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Old 07-19-2017, 10:47 AM
 
Location: Pittsburgh, PA (Morningside)
14,361 posts, read 16,890,821 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Paul2421 View Post
i imagine most professors can't afford 500k houses.
The OP is coming from California, where they have lived for some time. I'm guessing that they built up what we would consider pretty ridiculous levels of equity into their house, which would mean few houses in our region would be out of their price range.
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Old 07-19-2017, 10:58 AM
 
Location: O'Hara Twp.
4,359 posts, read 7,487,518 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Paul2421 View Post
i imagine most professors can't afford 500k houses.
My plan doesn't have 500,000 houses. Houses start in the high 200,000 and top out around 450,000. If you can afford Squirrel Hill then you can afford my plan.

And the OP has said he or she is willing to swing private school tuition if needed. That alone makes affordability moot.
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Old 07-19-2017, 11:00 AM
 
1,577 posts, read 1,273,794 times
Reputation: 1107
Quote:
Originally Posted by robrobrob View Post
My plan doesn't have 500,000 houses. Houses start in the high 200,000 and top out around 450,000. If you can afford Squirrel Hill then you can afford my plan.

And the OP has said he or she is willing to swing private school tuition if needed. That alone makes affordability moot.
i know. that was my reasoning for professors living in the suburbs in your neighborhood. but cali native doesn't mean they have built equity in cali as they say they have been all over.
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Old 07-19-2017, 11:02 AM
 
Location: Pittsburgh's North Side
1,701 posts, read 1,589,460 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by robrobrob View Post
Some academics even live in the burbs.
True -- we know a few who live in Sewickley and a few in Edgewater -- I was just starting with the options I know personally. But their questions about racial diversity did make me think they might prefer the city.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Paul2421 View Post
i imagine most professors can't afford 500k houses.
Quote:
Originally Posted by eschaton View Post
The OP is coming from California, where they have lived for some time.
Right...and honestly if they have two incomes and are being hired at CMU, $500k might not be unreasonable at all. One of my colleagues moved here from Los Angeles and tells the story of meeting with a realtor and being truly anxious because their LA home had sold for "only" $600k -- the realtor laughed out loud when they were worried that this might not be enough for a home in Pittsburgh. Another friend left Pitt for a job near San Francisco, and their #1 regret is the disparity in housing options.
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Old 07-19-2017, 11:10 AM
 
Location: Pittsburgh's North Side
1,701 posts, read 1,589,460 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Paul2421 View Post
but cali native doesn't mean they have built equity in cali as they say they have been all over.
Yes...but when a California native says price is not an issue I generally think they mean it, and won't blink at the prices in Shadyside.
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Old 07-19-2017, 12:02 PM
 
Location: Manchester
3,109 posts, read 2,896,695 times
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Why would they have to max out their budget though? Let's keep promoting other areas that are safe, welcoming, have some yards, and offer nice activities for their children. Let's mix up the people in these areas and start working on expanding outside of our bubbles. Sure it would be easy to move onto a street full of CMU professors, send your kids to school with the children of CMU professors....work with, live by, hang out with CMU people...thus the disparity between areas in our city/country today.


I will speak to what I know...but there is this house, which sold but they do come on the market fairly often....https://www.coldwellbankerhomes.com/.../pid_18908355/


It is a nice house, has a yard, leaves some money for renovations if they like. The neighborhood is definitely safe, has a lot of youth oriented activities, has a walkable business district, the K-8 school is solid, there is a local private school for later if they so choose, and the neighborhood is growing in diversity all of the time. There are various ethic eateries on the Blvd, Spanish language Mass held at local churches, and the area is home to the Hispanic immigrant outreach effort in Pittsburgh. The commute would be the only issue, but honestly at worst it is 30 mins due to traffic, and that is time dependent.
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Old 07-19-2017, 12:16 PM
 
1,577 posts, read 1,273,794 times
Reputation: 1107
Quote:
Originally Posted by PghYinzer View Post
Why would they have to max out their budget though? Let's keep promoting other areas that are safe, welcoming, have some yards, and offer nice activities for their children. Let's mix up the people in these areas and start working on expanding outside of our bubbles. Sure it would be easy to move onto a street full of CMU professors, send your kids to school with the children of CMU professors....work with, live by, hang out with CMU people...thus the disparity between areas in our city/country today.


I will speak to what I know...but there is this house, which sold but they do come on the market fairly often....https://www.coldwellbankerhomes.com/.../pid_18908355/


It is a nice house, has a yard, leaves some money for renovations if they like. The neighborhood is definitely safe, has a lot of youth oriented activities, has a walkable business district, the K-8 school is solid, there is a local private school for later if they so choose, and the neighborhood is growing in diversity all of the time. There are various ethic eateries on the Blvd, Spanish language Mass held at local churches, and the area is home to the Hispanic immigrant outreach effort in Pittsburgh. The commute would be the only issue, but honestly at worst it is 30 mins due to traffic, and that is time dependent.
i am all for recommending alternate living situations but google maps is showing a 20-50 minute commute to cmu at 5pm.
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Old 07-19-2017, 12:27 PM
 
Location: O'Hara Twp.
4,359 posts, read 7,487,518 times
Reputation: 1611
Quote:
Originally Posted by RogersParkTransplant View Post
True -- we know a few who live in Sewickley and a few in Edgewater -- I was just starting with the options I know personally. But their questions about racial diversity did make me think they might prefer the city.
I do think that some pockets of the burbs are pretty diverse ... but for African Americans. Basically, you have to have an area where the schools are good/great and the houses are affordable. My only reference point is my sons' school. We have kids from all over. A few years ago, my son's soccer team had 3 white kids out of 10. By no means is it the same as a city school but their school isn't entirely white.
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Old 07-19-2017, 12:28 PM
 
22 posts, read 25,226 times
Reputation: 22
You all are very gracious, thank you. I am not a professor--would be an administrator and no, so far home prices haven't been anything but extremely exciting for us compared to California. (Not to mention lower tax rates as well).

A couple of questions: what does "north side" mean? Does that mean places like Ross Township or are you talking about staying within what I am assuming is the metro Pittsburgh area? Can anyone speak to the outer lying areas like Ross Township or Mt. Lebanon? On paper, it seems like these places have the best public schools??

And my username is a bit of a joke...
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Old 07-19-2017, 12:30 PM
 
Location: Pittsburgh's North Side
1,701 posts, read 1,589,460 times
Reputation: 1849
Quote:
Originally Posted by PghYinzer View Post
Why would they have to max out their budget though? Let's keep promoting other areas that are safe, welcoming, have some yards, and offer nice activities for their children. Let's mix up the people in these areas and start working on expanding outside of our bubbles. Sure it would be easy to move onto a street full of CMU professors, send your kids to school with the children of CMU professors....work with, live by, hang out with CMU people...thus the disparity between areas in our city/country today.
Fair enough, and I was expecting that someone would speak up for Beechview, Brookline, Dormont, etc. Again, I was just starting with the areas I know best...of course I didn't mention my own neighborhood, Spring Hill, but that's mainly because there are so few properties available and they tend to be the fixer-uppers. Same with Troy Hill. But when we found a house we really liked on Spring Hill we jumped, and were glad to find an area with an interesting mix of residents...at some point the OP will come back and tell us more specifics about what appeals to them, and things will evolve from there. There are also some spectacular homes in Brighton Heights...I love this one, for example, though it's apparently already under contract:

3507 Corona St, Pittsburgh, PA 15212 - realtor.com®


But anyway, yes, there are a ton of options in Pittsburgh. It's also worth pointing out that anyone with a Pitt or CMU faculty/staff ID rides the bus for free, and that's a perk that makes a lot (but not all) of us choose to ride the bus as much as possible. You save a ton of money, and of course parking in Oakland can be a pain.
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