Considering Moving to PGH...HELP!!!!

[ExPit]

Originally Posted by divaofpop

Thank you all for your help...I'm really getting some wonderful advice here...Can anyone give me some information on Penn Hills and Shadyside?....I've found several homes of interest in those area for excellent prices, but some say "Stay away from Penn Hills", others swear by the neighborhood...Any advice?

There's a lot of crime in Homewood, which borders Penn Hills, and there's a lot in East Liberty, which borders Shadyside. The diversity of the inner city has to be measured against crime, right?

I'm out of town and probably out of touch as well, but I'd say that 200K will buy you a nice house in alot of neighborhoods in and around Pittsburgh. So, maybe start with your criteria of school districts and diversity and go from there...but come to think of it, it was either on this forum or in a Pittsburgh paper where I read that Taylor-Alderdice High School in the Squirrel Hill section of the city is one of the best in the state, and that area is I'd say pretty diverse, and pretty nice too, though I think 200K would still do it.

[BrianTH]

Originally Posted by divaofpop

Thank you all for your help...I'm really getting some wonderful advice here...Can anyone give me some information on Penn Hills and Shadyside?....I've found several homes of interest in those area for excellent prices, but some say "Stay away from Penn Hills", others swear by the neighborhood...Any advice?

Are you finding homes in Shadyside under $200K? I ask just because Shadyside tends to be the most expensive neighborhood in that area.

Anyway, Shadyside is in the East End, and the East End has some relatively diverse and quite nice neighborhoods, most with good to excellent public transit options. The trick will be getting good public schools and a large yard in your price range.

[artlk3]

Originally Posted by divaofpop

Hello All...I am a small business owner and recently divorced mother of 4. We currently live in Philadelphia, but would like to relocate (crime, housing prices skyrocketing,etc), maybe to Pittsburgh. Could anyone please advise me on the best neighborhoods to live in? I'm looking for a nice, middle-class neighborhood with diversity (we're black). Schools and shopping are also a huge concern because I have teenagers.

Thanks in advance for all of your help.xoxo

Plum's a very nice neighborhood. Schools are excellent--I used to teach there. My parents liked it so much they retired there, and now their home is up for sale. Many homes for sale.

[Bong477]

Staying away from Penn Hills is probably good advice. Its a big area and it isn't all bad, but the schools aren't very good and its almost impossible to sell a house there except to people that don't know the area because of its bad rap.

I have a hard time believing you can find something nice for under 200k in Shadyside which is generally considered the nicest and most expensive city neighborhood. Shadyside does border some less than desirable areas, but East Liberty is at least getting better and has been spurred by a lot of upscale commericial development. Homewood on the other hand is probably the worst area in pittsburgh and has no hope of getting significantly better in the near future.

I'd look at Squirrel Hill & Point Breeze to start. Regent square is another popular neighborhood to look at. Most of the nicer suburbs don't seem to have a lot of black families living in them. That's not to say you wouldn't be happy there and would experience rampant racism... I definately don't get a very racist vibe living here, but not being black myself its hard to guess what your experience would be and I don't want to give you bad information.

[supersoulty]

I terms of real diversity the East End is probably your best bet.

Shadyside is expensive, but its safe, the houses are very nice, and the neighborhood has alot to offer (I currently live there). It is next to East Liberty, which is a majority minority (Black) neighborhood. East Liberty has some problems, but its really not as bad as some people say. I walk through there all the time, albeit on the edges, but its not like you are seriously risking getting shot just by walking through. It's just run down, though improvements are being made. And the crime that does happen there rarely really spills over into Shadyside... and even then, the worst of it is usually burglary. Shadyside has a bit of an "Old Money" feel, while remaining reasonably progressive. There is a sizable gay community, for whatever that means to you. There is also a sizable Jewish community just to the South. And Bloomfield, Pittsburgh's Little Italy, is to the North.

I would also recommend Point Breeze, very similar in many ways, but its less expensive. It's also further into the more crime ridden East End neighborhoods.

If you want to look to the South Hills, Brookline is still in the city, and has a very suburban feel, as does Mt. Lebanon, which is a separate municipality. But the South Hills lack quite a bit for diversity.

I would look into the North Side as well. I here there are some nice neighborhoods there that might match what you are looking for, though admittedly, I know almost nothing about that part of town.

Penn Hills is very hit or miss. You can go from a nice part, over the bend to a bad part just like *that*.