Possibly relocating to mt. Washington - advice (Pittsburgh, Scranton: transplants, salons)

[Jfd18]

Hello all, newbie here, and I'm so excited I've stumbled across these boards. My gf and I are in the process of relocating from the Scranton area to Pittsburgh. My gf will be working at shadyside hospital and I might possibly be working in the South Fayette area. Here is my question, we found a great looking home for rent in Mt. Washington, it has enough space and the price is right. What are your opinions on the area? Is it a safe neighborhood ? We have looked in lawrenceville , greenfield, south side and squirrel hill, they were either too expensive for a small unit or not updated/crappy upkeep. Any advice and suggestions for the 2 of us would be greatly appreciated. ( LGBT friendly neighborhoods would also be a big plus for us) thank you !!

[eschaton]

Originally Posted by Jfd18

Hello all, newbie here, and I'm so excited I've stumbled across these boards. My gf and I are in the process of relocating from the Scranton area to Pittsburgh. My gf will be working at shadyside hospital and I might possibly be working in the South Fayette area. Here is my question, we found a great looking home for rent in Mt. Washington, it has enough space and the price is right. What are your opinions on the area? Is it a safe neighborhood ? We have looked in lawrenceville , greenfield, south side and squirrel hill, they were either too expensive for a small unit or not updated/crappy upkeep. Any advice and suggestions for the 2 of us would be greatly appreciated. ( LGBT friendly neighborhoods would also be a big plus for us) thank you !!

Where in Mount Washington are you talking about? It's a big neighborhood and it has everything from upscale all the way to borderline ghetto depending upon the section.

[Jfd18]

Originally Posted by eschaton

Where in Mount Washington are you talking about? It's a big neighborhood and it has everything from upscale all the way to borderline ghetto depending upon the section.

In the 500's of Southern Ave ( though we noticed the house numbers in the area had some inconsistencies )

[lprmesia]

Originally Posted by eschaton

Where in Mount Washington are you talking about? It's a big neighborhood and it has everything from upscale all the way to borderline ghetto depending upon the section.

As a current resident who's lived in Mt. Washington for 8 years and is also a transplant - I can confirm what eschaton is saying as true.

Typically anything along the Virginia Avenue corridor rates anywhere from good to great. Not many issues, safe, access to Olympia Park, etc...

One you start getting down the Southern/Boggs corridor you'll find a bit of mixed results. There are some relatively quiet streets but other streets you might find questionable. Overall though there's nothing in that stretch too sketchy or overly dangerous.

The Bailey/Belthoover/Grandview Park section gets even more interesting. Typically the closer to Bailey you are the nicer it is, some of the houses through there are truly extraordinary. However the further from Bailey you are and the closer to Warrington Ave it can start to shift in terms of quality and safety and can be borderline ghetto.

Overall the Business District around Shiloh Street while small isn't bad with a few decent spots and a few necessities (grocery store, a few restaurants, bars, beer stores, banks, doctor's offices, salons, coffee shop, ice cream shop, bakery, liquor store, dry cleaner, Rite Aid, etc...). I've never seen/heard of/encountered any LBGT issues in the neighborhood.

Please feel free to PM me with any questions!

[eschaton]

Originally Posted by Jfd18

In the 500's of Southern Ave ( though we noticed the house numbers in the area had some inconsistencies )

That's not the bad part of Mount Washington, but it's not an incredibly desirable area either. I've heard there's issues down there with drug addicts breaking into cars and stealing stuff if it's left in plain sight. Still, in general it's a quiet, residential area where you're not liable to meet many other young people who are transplants.

[lprmesia]

Originally Posted by Jfd18

In the 500's of Southern Ave ( though we noticed the house numbers in the area had some inconsistencies )

The 500's are down the backside of the hill pretty far. The housing quality can vary greatly (so if you've found a house and it's nice, you've hit a home run!), but in terms of overall safety it's isolated enough from some of the rough pockets where it should be pretty safe. You're a little bit further from the business district, nightlife, view, and parks - but at the same time you're a little closer to the T.

I can't speak for the commute to Shadyside (maybe PAT might not be a bad idea? - T or 40 (which goes down Southern) to downtown, and then the EBA to Shadyside), but I commute to "points west" (in the general direction of South Fayette) and I don't find any commuting issues. It can be a bit rough coming home sometimes coming down Greentree Hill towards 51, but overall it's not terrible and the morning commute is relatively easy.

[Jfd18]

Originally Posted by lprmesia

Please feel free to PM me with any questions!

Thank you so much for the reply, I would love to pm you once I figure out how to ! Currently on our drive back from Pittsburgh and I'm on my iPhone haha any advice on southern ave?

[Jfd18]

Originally Posted by eschaton

That's not the bad part of Mount Washington, but it's not an incredibly desirable area either. I've heard there's issues down there with drug addicts breaking into cars and stealing stuff if it's left in plain sight. Still, in general it's a quiet, residential area where you're not liable to meet many other young people who are transplants.

Sounds like that street is hit or miss, thank you for taking the time to reply to my post! Really appreciating all the responses, it can be a bit overwhelming trying to relocate , when we don't know much about the area!

[jay5835]

Originally Posted by Jfd18

Thank you so much for the reply, I would love to pm you once I figure out how to ! Currently on our drive back from Pittsburgh and I'm on my iPhone haha any advice on southern ave?

You need to post 10 times before you can send a pm.

[jea6321]

I like to think of mt washington as several distinct areas.

First you have the grandview ave places. they are in a category by themselves as if you want to live in one you must be willing to shell out a lot of money. There are some reasonable rate apartments on grandview ( 900-1100 1br, 1400-1500 2 br) but they are small and outdated.

then you have the virginia/shiloh district. I think of this as merrimac st to wyoming st east to west, and grandview to virginia north to south. Thats not a perfect description, but anything in that area is pretty safe and close enough to walk to the business district fairly quick. This is the section that a lot of younger professionals have been moving to over the years.

next you have the "back side" which is south of virginia. Like mentioned before, it is hit or miss. You could find a great place on a somewhat quiet street and be really happy with it. But in general, the further back you go the worse is gets.

last you have duquesne heights. Which is west of merrimac. It is where the upscale restaurants and chattam village are. Its a fine area with a lot of long term residents. it is mostly good with some newer townhouse developments here and there. There are still some seedy streets/areas here as well but all in all its pretty nice.

feel free to pm me for any other questions. I am a mt washington resident homeowner and also own some rentals in mt washington.