Relocating from NY to Pittsburgh

[okaydorothy]

We just moved here from NY to Bridgeville which is south of Pittsburgh. While we do not live in a development, we do walk our dog around one in particular. There seems to be people of different cultures living there. It is South Fayette schools which are regarded high.

[ChristinaMichele]

Hey guys. I want to thank you all for all the helpful info you guys have provided for us.

eschaton, everything you said is 100% correct. We are looking to rent because our credit isn't the greatest right now but we are definitely working on it. We are actually looking to rent out a whole house. I don't know how well that works out in Pittsburgh especially if the landlord is going to check your credit. Three bedrooms will definitely be needed being that we have four kids, so you are right about that as well. The thing is, I don't work. I stay home with the kids while my husband goes out and works so there's only one income. Maybe you are right about the subsidized rents. How could I go about that?

And one more question..how is Penn Hills? On Citydata.com it shows that it's pretty decent with crime and on Craigslist the rents are in our price range. How are the schools? Thank you guys SO much!

[eschaton]

Originally Posted by ChristinaMichele

eschaton, everything you said is 100% correct. We are looking to rent because our credit isn't the greatest right now but we are definitely working on it. We are actually looking to rent out a whole house. I don't know how well that works out in Pittsburgh especially if the landlord is going to check your credit. Three bedrooms will definitely be needed being that we have four kids, so you are right about that as well.

I don't know what your income looks like, but checking Craigslist, you could rent a 3-bedroom house for $1,250-$1,500 per month in the Squirrel-Hill/Greenfield area, which should suit your fine if you could pull that sort of rent.

Originally Posted by ChristinaMichele

Maybe you are right about the subsidized rents. How could I go about that?

I haven't the foggiest honestly. Hopefully someone else could tell you.

Originally Posted by ChristinaMichele

And one more question..how is Penn Hills? On Citydata.com it shows that it's pretty decent with crime and on Craigslist the rents are in our price range. How are the schools? Thank you guys SO much!

No no NO!

While Penn Hills isn't as bad as its reputation, it's pretty much a first-ring suburb slowly turning into a ghetto as the poor black population is being gentrified out of the city. The portion of Penn Hills further from the city isn't that bad, but even some of the complexes can be sketchy and have crime issues. The school district is also widely viewed as worse than Pittsburgh's, without the range of options you have to choose from in the city.

[ChristinaMichele]

eschaton, again thank you so much for all your help. And thank you for informing me about Penn Hills. Hm, I think Squirrel Hill may be too steep for us. I'm thinking 3 bedrooms for $800-$1200? If that's at all possible? And which areas that will have good schools too.

How about Grove City?

[eschaton]

Originally Posted by ChristinaMichele

eschaton, again thank you so much for all your help. And thank you for informing me about Penn Hills. Hm, I think Squirrel Hill may be too steep for us. I'm thinking 3 bedrooms for $800-$1200? If that's at all possible? And which areas that will have good schools too.

I see an apartment here which would work for you. It's in Swisshelm Park, which is a quiet residential part of the lower-east end which goes to good schools. It's kind of a pain to get to the rest of Pittsburgh from there, but it's fine for families.

Rentals in Greenfield, where they exist, would be more affordable as well.

Given your price range, I'd also consider Brookline or Beechview, which are fairly safe and have pretty good elementary schools. Beechview also contains the closest thing to a Latino community in Pittsburgh, in case you'd want your kids exposed it (although it's Mexican and not Puerto Rican, and only around 7% of the population). I'd probably try and get them into a magnet program by middle school however.

Originally Posted by ChristinaMichele

How about Grove City?

That's pretty far out. There's already a thread about Grove City - maybe you should check it out. You could find a few houses for rent near the top end of that range in Shadyside and Squirrel Hill as well, although I wouldn't expect them to be that great.

[fleetiebelle]

Given your price range, I'd also consider Brookline or Beechview,

And if you're looking there, Dormont and Greentree would work, as well.

[ChristinaMichele]

Thank you guys. I looked up Beechview and Greentree, I think they are absolutely beautiful. Those are areas I will definitely be looking into.