Will need to rent a house in pittsburgh in the end of this year/early next year...a few questions please (Bellevue: apartment)

[ivyleaguelindsay]

Does anyone know where (an agency, owners, etc) that I should check out when I am ready to rent a house in western Pittsburgh? I wouldn't MIND an apartment, but after living in NYC for years, I am kind of sick of them and would love the space. I also have 2 parrots and don't want any noise complaints from crabby neighbors. In NY, people kind of mind their own business but I am not sure if the same goes for Pittsburgh. So..I was thinking a small 2-3 bedroom house. Where should I check? Where should I avoid...bad areas? Not looking to spend too much. Thanks.

[greg42]

Well, house rentals are significantly fewer and farther between given that most houses are owner-occupied, but, the good news is they'll be more plentiful as small and 2-3 bedroom than the large 4BR+ places some are looking for.

What is your definition of "not looking to spend much"? That's a little vague. One person's not much is another person's high end of their budget, so more of a price target is going to help.

And what do you mean by western Pittsburgh? What do you need/want to be near? What type of environment do you want the house to be in? Places to avoid will be few so it's hard to narrow down suggested areas. The close to the city areas of something like Bellevue (slightly more north perhaps than west but similar) might appeal if you want to be able to walk around a town at home. But if you're working in the west suburbs like Robinson or Moon maybe you just want to live out there. I don't know where it's more or less likely to find house rentals, but there should be various places available to you so you want to sort out priorities like proximity to certain parts of the city, driving or bus routes if you're commuting, etc.

And you're right, people are a little less likely to mind their own business here, I suspect. Although certainly that's not universal. Out where I live we pretty much mind our own business, it seems, though I don't really know what the neighbors say to each other behind our backs. For that matter, I lived in an apartment west of the city in Emsworth for 5 years, and everyone minded their own business there too. So it varies by neighborhood.