Grad Student Couple-reasonable rent price in Pittsburgh?

[Moby Hick]

Originally Posted by shadowfax

Do yourself a favor and chose a neighborhood where you can make use of the port authority transportation system. Pitt employees and students get to use it for free and it will save you a fortune in parking and gas.

Seconding this. Let me just add that it is the same for CMU.

[selltheburgh]

Originally Posted by SteelCityRising

The Highland Park Club apartments are nice, but they are > $1,000/month, aren't they?

I'd actually instead recommend this complex on Stanton Avenue because it is under $800/month and is cat-friendly. I believe a member of our forum lives here:

❄Available NOW - Free Parking, Hardwood Floors, Cat Friendly ❄

They are continuing to purchase other buildings in Highland Park East liberty and Morningside to rent out. They are smaller complexes and less expensive units.

[Kaquel]

Thanks again for all of the responses! It has been really helpful. It seems that if we end up in the Pittsburgh area, we will have lots of options - which is awesome.

Are there neighborhoods you guys would recommend avoiding? I have heard that Wilkinsburg is not a great area but I have no personal experience with anything except Friendship (if we count staying 2 nights as "experience" haha).

[Hopes]

Originally Posted by SteelCityRising

The Highland Park Club apartments are nice, but they are > $1,000/month, aren't they?

The website says 1 bedrooms are $950 with free utilities.

Originally Posted by SteelCityRising

I'd actually instead recommend this complex on Stanton Avenue because it is under $800/month and is cat-friendly. I believe a member of our forum lives here:

❄Available NOW - Free Parking, Hardwood Floors, Cat Friendly ❄

I wouldn't want to live anywhere with bars on the windows. I'd feel like I was in jail.

[LillyJo]

SCR, your car insurance is higher because you drive your car for work. Others may not have to pay quite so much.

[Moby Hick]

Originally Posted by LillyJo

SCR, your car insurance is higher because you drive your car for work. Others may not have to pay quite so much.

That's a good point. At least, I don't pay anything like that for car insurance. It think we're less than $600 a year for comprehensive.

[Blackbeauty212]

Originally Posted by Kaquel

Thanks again for all of the responses! It has been really helpful. It seems that if we end up in the Pittsburgh area, we will have lots of options - which is awesome.

Are there neighborhoods you guys would recommend avoiding? I have heard that Wilkinsburg is not a great area but I have no personal experience with anything except Friendship (if we count staying 2 nights as "experience" haha).

I would check out:

Squirrel Hill South
Greenfield
Bloomfield
Friendship
Central East Liberty
Highland Park
Regent Square
Lawrenceville (the Closer to Butler the more expensive, but the Penn&Main area is still a great bargain)
North Oakland
Shadyside* (Not sure if Shadyside has progressed far beyond 1K rent for a decent 1BR or not, if not its still going to be tough)

These are all with Budget and Very accessible to PAT with Frequent Service to Oakland.

[metalforever]

You can probably do a 1 bedroom apartment in squirrel hill for $700-800. This is where i'd live for the best bus service. Avoid oakland if possible - expensive, no parking, slumlords. Don't do regent square unless you have a car and are paying for a parking spot in oakland. The bus isn't really reliable to oakland. I live in regent square and go to CMU and had to buy expensive campus parking this semester. If squirrel hill is too much above your budget, live in lawrenceville or bloomfield next to the 54C AND 54D line (they both separate around lawrenceville).

In order:
Squirrel Hill
Bloomfield
Lawrenceville

Avoid:
Oakland
Regent Square
Greenfield (unless you can deal with the bus service, its slightly better than regent square)


Comments on other neigborhoods:
Shadyside - its nice but I think that this is where the people in nearby ghettos go to rob people. There's news all of the time coming from CMU about how some student got robbed at gunpoint walking around at night here. Its nice but kind of expensive for what you're getting. Its nicer than Oakland.
Friendship- Make sure you're by the busline. There is a 71(A,B,C,D) bus- make sure more than 1 of the A,B,C,D letters comes near your house and goes where you want to go.
Highland Park- I'd avoid this honestly based on bus transportation into the area
Central East Liberty - Not sure if its gentrified enough to be comfortable to students, but you can get a good deal I guess.

Southside Flats is a little expensive but its on some good buslines(theres two busses to oakland, the 54 and something else). Don't live here if you have a car.

[doo dah]

North Oakland is fine, as far as the larger apartment buildings. Avoid Melwood between Centre and Baum.