Moving to pittsburgh tips for young adult (apartment, townhouse)

[oaktac]

Hey everyone

Im new to this website, and im sorry if this topic has already been posted but im thinking of possibly moving to pittsburgh from Toronto. I just graduated college and I just wanted to ask your advice on a couple things.

1) What is the cost of living like? is it affordable for a recent college grad?
2) How easy is it to meet people? what are people in pittsburgh like towards new comers? Is there alot of other young people in the same boat or is it more of a older crowd?
3) What are the good and the bad(if there are any of moving there) as a young adult that you can think of?

[hnsq]

I am currently a student living in the Pittsburgh, and it is one of the most affordable cities you will find. There are plenty of places to live that will not break the bank (don't get a townhouse apartment in shadyside, for example) but are still cheap. I live in friendship, which is very close to a few good business districts, bars, grocery stores, etc. It is cheap, and I always have felt safe walking around.

It isn't that hard to meet new people, there are more than a few colleges in the city, so as long as you are outgoing and try to talk to younger people you will do fine. I used to live outside of Philladelphia and Seattle, and Pittsburgh is the friendliest cities I have seen.

Pittsburgh neighborhoods are very distinct. You will find certain neighborhoods have mostly older people, while others are almost exclusively young professionals and students. I would explore shadyside (almost like a middle class suburb in the city), oakland (all college students), squirrel hill (nice, friendly place) right away, then once you get comforatable with the city you can expand from there.

[Elder18]

What field of work are you looking to get into?

My understanding is that getting a "professional" job in Pittsburgh can be difficult unless you are in certain fields (medicine, technology, etc.) that Pittsburgh is strong in.

This is something you should consider before jumping in.

Other than that and a few less-than-safe areas (the exact location of which is a topic endlessly debated here) Pittsburgh seems to be a great place to live.

My wife and I are moving there next week(!), so we've looked into many of the things you're thinking about right now I'd wager.

Good luck.

[Katarina Witt]

Originally Posted by oaktac

Hey everyone

Im new to this website, and im sorry if this topic has already been posted but im thinking of possibly moving to pittsburgh from Toronto. I just graduated college and I just wanted to ask your advice on a couple things.

1) What is the cost of living like? is it affordable for a recent college grad?
2) How easy is it to meet people? what are people in pittsburgh like towards new comers? Is there alot of other young people in the same boat or is it more of a older crowd?3) What are the good and the bad(if there are any of moving there) as a young adult that you can think of?

People are open and welcoming to newcomers for the most part. Lots of people have a lot of family living in the area, and much of their social life revolves around their family. There are lots of elderly people in the area; more than most places in the country. That's not to say you won't meet some other twentysomethings.

[guylocke]

I am a young professional myself and it is very easy to meet new people. There are definitely more than a few "young hot spots" in the city. Once upon a time (not terribly long ago unfortunately) Pittsburgh lost a lot of young people due to jobs, but the job market has rebounded considerably and as a matter of fact we now retain young people at a percentage higher than national average.

Although the job market has rebounded, certain fields are still tight, that's for sure. If you have a general business or arts degree, you might want to definitely find work before coming. If you have any law, medical, science, computer, electronic, engineering, or financing degree, you'll be golden. A degree in education would be rough too, but not why you may think--only because we have a very large percentage of educators who come to western PA for various reasons so it's very competitive.

And the cost-of-living can't be beat.

[prototypepariah]

Pitt is gonna be like going to hamilton coming from TO. It's considerably smaller, it will also be a bit cheaper. you will also have to fend for yourself on health care until you get a job. On average the city will look a lot more dated, it is mostly houses neighborhoods unlike much of Toronto.

I would suggest the area's mentioned as well as the southside around carson street. It would be similar to queen? I think it is where a lot of trendy bars and nightlife was in TO.

TO is a great city, unless you have something lined up here that is off the charts I would consider coming for a somewhat extended visit prior to jumping into southwestern pa living.