Is house hunting always so depressing? (Pittsburgh, Bethel Park: for sale, crime rates, find a job)

[robrobrob]

Originally Posted by Burghgirl17

If your husband is working 12 hour days, he may be commuting at off-peak times. If that is the circumstance, driving may actually be quicker. My house to downtown in non-peak time is 20 minutes or less. He could be sitting downtown just waiting for the T for that long.

This is a great point. I would not want to commute to USC during rush hour but if I was working a 13 hour day, from 7 in the morning to 8 at night I would do it. I wouldn't want to have my day revolve around the T schedule if I was working those hours. Traffic isn't that bad if you are commuting off peak. If your husband is working at least 12 hour days, he would be commuting at least one way off peak.

[Caladium]

Originally Posted by BrianTH

Unfortunately, the fact that housing is relatively cheap in Pittsburgh doesn't mean all the housing is objectively cheap. So you still will pay a premium here for walkable neighborhoods with good public transit and good schools.

My friends just returned from their house hunting trip and had a similar problem. Their take on the situation is that Pittsburgh has a huge inventory of houses--which means that the perfect one is likely to be out there but you may have to wade through a lot you don't like before you find it.

Like you, they were underwhelmed by what they were shown. Maybe they just looked at the wrong houses, but each one seemed to have a problem. Older houses are supposed to be better built than newer ones, but the houses they looked at seemed to have various construction problems, especially with the stairs. Several houses had mold or odd smells. Closets were way too small, kitchens tended to be too tight, and many rooms were too small to work with their furniture. They didn't think they had oversized furniture, but said it was hard to find a living room that would work with their couch. Some rooms called bedrooms were barely big enough to fit a double bed (and forget about a king size).

There were a few houses that they liked enough to consider--but they weren't fabulous bargains. The big reason they were considering moving to Pittsburgh was that there were supposed to be all these fabulous real estate bargains. And maybe there are--but I think you have to look at lots of homes before you find the gems. But... I don't want to be discouraging. That was just their experience, and they admittedly didn't look for very long. I really do think the gems are out there--you just have to look a little more than you might in other cities.

I'd also like to note that there were many things they liked about Pittsburgh. It was an enjoyable trip for them. But, FWIW, they've decided Pittsburgh wasn't the right choice for them, even though it has a lot of appeal.

[Q-tip motha]

Originally Posted by BrianTH

Surveys suggest long commutes are the biggest source of unhappiness for many people. Conversely, the rewards of large homes and lots are not very well-confirmed--it turns out a lot of people don't need a lot of space to do basic things like eat, sleep, watch TV, read a book, fiddle-faddle on the Internet, or so on.

Accordingly, I think prioritizing a short commute makes ample sense for many people. I'd certainly at least try out.

There's also the fact that you're paying to heat and cool all of that extra space that you may not actually need. It probably won't break the OP's bank, but is akin to throwing your money away so why waste it?

*looks up at the 10 ft ceiling of the room he's sitting in*

I guess I'm one to talk.

[Bong477]

If you are commuting off peak you are probably better off driving than taking public transit, provided the parking situation at his work is manageable.

$200/sq ft would be very high for Pittsburgh regardless of the neighborhood. Hopefully you accounted for property taxes in your housing budget already.

Really the North Hills sound more like your cup of tea how you are describing things.

[BrianTH]

Originally Posted by Q-tip motha

There's also the fact that you're paying to heat and cool all of that extra space that you may not actually need. It probably won't break the OP's bank, but is akin to throwing your money away so why waste it?

Same thing with big yards--they are also a big expense in one way or another.

[JD984]

Originally Posted by BrianTH

Surveys suggest long commutes are the biggest source of unhappiness for many people. Conversely, the rewards of large homes and lots are not very well-confirmed--it turns out a lot of people don't need a lot of space to do basic things like eat, sleep, watch TV, read a book, fiddle-faddle on the Internet, or so on.

Accordingly, I think prioritizing a short commute makes ample sense for many people. I'd certainly at least try out.

And, yet, when all the factors are considered, suburban living still is popular and many cities continue to lose population.

I think part of the issue is that a long commute is a single, big-ticket issue that someone who decides to live in the suburbs far from their job confronts daily, whereas there can be many factors that may discourage people from living in cities - poor schools, unruly neighbors, higher crime, poorly maintained housing - but which they may not have to think about on a daily basis.

As a result, it's something of a no-brainer for people who are otherwise happy with their lives to complain about their commute, whereas it may be harder for someone who's dealing with a number of urban annoyances to decide what's most irritating. That's not to say that cities aren't best for some people, or that people may not want to assign priority to reducing their commute. On the other hand, you have to reconcile the fact that people don't like long commutes with the fact that they often voluntarily accept them when they could certainly afford a smaller house in a more urban environment closer to their job.

[Caladium]

Here's a little song to cheer you up as you continue searching:


YouTube - Jimmy Cliff - You Can Get It If You Really Want

[DomerJen]

Originally Posted by Caladium

Here's a little song to cheer you up as you continue searching:


YouTube - Jimmy Cliff - You Can Get It If You Really Want

haha, that made me smile.

[rhondee]

Q-Tip ( and Katiana) have a good point about renting first. If you're feeling frustrated and unlucky in your search, then renting will take that enormous pressure off. I also have never known anyone to be lucky enough to find the " perfect" home. There inevitably is always going to be some feature that is not appreciated or that is totally lacking in a home.
I had family move here from overseas and it took them over 2 months of just about daily searching to find the right place. When they did find it was well worth it. They purchased an all brick 4 bedroom+ office+extra guest/rec room with all new paint, new carpet, new furnace, new central AC unit for well under $100K.The home also has lovely features s.a. pocket doors between the living and dining rooms.
It took them awhile because they strictly searched in one neighborhood only and didn't want to consider any other neighborhoods at that time.They now realize that many other neighborhoods or areas would have worked just as well as their current. They want to downsize as they get closer to retirement, but for now are happy with where they are at.

[ossewa]

Atlanta's MARTA system and our trolley lines are not comparable; the T is more like a slow, electric bus. Be sure to have test-ridden the T before picking a house because of proximity to it..

300k can buy a fairly palatial house by Pittsburgh standards, one that in most cases shouldn't need any repairs or remodeling. I'm surprised that you saw any in that price range that were only 1300 sq. ft....342 Hazel Drive is pretty nice...if you like Tudor and casement windows.