

[PeterRabbit]

According to this map PA has one of the highest property tax rates. Allegheny County (where Pittsburgh is) is the highest in the state. In a good school system your taxes could be 3% or more. Are your taxes higher than that? All the surrounding counties are considerably cheaper.



Not very far from Pgh. is Cranberry Township in Butler County. It's very popular. This link goes to some examples of the homes there in your price range. On the left side of the page you can get more detailed and many more 4BR 2 bath homes will appear.

[ki0eh]

Maybe try the Shippensburg area, it's sort of between the DC/MD sprawl and the Harrisburg sprawl zones (it does have a state college, might want to avoid the areas near campus for quiet sake), so real estate is not quite as pricey due to long commutes. Has tree-lined older suburban style neighborhoods too.

Small towns nearby such as Orrstown and Newville are throwbacks to an earlier time, but still with some basic services. The Cumberland Valley is really not much different than VA's Shenandoah Valley, geologically and pre-Civil War it was pretty much all the same. However, the lot sizes are smaller than in northern/much of western PA, seems to be a cultural difference.

Pittsburgh area is colder than south and east of Kittatinny Ridge, but warmer than the Northern Tier. Buying a place, your money goes further there than in SE PA.

East of the Susquehanna River, older boroughs such as Columbia and Hamburg would have walkable areas to basic services, but lot sizes even smaller - many row homes. Middletown is a bit of an exception - more detached homes in walkable areas.

[Pippilotta]

Thank you both for your very insightful contibutions. It really, really helps me narrow down my options, esp. having never been to PA. My husband thinks it is not ok to just compare real estate taxes but to think along the lines of affordability. We live in Vienna, absolutely fantastic town with all the amenities of a neighborhood I want but we pay for both Fairfax and Vienna taxes. I see that PA taxes are high as well. Hmmm! If we are lucky enough to sell, we may be able to afford a home up to $300k with a down payment of about $50k. I will look at all the possibilities you have both given me. Thank you so much.

[toobusytoday]

Weather wise, I've found that the winters in my area (Lehigh Valley, near Allentown) are a few weeks longer and colder then what we've experienced in Virginia. From the people I know that have MS, weather does play a big part in what they can do physically. This site will give you some information about the weather for comparison. Weather History & Data Archive : Weather Underground You can see the temps and precipitation for a certain period of time. If you use the trip planner tab, I think it will go back a few years so you can get a longer view too.

[Pippilotta]

Yes, you are right! Weather does play a big part in their abilities. If we could find a place that stayed with the 80'ds that would be lovely (San Diego perhaps). But I reckon it won't be 'green' enough for me and probably too far away from my husbands son (visitationwise). Any where that will be good for him will be fine with me as long as it is a neighborhood like Vienna but less expensive and with more space in the home.I will look up the weather from the link you have posted toobusytoday, thank you much