Property Taxes in Upper St Clair are an ass kicker (Pittsburgh: fit in, sales)

[Hopes]

Originally Posted by jimmyev

Another option are more rural school districts in Washington and Greene Counties, but I'm not familiar with that particular area. Rural districts rank lower in all those unofficial ratings because they have a more economically diverse student population with varying levels of parental involvement.

That's a generalization! There are some excellent school districts in surrounding ''rural" counties!

[robrobrob]

Instead of picking a township as your main focus, I recommend doing a county-wide search for real estate, then look into the standing of the school district for houses you like.

I think at least half of the people who buy homes in the Pittsburgh Area do it this way. Mainly because we generally are less transient than other cities and have ties to one particular area. The OP was looking in USC because they have family there. This is the reason that many of us have settled in one area or another. In other cases, many people gravitate to an adjoining suburb which might be nicer than the one one they grew up in.

[greg42]

Originally Posted by szug-bot

im not an expert on taxes and so forth, but besides property taxes, one has to consider where else they are paying taxes. in some counties, personal property (cars, boats) are taxed. its possible the OPs former Georgia community had something similar, so in effect he/she is making out with buying a house in this area.
PA and/or Allegheny COUnty do NOT tax cars, boats, etc., correct? i dont think so.

Although such taxes are generally paid to counties, they are, to my knowledge, determined at the state level. In other words, I've not seen a state where some counties have personal property tax and some counties do not.

Pennsylvania does NOT have personal property tax (aka car tax, etc.) in any county. Registering your car costs $36/year. Annual inspection is required. But there's no several hundred dollar tax each year.

[bethany12]

Originally Posted by Stockton.

What threw us for a loop were the property taxes.

What's the deal with this area and taxes? Why are these property taxes so high?

Welcome to PA. Oh you have so much to learn. PA is unofficially a suburb of NY.

[Hopes]

Originally Posted by bethany12

Welcome to PA. Oh you have so much to learn. PA is unofficially a suburb of NY.

Eastern PA is unofficially a suburb of NY, not Western PA.

And Bethany is unofficially the City-Data Pittsburgh hater who posted that inaccurate statement.

[5stones]

I too would say look at Peters Township. (McMurray and Venita both go to Peters township schools)

Plenty of new/newer housing in your price with the square footage you want and LOWER TAXES than USC. you are literally right on the boarder of Allegheny county so drive time into the city from Peters won't be but a few minutes more than USC. You will also be more likly to get a larger yard in Peters.

TOP rated schools...for schools there really is no difference between USC & Peters.

[jimmyev]

Originally Posted by Hopes

That's a generalization! There are some excellent school districts in surrounding ''rural" counties!

I was trying to say that some of those districts are excellent, but might not be reflected in the rankings.

Here's a website that uses data more like other states. You can compare schools, but it doesn't rank them. You have to do that yourself. I believe the data is from 2009:

Pennsylvania Schools - Pennsylvania State School Ratings - Public and Private

[bethany12]

Here's more evidence of higher property taxes to come....You may want to rent in USC.

Pa. pension time bomb still set to explode in 2012 - The York Daily Record (http://www.ydr.com/ci_14033049 - broken link)

[Copanut]

I'll semi agree with B-12, the legacy bills that govt workers are dumping on those of us that earn a living will be high. But renting won't make you immune, I'm guessing sooner or later a new statewide tax to fund the retirements for teachers and others will be instituted.

I have a good friend that recently retired after 30 years as a teacher: 70K plus 40K in medical benefits.

Damn, shoulda been a teacher.

[jdseigel]

Stockton, did you decide on a house? There are tax issues to consider when moving to PA, not just school taxes. You've already read that our state income tax is lower, but that's not really completely true. While our tax rate is lower than most states, its on GROSS income where most states use the same deductions as federal taxes and tax on NET income. I paid less in state taxes where I used to live at a 7% rate than I do now. Also, what many people here may not understand is that in Allegheny County we have way too many municipalities with duplicate services. Where some counties might have 6-10 munis, we have almost 100. Most of those with their own police, fire, administration, schools, etc. THAT'S the real reason that taxes are so high here. Someone said that the taxes rates need to be higher because the home prices are lower. That may be true in areas with very low home prices such as Wilkensburg, but in USC, Mt. Lebanon and such, its just the opposite. The prices in those municipalities are lower than they would otherwise be BECAUSE the tax rates are so high.

What you need to do is speak with a Real Estate Agent who knows the area. Most of them just work in one place and don't know much about anything that's across a river. But there are some who actually spend the time to learn the entire area. Look for one of those. Let me know if you want a recommendation.

As for school districts, USC is the most consistently highest rated district by magazines like US News & World Report, but there are others that also get high marks such as Mt. Lebanon, North Allegheny, Fox Chapel Area, and others. As I said, you need a professional to help guide you to an area that meets your needs.