Pittsburgh Cost of living (York, Bethel Park: fit in, apartment, rent)

[Roxy28]

Hello everyone!

My husband had an offer and we are thinking to relocate from Orlando Florida to Pittsburgh ( yes, from forever summer to cloudy winter) . I am really nervous about that move even though I am originally from New York and used to a cold weather. But my worries about our kids and how they will adjust to a new place.

Please help with your advices. My husband stayed for one week in your city and be likes it.
So questions: what is affordable rent neighborhood with good schools. And will we be able to find affordable rent? Cheap car insurance and low utilities cost?

Thank you so much in advance!

[gg]

Please give your budget and age of your kids. Do they play sports or is there something they must have in a school? I know Orlando very well. Were they in school already down there? What school? Dr. Phillips? A hunch for some reason. Looking to buy? Rent? What area is the job?

I lived in Orlando for several years in my younger days and live here now. I will be going back to FL at some point because I am getting on in years, but don't worry about relocating here. Better people here overall to be honest. Florida is filled with transient people and Pittsburgh isn't, so that is a good thing.

Fill in the blanks and we will try and help.

[Roxy28]

Hello!

We have three kids ( our oldest is 16,12 and 8 years old).
I was looking at Cranberry township and Ross Township but his job would be in downtown Pitssburgh.
Our budget is $2,000 a month, so looking forward to affordable rent . No more than$2000 monthly, including utilities and car insurance.
I know Pittsburgh people are very sporty and sport fans. My kids are not so sporty( unfortunately ( I Love sport myself).

[gg]

If I knew the area of Orlando you are from, I might narrow it down for less adjustment. Working downtown helps. The best schools near downtown are these:

1. Fox Chapel
2. Hampton
3. Mount Lebanon
4. North Allegheny (huge)

Look there are other very good schools around here. Teachers make a small fortune in our region to say the least. I would look at good schools and a good commute. I feel the list I gave was solid. At $2,000 a month you can afford where you want, so don't worry.

[Roxy28]

Thank you for your help! I currently live in Hunters Creek.
What are your thoughts on Cranberry Township and Ross Township?
Can you please give me an estimation on utilities bill for a 3 bedroom apartment/townhouse. And what's the average price for car insurance?

[okaydorothy]

I will chime in here. We came to Pittsburgh from New York in 2012. Our children were 11 and 12 and we viewed four areas based on their school ratings. Quaker Valley, South Fayette, Fox Chapel and Hampton. Then we let the kids pick the district they liked the best as they would be attending it daily. They chose South Fayette. Then we bought a house in that area and moved in.

The school district is fantastic ; yes, sports are HUGE ; esp football. My kids experienced things they never would have had in New York (Long Island). Their football team won states twice and that celebration was awesome. One played rugby, one wrestled and both joined Sea Cadets. They really thrived and enjoyed it a lot. Now they are both in college in Pittsburgh and are doing very well.

As parents we struggled to fit into Pittsburgh. We had no connections in a city that connections are very important. I got a job downtown in accounting for a law firm, my hubby didn't get a job for 18 months and then that job was on the Ohio line in the company he worked for in New York Then that branch closed down and it was another 10 months before he got another job. I changed jobs to an accounting job, absolutely loved it and met my goals every single month. After almost 3 years, I was suddenly let go. No reason just that we have come to a crossroads. Again, I was back to the drawing board, did many interviews and eventually got a job with a small company.

Friends ; they are very hard to come by at our age in Pittsburgh. Everyone is local, most people know someone that knows someone. The fist question people will ask you is where did you go to school ; meaning elementary school. Well, we are originally from Ireland so there was no frame of reference there. Many people go to the beach every year (the Carolinas mainly), and we don't do that. I mean every single year for maybe over 20 years.

We decided after 5 years there, that a decision had to be made. Luckily we had a vacation house in the Poconos and my hubby and I moved there full-time once the youngest child graduated high school. We are both working here now ; we both had jobs to come to and it is more transient friendly here. Our kids are both in college in Pittsburgh, one loves Pittsburgh and the other believes he will finish college and then move. However, they both have commitments to the Army so who knows where they will end up.

The move suggestions that someone gave are great. I would pick Mount Lebanon out of those choices. Cranberry Township is one big development from what I can see.

Just wanted to give my two cents worth. Pittsburgh can be a great little city ; its safe, some gorgeous buildings, and lots of history.

[jea6321]

Originally Posted by Roxy28

Hello!

We have three kids ( our oldest is 16,12 and 8 years old).
I was looking at Cranberry township and Ross Township but his job would be in downtown Pitssburgh.
Our budget is $2,000 a month, so looking forward to affordable rent . No more than$2000 monthly, including utilities and car insurance.
I know Pittsburgh people are very sporty and sport fans. My kids are not so sporty( unfortunately ( I Love sport myself).

things change a bit when you factor the budget in including utilities and car insurance.

Im guessing you are expecting a more modern/updated housing situation. Pittsburgh has a ton of affordable options, but the issue one locating here from a region like Florida may encounter is that a lot of the housing stock is older and dated. Newer construction or recently updated housing is not exactly cheap.

a 3-4 bedroom townhouse or home in a nice area of the north hills or cranberry can easily be 2k+ per month Not including utilities. As for car insurance, I don't necessarily understand why its lumped in here with your housing budget. Do you own 2 cars? 3? are they SUV's or civics? BMW or Chevy? kids on the insurance? Full coverage or liability? just way too many variables to give even a relative estimate.

for utilities, a family of 5 in a 3-4 bed home will probably run in the ball park of 400+ averaged out over the year. Perhaps less if the building has common Water/sewer and is paid by the landlord.

taking the utility and potential insurance off the 2k budget leaves you in the 1200-1400 range most likely. Honestly this is a pretty low budget for a 3-4 bedroom in the north hills or cranberry. You can most likely find something, but it may come as a bit of a shock to see it has 15 year old carpet and bathrooms/kitchen from the 80's or 90's.

for other areas to consider, I would look into Ben Avon or Emsworth. Both are in avonworth school district which is pretty good and relatively small. Its not a huge sports focused school either. It also is a very easy commute to downtown. I believe you could find something in Emsworth that fits your budget pretty easily. Ben Avon is the nicer of the 2 but may be more difficult to find something.

[_Buster]

True considering utilites alone can easily be 500+ a month, that only leaves 1500 for house and car insurance. say 1200 for insurance, only about 1400 for house/mortgage/taxes which is not a lot, especially if you don't want an older house. You can do it but will need to conisder some of the more inexpensive neighborhoods/areas in order to find something you like.

[erieguy]

Cranberry is excellent. Extremely convenient to most anything you could need along with a commute into Pittsburgh. Can’t help you much with an apartment or townhouse, but imo, you’re going to have to pay more than $2000 to cover what you’re asking about.

[Goinback2011]

I moved from Tampa in 2012 to a suburb south of Pittsburgh. My car insurance here is about 30% of what I was paying in FL then. Electricity rates are also lower, though most people have natural gas heat (as opposed to electric heat pumps in FL.)

Parking downtown costs a fortune, so you'll want to have access tp public transportation. One good option is anywhere near a T stop in the South Hills. Check out Bethel Park.