Pittsburgh lags badly in median household income (2013, school districts)

[erieguy]

Originally Posted by PghSportsGuy420

The future looks bright.

If a declining population is bright looking.

[SteelCityRising]

Originally Posted by erieguy

If a declining population is bright looking.

I'll never understand how the city's population has declined so much since I moved here in 2010, yet paradoxically during that same timeframe traffic congestion has worsened and rents have gone through the roof. Shouldn't consistently fewer people with each successive year yield lessening traffic and plateauing rents? I mean I'd be THRILLED that we're probably heading for a population of like 290,000 by 2030 if it meant less congestion and more affordability, but if all we're doing is losing Federal funding and Congressional representation whilst dealing with more expenses and more congestion then what's the point? Less Federal funding and less Congressional representation means the fewer remaining residents will have to pick up the slack with higher local taxes, no?

[erieguy]

Originally Posted by SteelCityRising

I'll never understand how the city's population has declined so much since I moved here in 2010, yet paradoxically during that same timeframe traffic congestion has worsened and rents have gone through the roof. Shouldn't consistently fewer people with each successive year yield lessening traffic and plateauing rents? I mean I'd be THRILLED that we're probably heading for a population of like 290,000 by 2030 if it meant less congestion and more affordability, but if all we're doing is losing Federal funding and Congressional representation whilst dealing with more expenses and more congestion then what's the point? Less Federal funding and less Congressional representation means the fewer remaining residents will have to pick up the slack with higher local taxes, no?

“Because it’s cheap” only lasts so long and is only so desirable.

“More affordability” is quite the dream. You yourself said one of the reasons you moved to the area was affordability. Thinking that’s going to go the other way isn’t realistic.

What many don’t understand, because in many cases they think it’s the be all end all, is that it lacks desirability and quality jobs. I’d wager very few wake up and say “I would love to move to Pittsburgh”.

[Independentthinking83]

Originally Posted by erieguy

“Because it’s cheap” only lasts so long and is only so desirable.

“More affordability” is quite the dream. You yourself said one of the reasons you moved to the area was affordability. Thinking that’s going to go the other way isn’t realistic.

What many don’t understand, because in many cases they think it’s the be all end all, is that it lacks desirability and quality jobs. I’d wager very few wake up and say “I would love to move to Pittsburgh”.

^^^ this

It’s hard to attract and or retain people with below average wages and stagnant or non existent job growth. I’m amazed at how many people fail to grasp that concept. That’s why the city and region has lost so much population spanning decades.

You do have a lot of people that want to stay and there are not a lot of jobs to absorb what the colleges and schools put out to market. Hence you have overqualified people working for embarrassingly low wages because they either think Pittsburgh is the be all end all or they are afraid to leave.

We have the most educated population working in below average jobs and disaffected as a result putting effort into east end protests instead of looking for good paying work in another place.

Lack of job growth and low wages have dogged this city and metro for decades. It’s nothing new and I don’t see it changing. In fact the staggering unemployment here looks like it will stay a while. Not good for he economy or population growth.

[erieguy]

It suits them so they think it should suit everyone. The concept of having different standards of living is extremely hard for some to understand.

[PghSportsGuy420]

Originally Posted by Independentthinking83

^^^ this

It’s hard to attract and or retain people with below average wages and stagnant or non existent job growth.

The median household income in Allegheny County is over $2000 higher than in Hamilton County OH and you were tooting Hamilton's horn earlier in this very thread.

[Independentthinking83]

Originally Posted by PghSportsGuy420

The median household income in Allegheny County is over $2000 higher than in Hamilton County OH and you were tooting Hamilton's horn earlier in this very thread.

Unemployment in Allegheny County is 5% higher. And that 2000 dollars is irrelevant if you can’t find or don’t have a job. Plus cost of living there is 3.3% less than Pittsburgh. So there is actually the better bargain.

If unemployment stays this high here 14.3 percent county and 15.9 percent city without going down I’d venture to say people won’t have a choice and those wanting to live close to Pittsburgh may choose going to Cincinnati just to get a paycheck.

It’s pretty bad when buffalo unemployment is .1 points lower and Cleveland is over 2 percent lower. I thought we were better than those places?

[PghSportsGuy420]

Originally Posted by Independentthinking83

Unemployment in Allegheny County is 5% higher. And that 2000 dollars is irrelevant if you can’t find or don’t have a job. Plus cost of living there is 3.3% less than Pittsburgh. So there is actually the better bargain.

You get what you pay for. It's cheaper to live there for a reason.

If unemployment stays this high here 14.3 percent county and 15.9 percent city without going down I’d venture to say people won’t have a choice and those wanting to live close to Pittsburgh may choose going to Cincinnati just to get a paycheck.

It’s pretty bad when buffalo unemployment is .1 points lower and Cleveland is over 2 percent lower. I thought we were better than those places?

People with higher income tend to be unemployed for longer because high income jobs aren't exactly all over the place.

I was unemployed for three months in 2019. I wasn't about to take a job mopping floors when I have a very specific, high-paying skillset.

[eschaton]

I don't have a dog in this fight, but generally speaking the current recession is being driven by the still large number of people out of work in the hospitality and entertainment industries (bars, restaurants, hotels, museums, casinos, etc) along with retail.

If Pittsburgh has more unemployment right now than a lot of its peer metros, wouldn't that suggest that tourism played a stronger role in the local economy?

[gg]

Originally Posted by eschaton

I don't have a dog in this fight, but generally speaking the current recession is being driven by the still large number of people out of work in the hospitality and entertainment industries (bars, restaurants, hotels, museums, casinos, etc) along with retail.

If Pittsburgh has more unemployment right now than a lot of its peer metros, wouldn't that suggest that tourism played a stronger role in the local economy?

Not sure if "tourism" is a really big part of it, but maybe people going to the city from suburbs to eat out or enjoy is not happening due to COVID and in some cases protests that happen every week. No one wants to visit if they are anywhere near that as we have seen some very aggressive acts. You should see that one in DC, where they went after people just eating at some struggling restaurant. So far I haven't seen that here, but I suspect people are leery of venturing into the city. Also, you have to eat a dinner to have a drink and 25% capacity isn't really sustainable.

On a bright note, I am VERY impressed with the efforts of Nicky's Thai Kitchen.