Moving from Boston this summer - suggestions on neighborhood? (Pittsburgh: for sale, real estate)

[squarian]

Originally Posted by Aqua Teen Carl

You will get suggestions for the East side: Shady Side, Squirrel Hill, Point Breeze etc.

Which are obvious choices for urban, young, fun and safe.

But for easy access to the I-279 and parts north, why not downtown? Thread after thread here has provided info on downtown residence, so you can learn quite a bit just searching here - there are a couple of active threads now.

Virtually every place you'll look will have modern security features, so for a young single woman, downtown is probably safer than any other neighborhood. The nightlife is lively and getting livelier by the week - easy access to cultural events, music, most of the best and hippest restaurants and museums, most of which have "first Friday" type social events if you want to mingle & meet. Commuting out of downtown isn't a problem.

Living space is hardly rock-bottom cheap - but if cost isn't your chief concern, you'll get some very nice digs with all kinds of pleasant amenities for a fraction of what you'd pay in Boston.

[BrianTH]

Sewickley is nice village-type walkable suburb, but more family-oriented than young and well out of the main areas for young transplants to Pittsburgh.

I'd personally start my search with Downtown, then maybe the North Side and the Strip. Some places in the East End would also be fine, but a bit less convenient for getting in and out of town (only a few minutes more each way, but it adds up).

[squarian]

Originally Posted by I_Like_Spam

Seems like you should consider the Sewickley area- close to the airport and I79 with a urban feel to the place.

Bellevue and Ben Avon are less expensive and closer to the heart of Pittsburgh and the activities here and also pretty close to the interstates.

Those are all fine towns and close to the 79 - but Taylor sounds like she's looking for a place with a younger urban vibe, while Sewickly and similiar Ohio Valley towns are charming, family-oriented, prosperous suburbs. Great places to live if that's what you're looking for, but probably not what she's looking for.

[robrobrob]

People have told you most of the popular neighborhoods for young professionals. In my opinion, Shadyside is by far and away the best neighborhood for young professionals if you want to walk to places within your own neighborhood. As a frame of reference, I have lived in Shadyside, Squirrel Hill and Point Breeze. The thing that sets Shadyside apart is that it actually has a nightlife and great shopping (Drug Store, Coffee, J. Crew, Ann Taylor, etc). If you want a quick walk to some bars and some upscale chain stores then it is the place for you. If you don't value that then Squirrel Hill is a nice optoin too. Point Breeze is really a suburb in the city. It has a very small business district and it is a little too far to walk to business districts of Squirrel Hill and Shadyside. Point Breeze is right next to Frick Park which is great but I ran through there when I lived in Shadyside too so I am not sure how much of a perk that is.

Downtown is neat but if you don't work there I would think it wouldn't be as desireable. I love the look of the War Streets but it just doesn't offer as much as Shadyside. If you are a hipster then I would look at Lawrenceville but if you are a typical 25 year old then Shadyside is the place to be.

[BrianTH]

Downtown has started to rival Pittsburgh's other top neighborhoods for walkable amenities--the only thing it is really lacking is a grocery store. The other nice thing about Downtown is that as the center of our transportation network, it is easy to get from there to any other central neighborhood.

[ferraris]

Originally Posted by BrianTH

Downtown has started to rival Pittsburgh's other top neighborhoods for walkable amenities--the only thing it is really lacking is a grocery store. The other nice thing about Downtown is that as the center of our transportation network, it is easy to get from there to any other central neighborhood.

Very true, but since the OP will have a car that is an added cost and inconvenience or living downtown compared to other neighborhoods...though I would assume that the same is true in downtown Boston.

[taylor88]

Thank you all for these wonderful suggestions - this will be a real help to me. Should I be concerned about the commute north everyday?

[SteelCityRising]

Originally Posted by taylor88

Should I be concerned about the commute north everyday?

Nope. I-279 Northbound in the mornings and inbound in the evenings is generally still a "reverse-commute". More and more people from the city are working up north in Cranberry, but I still don't foresee any major city-to-north backlogs in the coming years.

[BrianTH]

Originally Posted by ferrarisnowday

Very true, but since the OP will have a car that is an added cost and inconvenience or living downtown compared to other neighborhoods...though I would assume that the same is true in downtown Boston.

Correct, but I am basically assuming price is not really a concern, so a monthly parking lease will be no big deal.

I'd also note that in other popular neighborhoods like the South Side and Shadyside, offstreet parking can also be somewhat scarce, and somewhat costly.

[BrianTH]

Originally Posted by taylor88

Should I be concerned about the commute north everyday?

Once you are at Downtown or anywhere north of Downtown, no.

If you have to commute through or near Downtown first, however, that will add some time. Again it isn't going to be terrible if you are starting close to Downtown (e.g. in Shadyside or the South Side), but it will add a bit of time in traffic.