Grad Student Relocating this Fall (Philadelphia, Pittsburgh: real estate, apartments, rentals)

[sweetbee]

Hi all! I have come here as a completely overwhelmed future grad student at Pitt this fall. I am relocating from outside of Philadelphia and this will be my first time away from home-an exciting and scary prospect. I guess my main issue is how to go about apartment searching from 7 hours away & not knowing anyone in the city? Does anyone have any experience w/apt. hunting long distance? I am planning a visit at the end of April and was considering finding a broker to help with my search since I am pretty much clueless. I see listings on craigslist but am wary and even though I have some idea of where I want to look (Squirrel Hill, Shadyside) I guess I am just looking for someone to point me in the right direction of how do this all efficiently and with limited time since I am currently working full time and can't take off too much from work. Any thoughts or suggestions for this apartment hunting virgin are more than welcome and appreciated.
-Amy

[WILWRadio]

A couple that used to live in Pittsburgh just told me that you should avoid Arbors Management. Apparently they are a terrible management company. Can't make any recommendations though because I've never rented in the area.

[BrianTH]

Well you could do what I did when I first came to Pittsburgh as a grad student at Pitt . . . wait until the last minute then find someone in your department who already has a place and is looking for a roommate.

Barring that . . . searching from a distance is pretty tough. If you aren't on a strict budget and don't mind dealing with some hassles on moveout, there are some big property management companies with online listings in the areas you are looking (Franklin West, Forbes, Mozart, and Walnut Capital are a few of the relatively reputable ones).

[ferraris]

Those property management companies also usually cost a bit more in rent than comparable apartments owned by smaller landlords. Though with the distance that may be all you're comfortable going with. I recommend landorslum.com to get a general feel for how a landlord is.

Also what are you looking for in an apartment and neighborhood? You could probably expand your search areas outside of Squirrel Hill and Shadyside and still have a chance to get what you're looking for I bet.

EDIT: Oh I forgot to mention that the property management companies are more likely to offer short term leases, which would be a nice option in case you get here and the apartment or location turns out to be all wrong.

[BrianTH]

Yep, the decent property management companies are relatively expensive. But if you can afford to start with one of them for a year (or indeed less), you can then look at your leisure for a better deal and with a better sense of neighborhoods.

[sweetbee]

Thanks for the replies. I guess in terms of specifics w/ apartments & neighborhoods, the most important thing is feeling safe as a young, single woman either walking around or getting to school. I know I will have to take some night classes so just not having to worry too much about something like that. So either being a little more removed from the U of Pitt campus in a quieter part of the city or being close enough so that my commute is short & sweet. I am definitely open to any other neighborhood suggestions and management companies, with my budget being between $500-650 (slightly flexible). Does anyone have any thoughts on hiring a real estate agent to help with the search? I know it's probably expensive, but would it be worth it for an out of towner?

[BrianTH]

Originally Posted by sweetbee

Thanks for the replies. I guess in terms of specifics w/ apartments & neighborhoods, the most important thing is feeling safe as a young, single woman either walking around or getting to school. I know I will have to take some night classes so just not having to worry too much about something like that. So either being a little more removed from the U of Pitt campus in a quieter part of the city or being close enough so that my commute is short & sweet. I am definitely open to any other neighborhood suggestions and management companies, with my budget being between $500-650 (slightly flexible).

Squirrel Hill and Shadyside are both tough to beat as a combination of convenience to Pitt and overall niceness, particularly for a person new to Pittsburgh. The only problem is your budget might be a little tight, particularly if you won't have the opportunity to get here beforehand and do some apartment hunting in person.

I can tell you some other neighborhoods that from my experience lots of single young female grad/prof students also look in.

Greenfield is a bit cheaper than Squirrel Hill and a little more run-down feeling in parts, but it is still very safe and very close to Pitt.

Friendship is right next to Shadyside and has a lot of grand homes, some of which have been divided into nice apartments.

Highland Park has good bus service to Pitt and is also mostly very safe and pleasant (lots of professors live up there, by the way).

Point Breeze is a mostly residential neighborhood right next to Squirrel Hill, and it can be a touch cheaper to rent there.

Regent Square, my neighborhood, is on the other side of Frick Park from Squirrel Hill with good bus access to Pitt. It is a very nice, very safe, generally pleasant little neighborhood. Note landlords are quite aggressive about what they call Regent Square--I'd be happy to help you figure out whether something is really in Regent Square or not if you are looking at a specific listing.

Sort of wedged between Point Breeze and Regent Square is Park Place, which is a bit more transitional than Regent Square but I actually think it is quite safe--that is where I lived for most of my time as a graduate student.

So those are a few suggestions. Personally, I'd start with all of the above and see what you can find in your budget. There are even more neighborhoods you could consider, but they would start getting into the more gritty/urban category. If that sounds good let us know, but otherwise it might not be a bad idea to stick with the more semi-urban/pleasant neighborhoods for your first place in Pittsburgh.

Does anyone have any thoughts on hiring a real estate agent to help with the search? I know it's probably expensive, but would it be worth it for an out of towner?

I believe most real estate agents in Pittsburgh actually charge only the landlords, and not the tenants, for brokering rentals. Of course then the landlords take that into account when setting rent, so you are probably paying for it in part anyway, but you shouldn't be paying out of pocket for those services. Also, it is probably worth noting that to the extent the agents are getting a commission based on rent, they don't really have an incentive to find the cheapest place possible for you.

Anyway, certainly a real estate agent can help based on their familiarity with the market and local neighborhoods, and if I am right about them not charging you anything directly, why not try it? I'd just make a point of doing a bit of a search on your own so you get some sense of what you really should be paying.

[robrobrob]

When I first live in Shadyside, I lived in a large apartment building that catered to students and grad students. I asked the owner to go month to month and he said no because he wanted all of his leases to begin May 1. Another time, when I looked in Shadyside it was late Fall and there really weren't that many rentals on the marktet. If you can swing it, it is well worth it to live in Shadyside or Squirrel Hil. My oringal landlord was Grieve. My other management was Arbors Management and they were fine.

[JRTurner]

A place to look would be Craigs List (pittsburgh) and/or a property management company such as Franklin West (this one I know is well run). Oakland Realty has some listings in your range in the Oakland area. My Son is a Pitt student who has a 1 bedroom apt in Shadyside for $530/Mo on a nice street on the 2nd floor of an old house converted to apts. Parking is always something you want to consider. There's a more modern set of apts on Parkview Ave. (can't reacll their name) in Oakland which have security entrance and A/C which are also in your range. Oakland Realty handles them.

[ferraris]

You might find this link helpful: Neighborhood Descriptions

With your budget I would also add Bloomfield, Lawrenceville, and Polish Hill to BrianTH's list. I live in a 1BR in Bloomfield (or Friendship, depending who you ask) and I think that it is on par with much of Shady Side and Squirrel Hill with access to the university. I'm probably about 1.5 - 2 miles from campus and the 54C bus ride (free for students) is only 10 minutes and runs pretty regularly, every 20 minutes on weekdays if I recally correctly. I'm also within walking distance of restaurants, bars, a grocery store. That can happen in Shadyside and Squirrel Hill too, just usually not for the same price.