Transferring to Pittsburgh and overwhelmed, please help!! (Ross Township, Bloomfield: apartment, rentals)

[mcraft17]

My husband is being transferred from Louisville to Pittsburgh the end of October. We took a day trip with family from Ohio this past Friday to scope out the area and let's just say we are completely and utterly overwhelmed!! Pittsburgh is so much bigger than Louisville and even though we live just outside of downtown it has such a different feel. So I thought I would come here for some help. We are looking for a safe, nice area where we can get out and walk and not feel uncomfortable. It will be me, my husband and our special needs daughter who is 21 (so we don't need school for her). We are looking for a 2 or more bedroom, at least 1.5 bath hopefully no more than $1200. Is that even possible? His job is on Baum Blvd if that helps. Thanks again!!

[eschaton]

I dunno what you mean by "uncomfortable" - I am guessing you mean worries about crime?

You could easily get a two-bedroom apartment in the Friendship/Bloomfield area for something in the range of $900-$1200, and your husband would be able to walk to work.

[Peter1948]

Originally Posted by mcraft17

My husband is being transferred from Louisville to Pittsburgh the end of October. We took a day trip with family from Ohio this past Friday to scope out the area and let's just say we are completely and utterly overwhelmed!! Pittsburgh is so much bigger than Louisville and even though we live just outside of downtown it has such a different feel. So I thought I would come here for some help. We are looking for a safe, nice area where we can get out and walk and not feel uncomfortable. It will be me, my husband and our special needs daughter who is 21 (so we don't need school for her). We are looking for a 2 or more bedroom, at least 1.5 bath hopefully no more than $1200. Is that even possible? His job is on Baum Blvd if that helps. Thanks again!!

Pittsburgh really isnt that much bigger. It's a metro twice the size, but it doesn't feel huge. You will be fine. You aren't going to find the Highlands, though. That neighborhood is unique!

[RogersParkTransplant]

Good luck, OP. Pittsburgh really is very safe and there are a lot of neighborhoods with wonderful parks, and there are excellent bus connections from all over to Baum Blvd. Friendship/Bloomfield is a nice area.

For what it's worth, good friends of ours in Regent Square have a daughter in her early 20s with autism (she's non-verbal but communicative and able to perform simple tasks when asked) and they have been really happy with the resources for her in the city. Talking to them has given me the impression that there is a pretty supportive community here for parents with special needs kids. Hope you have a good experience here too

[mcraft17]

Thank you so much for the replies! Yes sorry by uncomfortable I mean crime or just generally feeling unsafe. Someone else suggested Regent Square, so that would be a good area? And I will look into Friendship/Bloomfield. What about Ross Township? I guess it just felt bigger and this is all new to us. Yes the Highlands are unique we don't live very far from there (not walking distance) but in a suburb where we get out and walk.

That is wonderful about the services for special needs, my daughter has autism so that will be great! I was worried about being able to find services for her.

[xdv8]

Originally Posted by mcraft17

Thank you so much for the replies! Yes sorry by uncomfortable I mean crime or just generally feeling unsafe. Someone else suggested Regent Square, so that would be a good area? And I will look into Friendship/Bloomfield. What about Ross Township? I guess it just felt bigger and this is all new to us. Yes the Highlands are unique we don't live very far from there (not walking distance) but in a suburb where we get out and walk.

That is wonderful about the services for special needs, my daughter has autism so that will be great! I was worried about being able to find services for her.

Ross is completely different from the other places mentioned here. The commute would be much longer and you would lose a lot of walkable access to amenities. Considering your budget and needs you would definitely be more happy in the East End, but I don't know your tastes.

Consider Google Street view to see how these areas compare.

[jea6321]

my suggestion would be to look at highland park. There are still on occasion good deals to be had in the neighborhood. Its a little further out from the action, but still a very connected neighborhood and has a great park, cute little business district with a couple restaurants and bars and your husband would have a very easy commute.

Morningside would be my next suggestion as well as Stanton heights. the latter feels a lot like ross township only it is in the city and has great connection to lawrenceville and the greater east end.

[Paul2421]

Originally Posted by jea6321

my suggestion would be to look at highland park. There are still on occasion good deals to be had in the neighborhood. Its a little further out from the action, but still a very connected neighborhood and has a great park, cute little business district with a couple restaurants and bars and your husband would have a very easy commute.

Morningside would be my next suggestion as well as Stanton heights. the latter feels a lot like ross township only it is in the city and has great connection to lawrenceville and the greater east end.

that is pretty spot on with the comparison of stanton and ross, at least the more suburban parts of stanton. are sfh rentals available in the area? shaler also has a similar feel but not that convenient to baum. that being said, you can get to east end from most places in ross in about 30 mins, which is a totally reasonable commute to many.

[fleetiebelle]

Are you looking for brand new housing, or are you okay with older? And when you say getting out and walking, does that mean being able to walk to restaurants and amenities, or just generally sidewalks and parks?

[mcraft17]

We are ok with old or new, apartment or house (although I would much rather a house). As to walking mostly just being able to get out and walk sidewalks and such is ok with us. Where we live now we walk to the library which is a little ways away but mostly just the ability to get out and walk without worrying about running into a bad area. I mean Louisville has bad areas too and we drive through them but don't live there. That is why it is so great to have advice from those who live there. Just like I could suggest areas in Louisville to live you all would know best about Pittsburgh. And a little bit of a commute is not bad just would rather not 45 minutes to an hour. My husband is not a traffic fan but then again who really is!