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Old 11-30-2006, 03:01 PM
 
Location: WPB, FL. Dreaming of Oil city, PA
2,909 posts, read 14,045,506 times
Reputation: 1032

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Guess ill be moving out quite soon. Is Oil City, PA the best?


My dad isnt happy with me still living in his house for various reasons and wants me out asap. I am happy to move out. I dont have the money to fly all over USA looking at every city and town. Oil City, PA is the best I found so far, good combination of affordable houses, low crime and enough shopping to do. Ive asked before and youve helped, theres other good towns and cities but prices arent as good. I know my options are limited with the little money I have. Theres an alright house in Oil city for $16k, if that thing is still there and if its livable, I may buy it then in a few years when I save up more money ill buy a very nice $50k house(adjusted for inflation)

I checked the fare rates and cheapest I found so far is $222 to Pittsburgh, PA which is 73 miles away from Oil City. I am choosing one location and sticking to it. Unless there is a better location for cheaper, Oil City is it then.
I dont know how cheap the cheapest house is, I might need to take a loan for a few thousand. Is there alot more houses that arent on Realtor com that I used to search? I have $15k now for a house and a car when I get to Oil city. Its best that I pay 100% down and not bother with a loan. I figure ill have about $18k by the time I leave my parents house. Ill need to pay for plane tickets, buy a car(up to $3000) and I want $2000 in the bank to be safe in case of other expenses I need to pay quickly. This leaves me with about $10k maybe $12k for a house. I can always buy a much better house in a few years after I have more money but for now, I must leave asap and make do with what I have. As long as the house is livable and wont fall apart on me and if the water and heater work, good! What other cities and towns besides Oil city?
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Old 11-30-2006, 03:49 PM
 
88 posts, read 96,933 times
Reputation: 26
Although Oil City is cheap and such, maybe you should look into somewhere you can see yourself having FUN too. I realize you want to pay 100% but an $18k house is most likely not much quality at all.

Try cities with more to do. As far as I can tell, and could be wrong, you may get bored in Oil City. Very bored.
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Old 11-30-2006, 04:18 PM
 
Location: Anne Arundel County MD
262 posts, read 2,017,141 times
Reputation: 523
This scenario screams for you to rent for a year. I know you're against it, but please re-read your scenario and consider this option.
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Old 11-30-2006, 04:41 PM
 
Location: Perth, Western Australia
9,589 posts, read 27,695,542 times
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It's probably scenic (as in rural charm) around there. You would be also within an hour or so of mountains, or at least very large hills.

I remember passing from Erie, PA down an interstate to Pittsburgh PA and further south on my way to Myrtle Beach. Anyways, we'd often stop to eat or at least get gas in a place near by Oil City (sort of) called Grove City, PA.

Outside of Grove City in both directions, there are farms nearby, but there are also a lot of open woodlands and wetlands. The trees aren't very tall, like maybe 20-30 usually, but it's nice just the same. Grove City had a few restaurants and once we saw a fairly big old car show and they had maybe 20 palmetto trees about 6-8 feet tall planted around the gas station. Maybe they were in pots, with the pots buried. I don't know, but all those palmettos made it look more like SC.

Some things you might like about living in western PA is that it's not a far drive from some pretty cool places. Cedar Point amusment park in Sandusky OH (on Lake Erie) would be maybe 4 hours away and in eastern PA is a town called Carlisle where every summer they have a Cheverolet/GM old car and truck show that could be the biggest in the USA. There's also the Hershey chocolate factory and "Hershey Chocolate World" amusement park in Harrisburg, PA.
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Old 11-30-2006, 05:16 PM
 
Location: Tucson, AZ
1,697 posts, read 3,470,561 times
Reputation: 1549
Quote:
Originally Posted by pkoons View Post
This scenario screams for you to rent for a year. I know you're against it, but please re-read your scenario and consider this option.
Definitely.

The conventional wisdom always says that it's better to own than to rent, and for the most part that is true. Over the long haul, it's definitely true. Renting is a better choice in some scenarios, though, and the one you describe is one.

Buying a house and laying down roots somewhere is a HUGE decision. If you find out that the house you thought looked good on the internet isn't really all that good, you're in a bind. If that town that seemed to fit all your criteria doesn't look as good in person, you're in a bind. You can't tell how the people really are from the internet. You could be walking into something that you're going to seriously regret once it's too late to do anything about it.

Renting for a year can be a great way to get to really see what a place is like. If you get there and realize you hate it, you can just go somewhere else when the lease is up- no strings attached. If you do like it as much as you thought you would, then it will be much easier to check out houses and pick the one that is perfect for you because you're already there. The internet is great for research and getting a basic idea of what a place might be like, but there is nothing like being there.
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Old 11-30-2006, 05:38 PM
 
3,020 posts, read 25,672,961 times
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Default Cheap houses probably are in a bad flood zone

Did you consider all those cheap houses are in one particular area? Oil City is surrounded by water sort of. The Allegheny River and Oil Creek converge at Oil City. Just the photos are a total put off to me. Oil City is in a valley. Vennango county which it is part of has a history of flooding and collecting disaster relief.

If you just look at some photos it ain't going to take much to give some water problems. All those cheap houses are old, probably been flooded a time or too. Plus most have just about zero land, many have no off street parking of any sort. They probably are cheap for a reason. My trained eye says watch out with a lot of them. More than a lil TLC required.

That is good advice to plan on renting first. Looks like the type place to get a lot of understanding about first. It would appear to get a fairly decent house one has to spend ~$80K.

Look at photos of the place. That water level in the rivers don't got to rise much. Apparently there has been some flood control work, dams and the such. It only takes once to ruin your life bigtime.

http://www.lrp.usace.army.mil/fc/oilcity.htm (broken link)

Just about anywhere with really cheap houses is going to have some factors that must be understood. There is usually a reason.

Could be some issues with drinking water too. You really need to check places out far more than just what is the cost of houses.
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Old 11-30-2006, 05:46 PM
 
88 posts, read 96,933 times
Reputation: 26
Good point. Don't go for cheap cheap cheap, as I learned during research, it usually means there's one or more drawbacks.

You might want a middle of the road expense house, that way, not expensive, not junky, less drawbacks. So maybe save up longer?
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Old 11-30-2006, 07:25 PM
 
Location: Missouri
6,044 posts, read 24,016,190 times
Reputation: 5182
realtor dot com is known to be somewhat outdated - it will not have the latest listings, it will not have any FSBOs, and it often lists houses that have already been sold. It's a great resource to get a general idea of what housing costs in an area, but when it's time to buy, you will need to either hire a realtor or do more legwork than just look on the internet.

That's exciting that you are just about ready to move. The Pittsburgh area is lovely. I also advise to rent, even share a place, at least temporarily. What if you move there and absolutely hate it? Would you marry someone based on convenience and nothing else? Buying a house is a big committment. Whatever you choose, best of luck to you!
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Old 11-30-2006, 11:53 PM
 
3,020 posts, read 25,672,961 times
Reputation: 2806
Default Basically you keep finding the same general factors

All these places that seem to be so attractive have some of the same general factors.

Places like Oil City, Bluefield, WV, Bellaire, OH.

They are all old neighborhoods, very tight packed together. Most houses with no land, very small lots. Many have no driveways or ability to park on your own property. Maybe houses located very close to the street, zero separation from the neighbors on all sides in any meaniful sense.

Can be huge in the wrong situations. Privacy and security type issues. I never would want to buy such a house. In the old days in those type neighborhoods things may have been different. In a modern sense, just so many ways it all can go wrong. You are talking old neighborhoods based around a time long gone. Probably old industrial based areas where people walked to work and for all daily functions and they lived in a very basic primitive fashion by today's standards. How do those type neighborhoods work today???

Any house over a hundred or so years old must be understood in the sense of what is required to modernize it. What upgrades were ever done to it? If it has the original wiring / plumbing / heating plant watch out, can be walking into a buzz saw even if it "Looks" sort of pretty.

If you find those type neighborhoods and it has any of the other negatives like pollution, ability to be flooded, lead paint, needs major renovation, needs big ticket items, on and on, it can be a horrible decision, based just on price. Many of those today may never make any economic sense to ever be rehab'd. Definitely do not want to be buying blind without understanding why so many are for sale in a particular area and how do the locals view the situation? One area to always consider, what is the general areas prospects for the future? Not bad to buy at the bottom in an area that is in a total turn around situation based on some reasons fully understood. What does Oil City really have going for it? Same for all the others?

If they were so great a deal, people would have bought it all up long, long ago. It is not that you don't want to live in such a place but you must understand it all at a far deeper level. I can think of many places that are cheap that I never would consider ever moving too. For all kinds of reasons.

You definitely have to have a feel for the type people living in those neighborhoods. Can be good, might be bad, potentially could be horrible. Somehow must get some boots on the ground or have somebody that lives there as a primary source of real infomation, before making even a preliminary decision.

A few photos on the Web and some real estate listings is not a good enough research type process to understand any area, especially if you have no general experience / background / weren't born / raised / understand the general region / culture / have no relatives / friends / contacts /etc of a particular area.

Way too many areas in the USA are in a general state of flux. Some of them may be in a downward spiral to God knows where. Sure better be able to spot them and understand what the future might hold if you get involved in any area.
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Old 12-01-2006, 03:20 AM
 
Location: Portland, OR
413 posts, read 2,555,713 times
Reputation: 306
Ugh. Cold, snowy, decent city but working class feel. Not super pretty or friendly.

May I suggest the South or Texas? Plenty of wonderful, affordable towns with great shopping, quality of life and great people as long as you enjoy yourself and appreciate stuff there. Beaches, mountains, there is everything. PA is not a great state either expensive colleges and taxes with little to show for it. The Pittsburgh economy is not as good as many others it is part of the rust belt. Stay out of PA I dont recommend it to anybody. Its not a bad place but it isnt a great place either -- think on the lines of Illinois or Ohio. Not bad states just not great either.
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