Cleveland vs. Pittsburgh (Lakewood, University Heights, Beachwood: real estate market, rentals, houses)

[pipersrocks]

So I'm just shooting this out there because for the past year or so I've been house hunting and thinking about where I want to end up in the long run. I'm 28, currently working at Whole Foods (for the past 5 years) and recently started substitute teaching in Pittsburgh. I haven't had much luck looking at houses in our price range since my boyfriend waits tables and most of my income is per diem. This means that we only qualify for a 50-60K mortgage. With many neighborhoods growing so quickly in the Burgh, it's making it very difficult to find something in a decent, safe neighborhood that isn't total crap. I know this is due to our price-tag constraints, but still. I'm trying to decide whether Pittsburgh is even where I would like to be in the long run. I have a lot of old friends here, and have enjoyed the past 5 years living here.. but I'm still considering my other options.

We recently took a weekend trip out to Cleveland and stayed in Lakewood. We had an awesome time visiting shops, restaurants, breweries, etc. We are rather nerdy, so access to comic shops and vintage toy stores is definitely a plus=] I loved the scene downtown, though we didn't get to spend a ton of time there. Btw, Lola's was excellent!! In shopping around online, I was pretty excited but also worried to see that even though the housing stock in our price range looks pretty wonderful, the market is plummeting. Even in University Heights, it seems that prices have dropped 50% or more in the past few years. Beautiful, well-kept homes in good neighborhoods have been on the market for 100-300 days. I am trying to read-up on the state of the city and the market online, but I think it would be better to get opinions from residents.

For those living in the Cleveland area, are there any of you who have also lived in or spent a lot of time in Pittsburgh? Is there any comparison here? I know that both are a bit gritty and have a lot of history, I'm just not sure if there's a similar vibe or not since we didn't spend much time in Cleveland. I will say that Pittsburgh has A LOT going for it as far as growth and potential are concerned. I just don't want to discount another city that I found to be awesome as well. I like a good cultural/arts scene, as well as a city with lots of good food and beer=] Pittsburgh is very diverse, and I love being in neighborhoods that embrace all ages, races, and walks of life. So overall I would say that I'm looking for a city that is a lot like Pittsburgh, but with more options for someone in my price range.

Ok, let me have it!

[pipersrocks]

PS-I am not a native Pittsburgher, I'm actually from the Williamsport, PA area (a very small town called Montoursville.. pop. 5,000). I also wanted you to know that I am not a raging sports fan like a lot of Pittsburghers. My boyfriend is a huge Pens fan (and I also enjoy hockey), but he isn't annoying about it. He was wondering if they air Pens games in Cleveland=]

[Marty711]

Originally Posted by pipersrocks

PS-I am not a native Pittsburgher, I'm actually from the Williamsport, PA area (a very small town called Montoursville.. pop. 5,000). I also wanted you to know that I am not a raging sports fan like a lot of Pittsburghers. My boyfriend is a huge Pens fan (and I also enjoy hockey), but he isn't annoying about it. He was wondering if they air Pens games in Cleveland=]

I'll let people more familiar with the real estate market answer your other questions, but I can answer your hockey one. The entire region receives Blue Jackets games although they are sometimes pushed to alternate channels. The Penguins are trickier. Most of Northeast Ohio falls in the Pens TV territory but the major cable operators here (Time Warner and Cox) do not carry Root Sports Pittsburgh. I have DirecTV and see all the Pens game because they do offer it. I believe satellite is the only way you can see all the games. Even if you had TW and got Center Ice, many, if not all Pens games will be blacked out.

[L2DB]

Pens games out of market? There's an internet for that.

[pipersrocks]

Yea, we already mostly just watch games on the internet since we don't have cable. I was more wondering for going out and maybe watching a game at a bar.. oh well.

Now back to the original question...

[Bimmer_Rich]

Food/music/art are great here. At $60K, you can buy in pretty much any neighborhood you want including the Heights or Lakewood. I always recommend Lakewood. It's a beautiful area with a lot to offer and is also very close to Ohio City and Tremont. The Heights are close to higher end national retailers at Beachwood, Legacy, Eton, etc. but that has no interest to me.

I wouldn't listen to the Cleveland naysayers on the board. Most of them are trolls out in the boonies totally disconnected from the world except for their shopping trips at Walmart. Cleveland is full of awesome local bars and restaurants. Once you start following them on Twitter, there's always cool stuff going on. For example, members of the Cleveland Orchestra play each month at Happy Dog (def worth checking this place out for lunch/dinner).

[Natural510]

I'm amazed at how cheap rentals can be even in the best Cleveland neighborhoods, like 3BR houses for under $800/mo in Ohio City. There's something to be said for living in a city which meets all your basic needs and entertainment options while giving you all the extra spending money to do it.

[SteelCityRising]

Originally Posted by Natural510

I'm amazed at how cheap rentals can be even in the best Cleveland neighborhoods, like 3BR houses for under $800/mo in Ohio City. There's something to be said for living in a city which meets all your basic needs and entertainment options while giving you all the extra spending money to do it.

^ This. Pittsburgh used to be just as affordable, but now that it is "like, OMG, sooooo trendy and cool and junk" rental rates have shot through the roof over the past several years. We pay almost that much for a 1-BR portion of a rowhome in a neighborhood without a business district. We are in the same situation as pipersrocks. We're in our mid-20s and are looking to buy our first home on a limited budget that would have afforded us livable homes in safe neighborhoods just a few years ago but now proves quite challenging and forboding. Housing prices are apparently rising more quickly here than real wages, which may just cause a mini-bubble here in the coming years.

[JoeP]

Pittsburgh used to be just as affordable, but now that it is "like, OMG, sooooo trendy and cool and junk" rental rates have shot through the roof over the past several years.

No, it's what the market is doing. The rental market in Pgh is extremely tight. Rates are up just because of "trendy and cool"

[bjimmy24]

Originally Posted by JoeP

No, it's what the market is doing. The rental market in Pgh is extremely tight. Rates are up just because of "trendy and cool"

THat's exactly what the person said.