Living in Mt. Lebanon vs. Dormont (Houston: apartments, school district, landlords)

[PeterRabbit]

I checked out a property tax site some time ago and I believe the taxes in Charlotte were about 1/4 of what they are here.

In one day you could check out most of the towns/areas that Hopes mentioned. The ones in the city are fairly near each other and the same for Aspinwall and Oakmont. I think if you want a good school in the city you usually have to send your kids to a private school.

Aspinwall is part of the Fox Chapel school system which is highly regarded. It's nice although small and there isn't much to it's business district. There's an adequate shopping center just up the road half a mile.

Oakmont is the Riverview school system and I think it ranks around 120 out of 500 in the state. If you live there your kids walk to school. There's a park by the river and a woodsy park at the top of the hill. It has a nice library and it's own post office. The downtown business district is much larger than Aspinwall and there are many restaurants as well as various small shops, drug stores, banks, etc. There's a small shopping center in the next town over where the supermarket is. There's organized sports in the park in the summer and high school sports there during school season.

[Hopes]

I just learned that there is a charter school in Regent Square. It's so new that it only has K-3 right now. It will eventually expand to K-8.

Someone with a young family could take advantage of that.

[Copanut]

Originally Posted by Luv4ThePaws

We don't have kids but plan on it in the near future after we get settled in.

OK, so let's assume that you have at least 5 years to worry about a school district, assuming you make the move this weekend.

[Luv4ThePaws]

Thanks PeterRabbit, Hopes and Copanut! I really appreciate it! Yes, our real estate taxes aren't too bad here, but then again, our schools stink and our roads are poor and don't require snow plowing! I am assuming your taxes are higher because of these things? I looked at some houses Hopes linked me to and Oakmont has some cute houses! We had always heard it was kind of pretentious with the country club and all (the U.S. Open plays there so we assumed it was very elite!) but PeterRabbit- you made it seem ideal! We added that to the top of our list as an area to check out. We hear there is good weather coming to Pittsburgh so we are excited to go Monday!!

I know I have mentioned this before (and maybe no one answered since, like me, you can't find/don't know the law) but what are the dog ordinances? Some towns limit the number you can have, and we have 2 Chihuahuas and two bigger dogs. They are all inside dogs though and are well-behaved, so will anyone even mind? Thanks!

[Luv4ThePaws]

Originally Posted by Hopes

I just learned that there is a charter school in Regent Square. It's so new that it only has K-3 right now. It will eventually expand to K-8.

Someone with a young family could take advantage of that.

That is great to know for all of us considering the move! Thanks!

[Hopes]

Originally Posted by Luv4ThePaws

We had always heard it was kind of pretentious with the country club and all (the U.S. Open plays there so we assumed it was very elite!) but PeterRabbit- you made it seem ideal! We added that to the top of our list as an area to check out.

The country club doesn't make Oakmont pretentious. Most of the people who belong to the country club don't live in Oakmont. There are some VERY cheap, tiny houses in Oakmont. You're not going to be surrounded by complete wealth.

What I like about Aspinwall is that it has the charm of a small town with its own business district, but it's within walking distance of a large modern shopping center called the Waterworks. There's a large grocery store at Waterworks, but also a small Italian grocery store in Aspinwall itself. Aspinwall might not have a library, but you can walk to Barnes & Nobel.

Aspinwall also has a hospital. St. Margaret's is an excellent hospital. All of the rooms are private rooms so you get a private room at a semi-private billed rate. Since it surrounded by medical professional buildings, you can walk to doctor's appointments for any generality or speciality and to the hospital for tests.

Aspinwall's shopping area is not that tiny. There are independent businesses along Freeport Road for about a mile, and there are two other small commercial areas off Freeport road with restaruants and businesses.

Aspinwall has a flea market on Sundays and a farmers market in the non-winter months.

Originally Posted by Luv4ThePaws

I know I have mentioned this before (and maybe no one answered since, like me, you can't find/don't know the law) but what are the dog ordinances? Some towns limit the number you can have, and we have 2 Chihuahuas and two bigger dogs. They are all inside dogs though and are well-behaved, so will anyone even mind? Thanks!

You'd have to check each municipality. I know there is some sort of a limit where I live but I think 4 is under limit. These laws exist to stop puppy farms.

[Luv4ThePaws]

Originally Posted by Hopes

The country club doesn't make Oakmont pretentious. Most of the people who belong to the country club don't live in Oakmont. There are some VERY cheap, tiny houses in Oakmont. You're not going to be surrounded by complete wealth.

What I like about Aspinwall is that it has the charm of a small town with its own business district, but it's within walking distance of a large modern shopping center called the Waterworks. There's a large grocery store at Waterworks, but also a small Italian grocery store in Aspinwall itself. Aspinwall might not have a library, but you can walk to Barnes & Nobel.

Aspinwall also has a hospital. St. Margaret's is an excellent hospital. All of the rooms are private rooms so you get a private room at a semi-private billed rate. Since it surrounded by medical professional buildings, you can walk to doctor's appointments for any generality or speciality and to the hospital for tests.

Aspinwall's shopping area is not that tiny. There are independent businesses along Freeport Road for about a mile, and there are two other small commercial areas off Freeport road with restaruants and businesses.

Aspinwall has a flea market on Sundays and a farmers market in the non-winter months.


You'd have to check each municipality. I know there is some sort of a limit where I live but I think 4 is under limit. These laws exist to stop puppy farms.

Aspinwall does sound very nice. We spent awhile looking at houses in Oakmont and they were a little pricey but like you said, they have some smaller houses for very cheap and we saw several foreclosures on-line as well. However, they also weren't in the best shape and we don't want a fixer-upper. We will put Aspinwall on the list as well. The shopping areas and hospital sound very nice. Thanks again for all your help, Hopes! You're a wealth of info!

I am glad they have laws in place to stop puppy farms. Our four dogs are all rescued and the two Chihuahuas came from irresponsible and abusive backyard breeders. It is horrible the conditions they were faced with just so the owners could make a few bucks off of them. We just don't want to get in trouble moving someplace that has strict ordinances and find out that we have to move again simply because we have too many... Finding these laws amongst the various websites is very difficult! Thanks!

[Hopes]

Originally Posted by Luv4ThePaws

I am glad they have laws in place to stop puppy farms. Our four dogs are all rescued and the two Chihuahuas came from irresponsible and abusive backyard breeders. It is horrible the conditions they were faced with just so the owners could make a few bucks off of them. We just don't want to get in trouble moving someplace that has strict ordinances and find out that we have to move again simply because we have too many... Finding these laws amongst the various websites is very difficult! Thanks!

I found this reference to a court ruling concerning Allegheny County:

Holt and Eveslage used a 1994 Pennsylvania decision (Commonwealth v Creighton) to support their suit. In that case, a court in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, removed an ordinance that limited residents to five pets. In resolving that case, the judge quoted from Kadash vs City of Williamsport, 1975: “What is not an infringement upon public safety and is not a nuisance cannot be made one by legislative fiat and then prohibited. Even legitimate legislative goals cannot be pursued by means which stifle fundamental personal liberty when the goals can otherwise be more reasonably achieved.”

Dog Owner's Guide: Dog limit called unconstitutional in Minnesota

I have a friend who breeds dogs. I thought I remember her saying something about a limit to the number of dogs. I'll ask her.

These are the Pennsylvania dog laws:

Agriculture: Dog Laws

http://www.schuylkilltwp.com/DogLaws.pdf

This new law might only apply kennels, not sure:

Dog Law Action

If you're interested in buying property in a specific municipality, call the township office and ask. If they tell you that four dogs is okay, ask them to give it to you in writing.

[Luv4ThePaws]

"If you're interested in buying property in a specific municipality, call the township office and ask. If they tell you that four dogs is okay, ask them to give it to you in writing."

Excellent idea! I wouldn't have thought of getting it in writing. Thanks! Also, we appreciate the links you posted as well. You are very helpful!

[davemacc]

There is no comparison between the two school districts if that's what your priority is. It's Mount Lebanon hands down. The two best school districts in the Pittsburgh area sre consistently Mount Lebanon and Upper St. Clair. They go back and forth between which one is better year to year. I read a post that said Mount Lebanon was the 17th highest rated school district in the state???...only by some bogus standard - it's typically rated in the top 5 - along with Upper St. Clair (Tredyffrin/Easttown, Radnor, and Unionville-Chadds Ford from the Philly area are the other 3). These 5 districts are hands down the best in Pennsylvania - PERIOD.

Mount Lebanon High School is ALWAYS in the top 5 in PA with regard to SAT scores annually. That aside, Mount Lebanon is referred to as "Middle Suburban" - it is very walkable and has a charm you simply don't get in Dormont. The streets are tree lined, and it has a warm feel while having a hip urban feel. Comparable Upper St. Clair is very nice - but doesn't have the walkability or charm of Mount Lebanon. Other areas have decent schools - Fox Chapel (lovely - not walkable for the most part), Peters Township (very suburban - not walkable, at all).

Really - Dormont's cute, I used to live there, but once I had kids and the money, I moved to Mount Lebanon. It was an easy choice.