Mt. Washington neighborhood (apartment, transfer to, college)

[newtopitts]

Hi, I am a recent college grad, but a nontraditional one (34 yrs old). I am moving to Mt. Washington to start a new job downtown in a few weeks. I have only been in Pitt for my interview and have not seen my apt in person yet (just photos). I was wondering if anyone could tell me what to expect living in Mt. Washington. I am two blocks from a fantastic view fron Grandview Ave. My apt is on Virginia Ave. What is the neighborhood like at night? I have heard bad things about the bus system. I would like to sell my car (because I have a pretty low starting salary) and rely solely on the bus sytem, but have been told I should just get a roommate instead. I have also heard that the taxes are really high in Pitt. Will this take a big bite out of my take-home pay, or is it just property taxes that are really high?

Any thoughts and advice would be greatly appreciated!

[fleetiebelle]

Hi, I am a recent college grad, but a nontraditional one (34 yrs old). I am moving to Mt. Washington to start a new job downtown in a few weeks. I have only been in Pitt for my interview and have not seen my apt in person yet (just photos). I was wondering if anyone could tell me what to expect living in Mt. Washington. I am two blocks from a fantastic view fron Grandview Ave. My apt is on Virginia Ave. What is the neighborhood like at night? I have heard bad things about the bus system. I would like to sell my car (because I have a pretty low starting salary) and rely solely on the bus sytem, but have been told I should just get a roommate instead.

I lived in Mt. Washington for 6 years: 3 on Grandview (no view for me, sadly) and 3 on Sycamore St. I liked living up there very much. The business district is such that you can get most things up on the hill (there's a post office, coffee shops, dry cleaners/laundromat, Chinese restaurant, etc.) By asking what it's like at night, are you referring to safety? If so, it's reasonably safe, there are a lot of college students up there who can be loud at odd hours. I never had anything delivered to my apartment for fear of it getting stolen off of the porch, but that's just city living, I suppose.

I don't know that I'd recommend getting rid of your car--the bus system on Mt. W. isn't as connected as say, that of the South Side or the East End. The only place the Mt Washington busses will take you is Downtown, so you'd have to transfer to go anywhere else, though you can take the Mon Incline down to the T line at Station Square and go either Downtown or the South Hills.