What about Altoona? (Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, State College: amusement park, insurance, crime)

[Kristy1108]

My husband and I are a younger couple with no children yet. We have been looking at Altoona PA for relocation along with several other places.

What really concerns us about the area is the lack of job opportunity that seems to be available there. We also want to make sure we are moving into a very friendly, simple community with lots of conveniences and culture.
Is this just a terrible match or is it close?

Anything would help!

[danwxman]

Originally Posted by Kristy1108

My husband and I are a younger couple with no children yet. We have been looking at Altoona PA for relocation along with several other places.

What really concerns us about the area is the lack of job opportunity that seems to be available there. We also want to make sure we are moving into a very friendly, simple community with lots of conveniences and culture.
Is this just a terrible match or is it close?

Anything would help!

Friendly? Sort of. Simple? Yes. Conveniences? Sort of. Culture? No way.

[mams1559]

Originally Posted by Kristy1108

My husband and I are a younger couple with no children yet. We have been looking at Altoona PA for relocation along with several other places.

What really concerns us about the area is the lack of job opportunity that seems to be available there. We also want to make sure we are moving into a very friendly, simple community with lots of conveniences and culture.
Is this just a terrible match or is it close?

Anything would help!

I live 50 miles away, just over the mountain, west of Altoona. I used to work in Altoona and a current coworker still lives there. Yes, economically, it could be better. There is not an abundance of jobs. It would help to know what fields you and your husband are seeking jobs in.

The Altoona area (includes Altoona/Hollidaysburg/Duncansville) is a nice place to live. Schools, which aren't of great importance for you at this time, are good. It's a community oriented area and I've always found it friendly. I go shopping there usually monthly. They have lots of retail and restaurants. They have a minor league team (Altoona Curve) in a new stadium and an amusement park, Lakemont Park. Also nearby is DelGrosso's Amusement Park. There's outdoor activities and historical sites including the Horseshoe Curve and Railroaders Memorial Museum. Culture as far as music/arts/plays is limited. But Altoona is situated that it wouldn't be a far drive to other venues in surrounding areas.

I hope this helps give you a fuller picture of Altoona.

[Kristy1108]

Thank you, appreciate the comments. That gives us something to think about.

[janiesgirl]

We live in Pgh, but my brother lives in Duncansville with his family. If you're coming from a bigger city environment, you'll either find Altoona refreshing or depressing.

Friendly? Well, depends. There's a bit of the rural 'suspicious of foreigners' attitude, where foreigners are defined as people new to the area. And to me, the feeling is more rural than urban.
Jobs? Tough area for that.
Conveniences? Not that many. Strip malls.
Culture? No. But you can drive 45 minutes to State College or 2+ hours to Pittsburgh or Philadelphia.

What are your other choices?

[Flint879]

I have lived in and around Altoona for about 13 years now since I moved here from Dayton, OH. I started off living in Lakemont, then over to the heart of Hollidaysburg, now I live in the outskirts of downtown Altoona. In case you are wondering, all three of those areas are basically the same thing. Hollidaysburg is connected to Duncansville while Hollidaysburg is connected to Lakemont on the other side and Lakemont leads you right into Altoona. Its a big love circle basically. Enough joking. To answer your question from a person who has lived in this area for 13 years. Altoona honestly isn't a bad place to live, but at this point in time, I wouldn't recommend it. The town, which is huge by the way since its connected to the 3 others listed above, looks a little rundown in some areas, but thats to be expected in 99% of places in the USA. If you were looking to live in Altoona, I would honestly recommend living in Hollidaysburg, which is only about 5-6 miles from Altoona, but that also depends on where you work as opposed to your house, it could vary, but you will never almost drive more than 10 miles to get to work. The job area isn't good at all, I've been looking for a job since October 2009 and still haven't found one. You would have so much better luck if you had a degree in Nursing or RN. Some others include: Auto Collision Technician, Truck Drivers (with 3 or more years experience), Insurance Agents, Administrative Assitants, Clinical Dietitians, Counselors, Medical/Dental Receptionist, Pharmacist, Psychologist...These are the kind of jobs that are floating around the area constantly in Altoona, PA. The cost of living here is relatively cheap. I have a friend who lives in Hollidaysburg, which is where the nicer neighborhoods and houses are located for the richer people, owns a duplex house. 2 kitchens, 2 bathrooms, 4 bedrooms, 2 living rooms, big front porch, big backyard, 2 car garage, big basement and such, bought it for 220k. Right now he is spending more money to get newer appliances and such. Other houses aren't quite like that, but on average you could expect to see, for example: Gracious center hall colonial 4BR, 3.5 BA, FR w/FP Fin. Bsmt, attached 2 car garage, $272,900...5000+ sq. ft. with 5BR, 3 full BA, 2 half BA, Newer master BR suite, newer finished lower level, $379,000. Those are actually houses in the Altoona newspaper around Hollidaysburg. Of course you could find cheaper stuff, just all depends on what you want. Now along the lines of conviences, there is a bunch of strip malls, there is an actual mall, a Wal-Mart, Martin's Grocery Store which is the higher quality grocery store where the richer people shop. I'm sorry if I'm sounding kind of degrading and such, but that is honestly how I see this town and that's basically how most people living here go about it as well. The people are nice, some are dumber than others. I personally hate driving here, it's easy to get around, but sometimes you get that one random jerk that decides to go 15 mph in a 40 zone or you are doing 40 in a 40 zone, some guy is riding your ass for the next 4 miles, stuff like that irritates me as much as the next person. But I would have to say that this whole area is very nice, and safe. Barely any car accidents, crime is pretty much non-existant, we get maybe 3 major crimes a year if that many, most of the crime is just petty stuff like: This young man was arrested today for dealing drugs or this guy will go to jail for being drunk in public. Stuff like that. Other than that its a very safe place to live and raise a family, the schools are awesome and really crack down on the kids to make sure they learn and have fun at the same time, not like California where school is a joke and is considered to be the lowest in the country for education. Not PA. But take in consideration all I have listed and you can base your decision off my current information about Altoona, PA.