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My wife and I are moving to Pittsburgh soon from the New York City Area. We've narrowed our search down to Hampton Township but we were wondering since a lot of the North Hills suburbs just seem to run together to me and don't have specific downtowns or places where people might congregate does it matter where exactly you live in Hampton?
Does living above or below the turnpike matter? As a newbie who has only been to the area once that psychologically feels like some type of dividing line but it might not be.
Living east or west of route 8 does that matter? Certain types of neighborhoods or demographics or it doesn't matter?
What are the "go to" neighborhoods for trick or treating? This is always a good indicator of where the families
are. Where I grew up parents would drop kids off in certain neighborhoods which is always a good sign of "life in the suburbs"
Is the town mainly focused around the school and school activities, the pool, sports etc? I would think so. I grew up in a rural area which has the feel of the North Hills and sports and school really drove community versus say towns with a downtown that had municipal or towncentric activities.
Do you feel like you use Pittsburgh since you are so close? What I mean is that even if you live 10 miles outside of NYC it's such a chore getting there that people might stop in once a year or maybe never. Do you actually go to restaurants, the zoo, walk the neighborhoods in Pitt.
My wife and I are moving to Pittsburgh soon from the New York City Area. We've narrowed our search down to Hampton Township but we were wondering since a lot of the North Hills suburbs just seem to run together to me and don't have specific downtowns or places where people might congregate does it matter where exactly you live in Hampton?
Does living above or below the turnpike matter? As a newbie who has only been to the area once that psychologically feels like some type of dividing line but it might not be.
Living east or west of route 8 does that matter? Certain types of neighborhoods or demographics or it doesn't matter?
What are the "go to" neighborhoods for trick or treating? This is always a good indicator of where the families
are. Where I grew up parents would drop kids off in certain neighborhoods which is always a good sign of "life in the suburbs"
Is the town mainly focused around the school and school activities, the pool, sports etc? I would think so. I grew up in a rural area which has the feel of the North Hills and sports and school really drove community versus say towns with a downtown that had municipal or towncentric activities.
Do you feel like you use Pittsburgh since you are so close? What I mean is that even if you live 10 miles outside of NYC it's such a chore getting there that people might stop in once a year or maybe never. Do you actually go to restaurants, the zoo, walk the neighborhoods in Pitt.
thanks!
school district will mostly be the identity as well as sports organizations. access to the city is very easy and most visit all the time. check out the greybrooke neighborhood which has a hampton component but also shares with north hills and north allegheny schools.
Can I ask, is there any particular reason you're choosing the North Hills or Hampton area?
Why the North Hills?
We looked at the South Hills as well and I've been to that area a few times. I do like the little downtowns there but it just felt way too congested (and that's coming from someone coming from New Jersey). There are way too many cars and people jammed into that small area. I just felt like I was in a sea of cars and all the houses were on postage size lots. So basically it felt like a "fake version" or "extension of Pittsburgh and not the suburbs. It felt more congested than Shadyside or Squirrel hill (due to all the cars everywhere).
So I like the idea of the South Hills but I wouldn't want to live there.
Why Hampton?
Only reason is the school. My wife and I both went to High Schools that were around 1,200 students. Hampton is in the 1,100 - 1,000 student range which is near that range of not too small and not huge. In New Jersey there are very few schools that are the size of say a NA or the other massive schools in the North Hills. Jersey has "home rule" so this idea of big regional high schools is pretty rare.
Pittsburgh seems to have great schools in it's suburbs but it lacks the type of suburbs of New Jersey or Westchester, NY. If you combined the South and North Hills you'd get towns like Summit, Madison and Montclair in New Jersey or Bronxville or Scarsdale in Westchester.
To me it feels like you are picking in Pittsburgh either 1) small house, small lot but you get a downtown and sidewalks or 2) big house, big yard, true suburbs but no sidewalks and no downtown.
We're going with the big yard and true suburbs since i'f i'm going to live in the burbs I want that yard.
We looked at the South Hills as well and I've been to that area a few times. I do like the little downtowns there but it just felt way too congested (and that's coming from someone coming from New Jersey). There are way too many cars and people jammed into that small area. I just felt like I was in a sea of cars and all the houses were on postage size lots. So basically it felt like a "fake version" or "extension of Pittsburgh and not the suburbs. It felt more congested than Shadyside or Squirrel hill (due to all the cars everywhere).
So I like the idea of the South Hills but I wouldn't want to live there.
Why Hampton?
Only reason is the school. My wife and I both went to High Schools that were around 1,200 students. Hampton is in the 1,100 - 1,000 student range which is near that range of not too small and not huge. In New Jersey there are very few schools that are the size of say a NA or the other massive schools in the North Hills. Jersey has "home rule" so this idea of big regional high schools is pretty rare.
Pittsburgh seems to have great schools in it's suburbs but it lacks the type of suburbs of New Jersey or Westchester, NY. If you combined the South and North Hills you'd get towns like Summit, Madison and Montclair in New Jersey or Bronxville or Scarsdale in Westchester.
To me it feels like you are picking in Pittsburgh either 1) small house, small lot but you get a downtown and sidewalks or 2) big house, big yard, true suburbs but no sidewalks and no downtown.
We're going with the big yard and true suburbs since i'f i'm going to live in the burbs I want that yard.
Yeah that is a pretty spot on understanding of the burgh. An exception would be places like point breeze, etc. if you are willing to spend. there really aren't the spread out neighborhoods with business centers in the burbs due to the hills. what is your price range? that could give more insight. there are tons of new housing if you are willing to spend 300k+. general guideline from what i have seen is west of route 8 is more affordable and east is expensive.
We looked at the South Hills as well and I've been to that area a few times. I do like the little downtowns there but it just felt way too congested (and that's coming from someone coming from New Jersey). There are way too many cars and people jammed into that small area. I just felt like I was in a sea of cars and all the houses were on postage size lots. So basically it felt like a "fake version" or "extension of Pittsburgh and not the suburbs. It felt more congested than Shadyside or Squirrel hill (due to all the cars everywhere).
So I like the idea of the South Hills but I wouldn't want to live there.
Why Hampton?
Only reason is the school. My wife and I both went to High Schools that were around 1,200 students. Hampton is in the 1,100 - 1,000 student range which is near that range of not too small and not huge. In New Jersey there are very few schools that are the size of say a NA or the other massive schools in the North Hills. Jersey has "home rule" so this idea of big regional high schools is pretty rare.
Pittsburgh seems to have great schools in it's suburbs but it lacks the type of suburbs of New Jersey or Westchester, NY. If you combined the South and North Hills you'd get towns like Summit, Madison and Montclair in New Jersey or Bronxville or Scarsdale in Westchester.
To me it feels like you are picking in Pittsburgh either 1) small house, small lot but you get a downtown and sidewalks or 2) big house, big yard, true suburbs but no sidewalks and no downtown.
We're going with the big yard and true suburbs since i'f i'm going to live in the burbs I want that yard.
Have you considered the looking a few miles to the west of there, Sewickley would be one area that you could get a decent sized yard, sidewalks, and a downtown area, although not sure if you could get what you want for your target price there. Then there are areas like Ben Avon and Bellevue, where you might be able to find larger yard sizes with sidewalks, although much less in amenities around than in Sewickley.
We looked at the South Hills as well and I've been to that area a few times. I do like the little downtowns there but it just felt way too congested (and that's coming from someone coming from New Jersey). There are way too many cars and people jammed into that small area. I just felt like I was in a sea of cars and all the houses were on postage size lots. So basically it felt like a "fake version" or "extension of Pittsburgh and not the suburbs. It felt more congested than Shadyside or Squirrel hill (due to all the cars everywhere).
So I like the idea of the South Hills but I wouldn't want to live there.
Why Hampton?
Only reason is the school. My wife and I both went to High Schools that were around 1,200 students. Hampton is in the 1,100 - 1,000 student range which is near that range of not too small and not huge. In New Jersey there are very few schools that are the size of say a NA or the other massive schools in the North Hills. Jersey has "home rule" so this idea of big regional high schools is pretty rare.
Pittsburgh seems to have great schools in it's suburbs but it lacks the type of suburbs of New Jersey or Westchester, NY. If you combined the South and North Hills you'd get towns like Summit, Madison and Montclair in New Jersey or Bronxville or Scarsdale in Westchester.
To me it feels like you are picking in Pittsburgh either 1) small house, small lot but you get a downtown and sidewalks or 2) big house, big yard, true suburbs but no sidewalks and no downtown.
We're going with the big yard and true suburbs since i'f i'm going to live in the burbs I want that yard.
Impressive.
You're not even a resident yet and already have a more thorough grasp of the North Hills vs. the South Hills than many who have lived in/around Pittsburgh for many years.
I agree wholeheartedly with your assessment. I prefer the South Hills myself because I like smaller homes on postage-stamp-sized yards with sidewalks and walkable access to stores, restaurants, and light rail. If I didn't have a residency requirement as a civilian member of the city's police department I'd consider buying my first home in Dormont in a heartbeat (as it stands now Beechview is one of my top neighborhoods for when I'm ready to buy---albeit its business district still sucks a$$ and many of the homes are unkempt).
We typically do our "chain store" shopping in the North Hills because we are a bit closer to the McKnight Road/Ross Park Mall area than to the South Hills Village area, and we think the selection of stores and restaurants overall is better in the North Hills. As far having a "Downtown area" in the North Hills is concerned there's McCandless Crossing. It's one of those faux-downtown "live/work/play" developments, but we like driving there and walking around much more than The Waterfront, which feels much more car-dependent. Ideally Hampton Township could get its act together someday and consider encouraging a developer to bring a similar "live/work/play" faux-Downtown area to somewhere like Route 8 & Wildwood Road. This would give people in Hampton Township the "family-friendly meeting place" it currently lacks. One of my criticisms of Cranberry Township is that is also lacks such a town center-styled area, yet it has roughly 30,000 residents now.
Hampton Township is a great community---excellent public schools, nearly zero violent crime (outside of domestic disturbances), clean-looking, large yards, wildlife, etc. Access into the city isn't bad at all. If you don't mind the lack of sidewalks/town center living then it's a top-notch community.
Pittsburgh seems to have great schools in it's suburbs but it lacks the type of suburbs of New Jersey or Westchester, NY. If you combined the South and North Hills you'd get towns like Summit, Madison and Montclair in New Jersey or Bronxville or Scarsdale in Westchester.
If what you're seeking are the Pittsburgh versions of Summit, Montclair, Bronxville, or Scarsdale, and want the north side of the Allegheny, you should also be looking at Fox Chapel, Sewickley, and Ben Avon.
Everyone thank you for all of the replies (and compliments). I gained a lot of knowledge through this website and I've been to Pittsburgh a bunch of times, however never to the suburbs until recently. We drove around the suburbs a lot so I got a really good feel for the differences between the north and south hills.
I looked at Ben Avon through google maps and streetview and it does look nice but looks more like Rutherford, NJ than Summit or Madison. That's not a bad thing, just a different vibe. It's unfortunate that there are no towns with half acre lots, mature trees, sidewalks and a downtown.
I think Oakmont comes close to that? I'm also going to check out Sewickley.
If you are looking for the wealthy small-town northern Jersey vibe, Oakmont and Sewickley are the places to look, as well as Mt. Lebanon if you are willing to consider the South Hills. For schools, Quaker Valley (Sewickley) has a bit better reputation than Riverview; I believe they are close enough in quality so as to make the differences irrelevant, but schools are always a sensitive issue, so in the end you will have to go with what you are comfortable with.
In Hampton you will be living the quintessential suburban lifestyle -- nice suburban house, lots of yardwork, and a focus on school activities for the children, including sports. For getting into the city, driving is much,much easier than getting in to NYC from Jersey, but other than the usual rush hour buses your public transit options are very limited. That said, I suspect many of your neighbors will spend more time in the shops along Rt. 8 or McKnight Road than in the city.
As an aside, my wife used to live in Summit, and I fully understand why someone would want to live in such an area.
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