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The Millenial generation is much larger than the Silent generation who make up today's elderly population.
Good Grief, and people say I'm argumentative!
1. You're partly right. The silents (and a few "greatests" that are still alive) make up the bulk of the elderly in the US today. However, anyone born on or before today's date in 1951 is 65 or over, meaning there are a large number of elderly boomers out there as well.
2. Is there any evidence that Pittsburgh is experiencing a huge explosion in household formation which will require all this upzoning, tearing down of sf houses and replacing them with multi-family homes, decreasing lot sizes, etc? If so, please post it.
But you should understand with Pittsburgh (compared to NYC) home ownership is very high (around 70%), so people generally are excited about neighborhoods turning around,including being attractive to high net worth induviduals, new businesses, etc; this not only improves their quality of life but also the equity in their home.
Many people aren't being pushed out but rather are reaping rewards of living in working class neighborhoods for many years that while poor, they never let them go to sh*t either & as a result they are now attractive to newcomers (especially true for lawrenceville & south side) & doing quite well.
That is undeniably true and is the rule almost without fail in the suburbs. I have not once to my knowledge denied this, and if you were hoping for another pointless and tiresome Pgh vs. NYC battle, you won't find it here with me.
First things first: Here, I am talking about the city proper, which serves a different group of demographics, including those who are intentionally seeking short-term housing. Literally, the 300K that lies within the "city of Pittsburgh" and pays the full city wage tax. I am well aware that this group does not overlap much with those posting on city-data. That's not good nor bad. It simply is, but it does sometimes blur the lines between the city proper and the concept of Pittsburgh, the area/county/region.
Students of all types are one of the largest groups seeking rentals and this group will continue to grow with yearly enrollment. Young professionals are another demographic increasing in number. I am not saying this, I am quoting the people on here who are observing the market from a front row seat and have been saying this over and over. And seniors winding down their career or seeking lower-COL pastures and freedom from a mortgage are another market that has potential given the benefits your city offers for the retiree set, which are noted and numerous. These are the core groups, but obviously, any adult of any age would be a potential candidate, particularly in this post-bubble era, where a growing number of Americans are skittish about taking on debt, even mortgage debt. If you perceive interest in rentals to be a negative -- and only you know the answer -- then I'm truly sorry that's the case. I see no inherent superiority in one type of housing vs. another. Both contribute to a thriving urban core. Both groups are found in cities and contribute to them thriving. This is the case nationwide. The exact proportions may differ place to place but bottom line is, both groups should be served for a city to maximize its potential.
Secondly: In the urban market, there is inevitably a group interested in the purchase of attached units, be they condos or co-ops or apartments. Just because you may not know many or any people in this group does not mean they don't exist. As city living grows in popularity, the demand for mortgaged units will rise in tandem. Nation-wide (note I said nation, not "New York"), the trend these past 10+ years has been to focus only or mostly on the very top tier of this market. We are now at a point of saturation nationally, as there is a finite number of millionaires and accordingly a finite quantity of primary homes, pied a terres, summer homes, and maybe condos for the kids in school that can be bought. In your city, the luxury market is far smaller than it would be in a global alpha city; thus, a focus on midmarket housing makes even more sense than other strategies.
In your city's market, the unit shortage in the urban core is exacerbated by bus access. Some neighborhoods have excellent bus service, others have little to none. For students of all kinds, young professionals, some retirees, and anyone else seeking a low or no-car lifestyle, the bus-heavy areas will be far more desirable than others. The shortage is also complicated by a glaring dearth of new construction units. This is true for the sales market but equally the case for the rental/sublet market. While it's great to see another high-end unit announced, the announcement ultimately serves as a reminder of who is and isn't served by housing trends in cities in the U.S. in the 21st century. A focus on midmarket new construction units, both for sale and for rent, would be a clear asset for the city, and for those who buy, would offer additional incentive to settle in the area, as the appreciation value of new construction is generally far better than the value of mid-century stock, especially stock that is in need of serious rehabilitation.
You could say I am biased here. I am a new business owner who will be expanding my production line and moving it into Pittsburgh about two years from right now. (The core business, operations, and I all stay here in NYC, but I will certainly be in town often.) So obviously it benefits me personally and financially to see the city succeed. But I like to think it benefits those of you living there now too, especially if the city does grow by investing in midmarket housing. As for my plans, most of you have established your careers already and thus, are probably not right for the jobs I'm going to be filling. Generally, I see these roles as ideal for people who have not completed college or a career training program, but who are bright, willing to learn, and have a good work ethic. No age group in particular is right or wrong, I care about work ethic and an overall interest and curiosity. People who know they could do a great job if given a chance, and are unarguably worth paying a good living wage but just haven't met the right recruiter or gotten noticed yet. People like me basically, when I was between careers. This group gets lost in the cracks during a downturn, and this is even more the case in markets with a high percentage of bachelor/master's degree holders. But there's no downside to adding jobs for that group, only benefits. Everyone in their city and the city itself will benefit if we can get more in this group back to work. The workers are the true job creators...perhaps a politically contentious statement but one I believe in. If they are earning, they are spending money, and all your favorite things around the region not only stay open, they also thrive.
Last edited by Mr.BadGuy; 05-29-2016 at 02:31 PM..
That is undeniably true and is the rule almost without fail in the suburbs. I have not once to my knowledge denied this, and if you were hoping for another pointless and tiresome Pgh vs. NYC battle, you won't find it here with me.
First things first: Here, I am talking about the city proper, which serves a different group of demographics, including those who are intentionally seeking short-term housing. Literally, the 300K that lies within the "city of Pittsburgh" and pays the full city wage tax. I am well aware that this group does not overlap much with those posting on city-data. That's not good nor bad. It simply is, but it does sometimes blur the lines between the city proper and the concept of Pittsburgh, the area/county/region..
1. You're partly right. The silents (and a few "greatests" that are still alive) make up the bulk of the elderly in the US today. However, anyone born on or before today's date in 1951 is 65 or over, meaning there are a large number of elderly boomers out there as well.
2. Is there any evidence that Pittsburgh is experiencing a huge explosion in household formation which will require all this upzoning, tearing down of sf houses and replacing them with multi-family homes, decreasing lot sizes, etc? If so, please post it.
Good grief indeed. Most people don't die in their 60's. The boomer die off won't commence in earnest for another decade and won't reach a peak for 2 decades. The peak birth year for boomers was 1957. Those dying now are the Silent generation.
There's a shortage of rental housing in Pittsburgh in the last few years. Who do you think is causing that? It's Millenials forming independent households.
Good grief indeed. Most people don't die in their 60's. The boomer die off won't commence in earnest for another decade and won't reach a peak for 2 decades. The peak birth year for boomers was 1957. Those dying now are the Silent generation.
There's a shortage of rental housing in Pittsburgh in the last few years. Who do you think is causing that? It's Millenials forming independent households.
Please document.
I find the phrase "boomer die off" offensive.
The life expectancy in the US is 79.6 years as of last year. So the vast majority of the people in the US were born 1936 or later. The Baby Boom started in 1946. So there are 10 years of "Silents" and now 5 years of Boomers as retirees and a handful of older folks. According to Wiki https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silent_Generation the silents were born from the mid-1920s to the mid-40s. As far as Millennials, many of them are still in high school, and only a little over half are old enough to have graduated from college. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Millennials
But really, I'd like to see some documentation of this vast unmet need for rental housing.
Last edited by Katarina Witt; 05-29-2016 at 06:44 PM..
There's a shortage of rental housing in Pittsburgh in the last few years. Who do you think is causing that?
I've noted the shortage increasing for a decade straight and a significant amount seems to be caused by the universities nearby increasing enrollments Y-o-Y. When I say university, I notice people tend to think of a huge class of teenagers coming in and acting like clowns. Bear in mind, the real numbers include grad students, med students, PhD candidates, MBAs, and so on. Adults -- many with jobs -- and a decent percentage looking to buy. Of course, there is additional increase because of UPMC's growth, the emergence of the East Liberty tech hub and the jobs that come with, and a small number of other companies that have brought jobs to the East End and with them, people in want of housing (rental and for-sale). I view it as a net positive change. Not everyone does I gather -- and if they aren't sweet on the changes because they were priced out, I fully understand their discomfort. Because I was priced out too. I was asked to pay a rent that was just 25 dollars below the rent I agreed to upon signing my first NYC non-sublet lease. And worse, the Pgh lease was just the base rent, while the NYC lease included every utility but my electric bill which is 60 a month in the worst of summer. We lost the house. It could not be prevented. The circumstances were not in our favor, and we could not try or bootstrap our way to success by being persistent, so when a favorable situation came to be in another state, we took it. But our story isn't rare. I don't like that it's happening so often to so many people (speaking generally, to the U.S. overall, etc.), which is the entire point of this long, crazy thread. I'm of the mind that working and middle class people who spend the best years of their lives working 5-6 days a week should be able to afford decent shelter. A radical concept in some circles -- so be it.
As this was happening, PAT did some cuts. Sure, the cuts hit all over the city and county, but there's a huge quality of life difference between seeing your morning 86A go from running every 20 min. to every 25 min. and seeing your morning bus disappear completely. The East End corridor is one of the three best bus hubs in the city. And over the past decade, the appeal of both city living and car-free lifestyles have increased too. Another event that happened about 4-5 years back was the reassesment of property tax rates. Some landlords got hit with hikes, and passed those costs to their renters. A good number of the rent hikes that were chalked up to Marcellus or the "Worlds Most Liveable" accolade were in fact directly connected to landlord choice. Some of the landlords could command the new, higher rents. Others, specifically those who were unwilling or unable to put any work or time into the properties so that they looked suitable for the new rental rates, couldn't compete. Some took units off the market, others decreased their total available stock. Just as a luxury property landlord will prefer a building sit empty than solicit "downmarket" tenants, so, too, do some landlords disinclined to rehab their properties opt to retire them rather than put in the time and expense required to compete in a more exacting market.
But the largest loss of units occurred because of homeownership. This was especially true in Friendship (which was the textbook example), the portion of Bloomfield that abuts it, and select parts of East Liberty and Highland Park, as those areas had grand old homes cut into multiple rental units. Homeowners bought the grand homes and restored them to their glory days, removing multiple rental units from the market in the process. This, also, is not good nor bad. It just is. But it inarguably adds to the crunch of an already tightening market. Throw in a handful of newly homeless former homeowners devastated by the housing bubble pop, and you have all you need for a section of the city to reach the boiling point. The increased allure of the "East End" section of the city is perfectly aligned with a bunch of national and local trends and events. That they occurred within a very short timeframe is especially interesting -- and likewise, it's going to be interesting to see how that section of the market (in the City proper) will fare in the years to come.
Last edited by Mr.BadGuy; 05-29-2016 at 09:24 PM..
Plenty of good neighborhoods for the middle class to live in within the city. It just seems like many want all lf the amenities of a "hip" 21st century urban lifestyle but don't want to pay for it. They want Lawrenceville and Bloomfield to have the same dirt cheap rent they had 10 years ago. Sorry but you missed the boat, but there's plenty of time to get on the next one.
I couldn't afford (or wouldn't be willing to pay) the going rates in many of these hot hoods now. So if and when I move back to Pittsburgh and decide to rent or eventually buy, I'll be looking at places like Elliott, Crafton, Ingram, Troy Hill, Carnegie, West End Village, Mt Washington. You know, places within my means that are stable and may even appreciate a little over time. If you want a chance to hit the home run on the next rags to riches neighborhood, look at Allentown or Mt Oilver or Hazelwood. I'm not that ballsy.
If you don't have the money to meet the market for the trendy areas, you've gotta suck it up and compromise somewhere. It's not that complicated. I'm a pretty hardcore liberal but this whining about not being able to afford to live in the trendiest areas gets old when numerous places exist inside the city that would suffice for anyone excepting the most spoiled of brats.
Hazelwood for sure (I was just at a party with a bunch of realtors this weekend and they all agreed) and if I worked in the South Hills I'd go for Carnegie. It's really getting pretty hip, actually. Just beware of areas that might flood.
So, the only way to learn about the world is to take a two-week vacation to a place. And of course, vacation is a natural environment, replicating exactly how impoverished residents live day to day, earn income, settle financial affairs, and cope with catastrophes.
Further, the sister nations to the wealthiest nation on earth are the poorest 10-20% of countries. And likewise, as long as the U.S. is doing better than those countries, all is well. Finally, if you disagree with this you are not worldly or well-traveled.
Sure.
No idea what you are talking about. Just rambling nonsense. But you did somewhat confirm you have little to no real world travel experience, as suspected. So you do your America bashing based on hearsay and opinions of others. Got it. Very intelligent of you.
No idea what you are talking about. Just rambling nonsense. But you did somewhat confirm you have little to no real world travel experience, as suspected. So you do your America bashing based on hearsay and opinions of others. Got it. Very intelligent of you.
He also thinks south side & lawrenceville are suburbs of Pittsburgh....
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