Why are people moving out from Pittsburgh? (Houston: mortgage, new house)

[bboy36win]

Originally Posted by NinaS1

there's not much to do

Out of all of the reasons to dislike Pittsburgh, I believe this is the weakest. Say what you will about the rain, roads, and taxes; there is no shortage of things to do.

Things To Do In Pittsburgh

[globalburgh]

If anything, too few people are leaving Pittsburgh. Any region has plenty of people who feel that the grass is greener somewhere else. Why are wages so low? Why is it difficult for someone out of town to land a job in Pittsburgh? Why do employers blow off applicants without the simple courtesy of informing the pool that they didn't make the cut?

Why look at the facts when you have an ax to grind?

[guylocke]

This is the stupidest thread ever. We already have PLENTY of threads that discuss Pittsburgh being the most livable city and why, we've talked about the demographics and population statistics ad nauseum, we've talked about the pro's and con's of Pittsburgh including dedicated "why don't you" and "why do you" -- like Pittsburgh threads, we have several comprehensive threads on "things to do in Pittsburgh," and the original poster hasn't even responded (from the Czech Republic.. ??) to boot.

And if you are truly that dead set on a response on why people are leaving Pittsburgh, based upon the wikipedia table, the short and sweet answer is that truthfully, they aren't. Or at least, not in the severity that most people believe. The table in wiki actually doesn't even outline in- or out- migration at all, it's simply a population trend number.

Over 50% (last time I checked) of Pittsburgh's population loss was due to death and anemic in-migration (due mostly to the fact that the fastest growing areas in the country are due to Hispanic in-migration of which Pittsburgh has VERY little which to some is a fantastic thing and to others is a bad thing).

The old adage about Pittsburgh losing hordes of people and especially young people is just not true, plain and simple. Pittsburgh's actual population loss due to "people leaving" is actually quite modest (but still a problem! Don't get me wrong).

[TexasGirl@Heart]

Originally Posted by NinaS1

Good luck, Texanwannabe. As soon as we decide where we're headed, I'll let you know. I know it won't be Austin, though.

Thanks NinaS1! Good luck to you too. I will be in Austin preferrably, but could end up in San Antonio (probably not) or Ft Worth ( my 2nd choice). If you are thinking Houston....think twice...I lived there back in the mid-90's. I hated it. Too humid. Crime was also an issue there. I know there's crime everywhere, but it seemed like Houston had a lot more of it than other TX cities.

[Humanoid]

Just returned from a month in Houston (an infinitely larger city than Pittsburgh) and houses that would cost $500,000 here would run approximately $200,000-$250,000 there.

In some sense its a bit hard to compare. The problem is Texas has a lot of new homes and Pittsburgh a lot of old homes. I've looked at prices in the Dallas/Fort worth area and if you compare them to new homes say in Summerset then Pittsburgh is indeed more expensive. What you could get for 200k~250k in a nice area of the Dallas/Fort worth region would cost you around $380k in Summerset. But you could find an older home with the same square footage for about the same price.

Anyhow, most people look at the median prices to compare housing costs. The median in Pittsburgh is pretty low, but I think there is a good reason for that. A lot of the houses are rather run down. Even in the nice areas like Shadyside you can find plenty of run down houses. Before I moved to Pittsburgh I never saw so many run down homes in my life.

I believe this is the weakest.

Thats because you mysteriously believe everyone prefers the same sorts of things you do. I'm sure for some people Pittsburgh has plenty of activities, but to suggest to someone that is a "weak" reason to leave Pittsburgh is rather silly. If you enjoy the arts than living in Pittsburgh is absolutely nothing like living in Los Angeles or NYC. If you are an outdoors type than Pittsburgh is going to be a bit disappointing too. Anyways, in short how many "things to do" there are depends greatly on the person.

[Humanoid]

...I lived there back in the mid-90's. I hated it. Too humid.

I thought Austin was fairly humid too? My wife likes the area but I always shrug it off because I think its going to be too humid.

[TexasGirl@Heart]

Originally Posted by Humanoid

I thought Austin was fairly humid too? My wife likes the area but I always shrug it off because I think its going to be too humid.

Austin is humid but not nearly as bad as Houston being near the coast/gulf

[By~Tor]

I wonder about those who decry the "livability" thing.... I would offer, that in order to know an areas' livability in comparison to other places, they first must live in a few places to compare TO....

I grew up in Dallas, and have since lived several years in each: Shreveport, Downstate Illinois, St. Louis, Chicago, New York City, and now... Pittsburgh.. . . . . and I am happy to say, that PGH is ENTIRELY "livable", from everything I have seen and experienced...

The weather is no worse than New York or Chicago... in fact, I think it's better, because its about 5 degrees (on average) cooler than both. And the Texas heat & humidity dwarf our own, here...

Crime here is VERY low, compared to St. Louis & Chicago (both of which, I might add, I found to be very "livable" as well).

The arts scene here IS very lively and progressive... just what one would want, from their art scene... not alot of backward-thinking artisans, here...

Housing is so cheap here, even WITH the higher than average Allegheny County taxes, that it's a bargain when compared with just about ANY similarly-sized metro area....

I think that, whenever people get tired of spinning their wheels where they're at, they look for excuses as to why they should seek out hose greener pastures on the other side of the fence.... JMO....

[makeupgirl]

Was here over this past wknd. Rained Saturday and Sunday. I thought that was just a fluke, it's not? It rains all the time??? Supposed to move here from suburbs of Philly(215). Is the weather that different...will I be bored in 2 months? I did notice the lack of people in "the city" ugh... Is moving to Pgh a mistake?

[Geeo]

Of course it doesn't rain all the time. Over the weekend, we had the same weather pattern that swept across the midwest and headed east with storms, thunder and lightning. It was like this in a good part of the midwset and east. It's summer. We get summer storms. At least we don't have to ration water and budget for it like a gas bill.