Moving from Oklahoma City to Pittsburgh (Washington, Butler: real estate, house, transfer)

[KaJoLe]

My husband is being transferred to PGH. He will be working downtown. I will be home with the children. We have a 14 yr. old girl and 12 yr. old boy. Also have 2 18 yr. old's that will be joining us later. We are looking for good schools, friendly people, and safe neighborhoods. My daughter is also a competitive dancer, so any info. on great dance studios would be appreciated. We are also interested in the Cranberry Township area, as well as anything around the city. Please help. Thanks!!

[rugerjitsu]

lots of us southerners moving to Pittsburgh here lately! my family and i just moved up from Texas...i'm guessing your husband will be involved in the Macelus shale activity? That's why we moved up here...

you'll get some good advice on this board...Cranberry seems to be a good place with good school districts, while avoiding the high taxes from Allegheny County. you should also look into Washington County, which is just south of Pittsburgh...it's an easy commute and some great school districts there as well...

you'll notice that real estate is a bit more expensive up here than OK...if you share what kind of price range you'll be looking at, you'll get more specific help in finding a suitable area to find a home...

best of luck to you!

[Geeo]

Lots of new people to the area like the northern Allegheny County/Southern Butler County area (Wexford, Marshall, Pine, Cranberry, Adams, Franklin Park). It includes newer suburbs, new shopping centers, hills with lots of green space, a big regional park, and schools. Wesinghouse just opened their new headquarters building in Cranberry, and that's bringing a lot of people in. One drawback may be that as the population grows, the roads tend to be a little congested. Because of the hilly topography of the area, they are not easily expanded, so you may be driving over hill and dale on a two-lane on your way to the parkway into the city.

[JRTurner]

Everything you mentioned you were looking for can be had in and around Cranberry Twp or Wexford. The only drawback will be your Husband's commute.

[KaJoLe]

Thanks so much for the information. Regarding housing, I would say around 500K and a must need is trees! Does anyone have any information concerning good dance studios?

[Geeo]

I'm clueless as to dance studios. I'm sure they're plentiful out there. You will find a very nice house in your price range. There are tons of developments in the North Hills with classic-styles, two floors with master suite, walk-out basements, and acreage with trees. One nice feature of the hills is that all the developments aren't as cookie-cutter as in flat areas, so you may find more privacy with a wooded lot. I've even seen some where your driveway might include a little bridge over a brook, then the house is up the hill.

[JRTurner]

I am not particularly familiar with dance studios at all. However, I am positive that you'll be able to locate one with an excellent reputation.

Here's a link to a list of studios in that general area:

http://www.superpages.com/yellowpage...Cranberry+Twp/

I would suggest starting a new thread here asking for Dance Studio advice for Cranberry / Wexford / Pine / Franklin Park area.

[greg42]

In that price range the areas of northwestern Allegheny County and up into Cranberry are easily within your reach, even new construction should you want that (although new construction is not typically good for trees, LOL). It's very car-centric, though. You won't find any little walkable downtowns. This is almost all newer housing though, quite a lot from the 80s and later because before that the I-279 highway did not exist. North Allegheny, Pine Richland, these are pretty good school districts. Seneca Valley which serves Cranberry is somewhat less so but still good. Housing money goes a bit farther in Cranberry with the lower taxes, but the settings can be less appealing depending upon what you're looking for.

Although the congestion for driving to downtown Pittsburgh is getting a little worse at rush hour, it still beats the drives from the south or east by a mile. From Cranberry a drive to downtown would take in the vicinity of 40-45 minute at rush hour, which is about 15 minutes longer than non-rush times. Some of the closer areas in Franklin Park may shave a bit off that time. If that's feeling kind of long you could look at closer areas, Ross or Ohio townships, which are in yet again different school districts but both are also decent.

Even allowing for serious property tax, which means you might want to be thinking more like $400k than $500k, you still have plenty of options.

[KaJoLe]

Wow! You guys are amazing. Thank you again for all the information. I am looking forward to becoming a "Pittsburghian" - that is correct, right?

[Geeo]

Welcome! We call ourselves "Pittsburghers." Be sure to get out and explore the city when you arrive. There's something for everyone: great arts and culture, a great Children's Museum, libraries, outdoor activities in all seasons. We have beautiful countryside, and even a large Amish community about 60 miles north with quaint small towns.