Pittsburgh: high in crime? (apartment, low crime, houses)
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I was looking up Pittsburgh on citydata.com and the crime rates are pretty high in my opinion. DH says they really aren't because it's per 100,000 people. So I assume if there are 50 murders (example!), that's per 100,000..that's not much, right? I know in NY it's a lot more. My question is, is Pittsburgh really bad? Those who know it pretty well, how would you describe the crime out there? If we can't move to Pittsburgh because of the crime, I know there are Cities nearby that are low in crime so that wouldn't be an issue. DH would just work out in Pittsburgh because his job is out there (Centerline Communications). Thanks!!
PS, and no I am not searching for a place that has literally ZERO crime. I know it's rare. I am just looking for something decent is all being we have 4 children.
Just in certain neighborhoods really. It's on par with most other cities of it's size, but honestly it is all about perception. The general vibe in some forums (like this one) is that it's happy friendly and that crime ain't no big thang. On other places you'd think it's post apocalyptic.
Thank you. We live in NY and the crime is high here and I've had my fair share of things happen to me. I've had my apartment broken into when I was home alone and came face to face with the guy. I was only 15. Thankfully I was ok though. I've had problems with..guys..if you know what I mean. But I know these are things that can happen ANYWHERE. And DH was robbed at gunpoint. Just some reasons why we won't dare raise our kids in a high crime City. But if Pittsburgh as a whole is fine then that's good I know there are areas around Pittsburgh little to no crime but it's mostly White and we are a biracial family. I always worry if we would be looked down upon if we moved to a low crime City with mostly Whites when our children are of color. For me it doesn't matter what color you are but I know not everyone feels that way so I try to stay clear of that. But it would be nice to be able to move to a City that says from 2001-2010 there was maybe 1 or 2 or even zero murders or rapes. Some areas I found were pretty cheap too so that's a plus.
The one good thing about (well not really "Good") is that Pittsburgh violent crimes are isolated to its improvised Ghettos and doesn't split over into the more Affluent/Working Class Nabes.
Now Pittsburgh has seen a spike in little misdemeanor crimes (brake-in, robbery, simple assaults, etc) but still happens sporadic and inconsistently.
Thank you. We live in NY and the crime is high here and I've had my fair share of things happen to me. I've had my apartment broken into when I was home alone and came face to face with the guy. I was only 15. Thankfully I was ok though. I've had problems with..guys..if you know what I mean. But I know these are things that can happen ANYWHERE. And DH was robbed at gunpoint. Just some reasons why we won't dare raise our kids in a high crime City. But if Pittsburgh as a whole is fine then that's good I know there are areas around Pittsburgh little to no crime but it's mostly White and we are a biracial family. I always worry if we would be looked down upon if we moved to a low crime City with mostly Whites when our children are of color. For me it doesn't matter what color you are but I know not everyone feels that way so I try to stay clear of that. But it would be nice to be able to move to a City that says from 2001-2010 there was maybe 1 or 2 or even zero murders or rapes. Some areas I found were pretty cheap too so that's a plus.
That really sucks concerning the past problems with crime. If you pick the right neighborhood here I highly doubt you will have any problems like that. As far as the biracial thing is concerned, I doubt it will be a problem too. The city does it's share of racism, but it's spotty and mostly kept in private. If you move into an area without the "urban redneck" types you most likely won't have a problem at all.
Thank you. We live in NY and the crime is high here and I've had my fair share of things happen to me. I've had my apartment broken into when I was home alone and came face to face with the guy. I was only 15. Thankfully I was ok though. I've had problems with..guys..if you know what I mean. But I know these are things that can happen ANYWHERE. And DH was robbed at gunpoint. Just some reasons why we won't dare raise our kids in a high crime City. But if Pittsburgh as a whole is fine then that's good I know there are areas around Pittsburgh little to no crime but it's mostly White and we are a biracial family. I always worry if we would be looked down upon if we moved to a low crime City with mostly Whites when our children are of color. For me it doesn't matter what color you are but I know not everyone feels that way so I try to stay clear of that. But it would be nice to be able to move to a City that says from 2001-2010 there was maybe 1 or 2 or even zero murders or rapes. Some areas I found were pretty cheap too so that's a plus.
I'm almost positive you can find a place in or around Pittsburgh that fits the bill. There's really only a handful of areas where I, as a person not connected to crime, would feel at risk for serious crimes like break-ins and gun point robberies. Pittsburgh has dozens and dozens of neighborhoods, and Alleghey County has over 100 municipalities, so you may find a list of "bad areas of Pittsburgh" and it will look lengthy, but you have to realize that many areas are very small, less than one square mile, and a lot of the bad areas are connected to each other and would be considered just one bad area in most other parts of the country.
All in all, crime is not a huge issue in most areas here. I won't suggest any specific areas though, because you haven't mentioned what else you're looking for in a neighborhood, where you'd be commuting to, or your budget.
I think it is a fair to say that the overall crime rate in the Pittsburgh area for a metro of its size is definitely on the low side. As is typical, the crime rates are higher in the City of Pittsburgh itself versus the average of the suburbs, but most of that is concentrated in a few areas where you wouldn't typically need to go, and in fact a lot of that is crime between non-strangers (criminal rivals, family members, and so forth). There definitely is still crime that can affect people like yourself in the City and the area in general, but I think the overall risk is relatively low for a major U.S. metro.
Incidentally, between 2000 and 2008, the crime rates in the City were down a bit, whereas they were up a bit in the suburbs. Crime is down in the City even more dramatically as compared to 1990. This is part of a general pattern of declining relative crime rates in central cities in recent decades, which is both effect and cause of the ongoing gentrification of central cities, a trend that is now accelerating in Pittsburgh.
I'm almost positive you can find a place in or around Pittsburgh that fits the bill. There's really only a handful of areas where I, as a person not connected to crime, would feel at risk for serious crimes like break-ins and gun point robberies. Pittsburgh has dozens and dozens of neighborhoods, and Alleghey County has over 100 municipalities, so you may find a list of "bad areas of Pittsburgh" and it will look lengthy, but you have to realize that many areas are very small, less than one square mile, and a lot of the bad areas are connected to each other and would be considered just one bad area in most other parts of the country.
All in all, crime is not a huge issue in most areas here. I won't suggest any specific areas though, because you haven't mentioned what else you're looking for in a neighborhood, where you'd be commuting to, or your budget.
Thanks We are looking for a 3-4 bedroom, 1 or 2 baths (doesn't matter if it's just one bathroom). I would like bedrooms upstairs. A nice sized backyard and maybe a patio in the front. I don't know if I'm asking for too much haha but I've seen them on Craigslist.
Overall the Pittsburgh area is quite safe compared to most metro areas of similar size. There are pockets of high, violent crime areas but they certainly don't dominate the city or suburbs.
Overall the Pittsburgh area is quite safe compared to most metro areas of similar size. There are pockets of high, violent crime areas but they certainly don't dominate the city or suburbs.
Indeed.
The odd thing about Pittsburgh, coming from an East Coast perspective originally, is that historically there were many dirt-cheap neighborhoods which, while they might have bad schools, and externally looked like slums (abandoned houses, trash strewn everywhere, etc), were actually fairly safe barring for a smattering of drug-related crime.
This is less the case now, both because some of the "seedy, but not gang-affiliated" neighborhoods have gentrified, while others have begun to head downhill as the closure of nearby projects brought changes to the neighborhood. But you can still find places in the city like Spring Garden which show tinges of this "old Pittsburgh."
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I know there are areas around Pittsburgh little to no crime but it's mostly White and we are a biracial family. I always worry if we would be looked down upon if we moved to a low crime City with mostly Whites when our children are of color. For me it doesn't matter what color you are but I know not everyone feels that way so I try to stay clear of that. But it would be nice to be able to move to a City that says from 2001-2010 there was maybe 1 or 2 or even zero murders or rapes. Some areas I found were pretty cheap too so that's a plus.
