Moving from Buffalo, NY to Pittsburgh, PA (Bethel Park, Lebanon: real estate, house)

[jennlg]

Hello. My husband and I are looking into moving to the Pittsburgh area. We are looking for something within a 30 minute drive to the city as I will most likely work downtown. Also we would prefer to be on the west side of the city as my family lives in WV.

We want to find an area where the homes have some land (1 acre or more lots). We also want to find an area with some charm to it. We have looked at South Fayette, Canonsburg, Moon area already. Though the homes were nice they seem to be on top of each other. Also, we weren't able to find any obvious town center to these area.

This could be our fault as we were a little overwhelmed with all the hills. Buffalo is very flat.

If anyone can share some insight into Pittsburgh, what's available, what areas are nice, etc, it would be very appreciated. Thank you!

[johnnytang24]

All the places you mentioned are West and Southwest of the city. Do you want East or West? WV extends West, South, and Southeast of Pittsburgh.

[robrobrob]

You sort of have me stumped about the town center thing. Most of the newer suburbs of Pittsburgh don't have a town center. Sewickley, which is north west of the city and is pretty close to I79, is a very nice town with a lot of charm but it is pretty expensive. An acre lot is pretty big for the Pittsburgh area. You probably have to look pretty far out of town if you want an acre. However, there are always exceptions. If by town center you mean a suburban shopping area then you have more options. The areas you have looked at so far are what I would call newer suburbs, basically suburbs with new housing plans, which basically means that they are charm free.

[highway29south]

West of the city is very nice. I live near Moon in Robinson Twp and we really like it here. There is plenty of shopping, access to highways, downtown is about 20 minutes away, and you really don't need to leave the area for anything. They continue to build the area up yet it still remains a family oriented place.

If you are looking for land (esp. flat land), good luck. When I was searching for my last home the real estate lady laughed at me when I asked for a home with at least a flat acre of land. Most people in Pittsburgh are from European decent where living on top of each other is common place so no one really blinks an eye at the lack of space. Most homes advertised with an acre of land include a large hill off the side of the house that is not usable.

If you are willing to live out near Imperial, Oakdale or Clinton, you may be able to find a piece of land and a house for pretty cheap. Most of those areas are very close to Washington County but are also central to the airport and within 30 to 40 minutes of town.

[creepsinc]

Canonsburg has a town center. They also have a huge 4th of July parade, which is how I saw the town center. My GF's coworker lives there.

[Katiana]

Some areas in way western Beaver County (Chippewa Twp, South Beaver Twp, Big Beaver Borough, etc) have larger lots, but they are more than 30 min. from downtown. More like 45-60 min. I'd agree with highway29south, you will not find a flat acre much of anywhere. My dad owned 3/4 acre in Big Beaver; about 1/2 acre sloped downhill from the road towards a stream, and 1/4 acre sloped uphill from the stream (from POV of the road).

[slamont61]

I would look in both Beaver County and Washington PA areas. Just so long as you are out of Allegheny County, your taxes should be a bit easier to deal with. Also those areas will have more of the Land you desire.

[Orwelleaut]

I agree with everyone that a cheap spread would be hard to find unless you are some distance out from the city. Remember, greater Pittsburgh has a lot more people than greater Buffalo.

One direction that might be worth looking into would be up Route 28 past the turnpike. The Allegheny Valley is lined with industrial boroughs, but things get rural pretty quickly when you travel inland from these old towns. There seems to be some pleasant, very rural hilly countryside just inland from Tarentum, and just inland from New Ken/Lower Burrell area out by Leechburg.

[mquest]

Rosalyn Farms is a nice neighborhood not too far from the city. 30 minutes during rush hour is a possibility. When it's not rush hour it's quick to get into the city and buses would also be an option. They have beautiful properties but may not be full acres. Although Rosalyn Farms doesn't have its own town center it's really close to Carnegie which has a center business area.

One other thing to point out, we do have a subway line but it only goes to the south suburban neighborhoods, Beechview, Dormont, Mt. Lebanon, Castle Shannon and Bethel Park. I don't know if this matters to you

[slamont61]

Depending on what part of Buffalo you are coming from, "charm" is going to appear to be everywhere here in Pittsburgh.

Working in Down Town Pittsburgh is a pleasurable experience. If you decide to live in the South Hills you can take advantage of the Light Rail but the South West side of town has Bus Service as well. If you get too far out you'll have to drive in to work which could put you in the Rush Hour tunnel funnel as the Parkway West backs up through Greentree for no apparent reason other than the Banksville interchange merge just before the tunnels.

If you think that the homes in Moon, South Fayette and Cannonsburg are "on top of each other" you are going to find yourself a lot further out from the city than 30 minutes. Each one of these is already "out there" in relation to the City of Pittsburgh. I recomend that you look at some listings in areas closer to town and see if you can't find anything with enough land included while remaining closer to you work. This is likely the best of those times to find property at reasonable prices.

You may also wish to revise your goal area to include the North West also. Newer development has occurred out that way and it's awful convenient to I-79 which can take you quickly to WV. In my estimate, that area will be the better of both worlds.

If it's the Suburbs you wish the South will be fine, if you do need land and access to WV as well as Down Town Pittsburgh then do look at the North Hills and beyond.