Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Hopes that was very clever suggesting Aspinwall or Blawnox to be in Fox Chapel District. There is also Sharpsburg which also attends Fox Chapel schools, no?
This was very good advice. Fox Chapel itself is an extremely nice and exclusive (and often expensive) area that has one of the most respected school districts in Western PA. However, several other little towns border Fox Chapel and use the same School District, including what Hopes said, Blawnox, Aspinwall, Sharpsburg, and also O'Hara, and Indiana. Aside from Fox Chapel proper, these other little towns are EXTREMELY affordable (albeit they aren't the nicest places in the world, they are also far from the worst). The commute to Pitt would be so easy, you could use Route 28 or just go the back way down Fifth Ave the whole time. We're talking about 15 minutes, max. Sharpsburg would be like 10.
Don't allow the winter to sway you. I don't think we've had a winter that caused really bad driving conditions for over 10 years. Our winters are mostly dustings with an OCCASIONAL snow storm that the salt trucks know about in advance and take precautions.
I would never write off Pitt Medical School. Never. I believe one day it will be the most prestigious medical school in the world, and I really mean that. Take a look at this little Pitt video, it's quite nice about Pitt Health Science and Medical.
A New Vision. A New Tomorrow (http://www.health.pitt.edu/video.htm - broken link)
Hopes that was very clever suggesting Aspinwall or Blawnox to be in Fox Chapel District. There is also Sharpsburg which also attends Fox Chapel schools, no?
I didn't recommend Sharpsburg because I don't think it's the type of place they want to live. I know they asked for a good school district and a safe neighborhood, Sharpsburgh is both, but it's just too seedy for me to imagine they would want to live there to save money. Their kids deserve to live in an area where there are other children they would prefer their children to be friends with. I know that impoverished children can be great kids, but we can't ignore the fact that Sharpsburg has a serious drug problem.
Quote:
Originally Posted by boylocke
This was very good advice. Fox Chapel itself is an extremely nice and exclusive (and often expensive) area that has one of the most respected school districts in Western PA. However, several other little towns border Fox Chapel and use the same School District, including what Hopes said, Blawnox, Aspinwall, Sharpsburg, and also O'Hara, and Indiana.
I didn't recommend O'Hara and Indiana because I was trying to keep them as close to the river as possible. If they live in Indiana or O'Hara, there will be hills for his wife to drive in the winter. Granted, I think it's a shame they are excluding themselves from some nice areas because of winter driving. Winters really aren't that bad in Pittsburgh. If they can get over the winter driving aspect, O'Hara and Indian are great areas. Fox Chapel is one of the best districts in Allegheny County and it's very close to Oakland.
Quote:
Originally Posted by boylocke
Aside from Fox Chapel proper, these other little towns are EXTREMELY affordable (albeit they aren't the nicest places in the world, they are also far from the worst).
I think Aspinwall is a very nice little town. It has some style. Blawnox is a step down but still very safe. Sharpsburg is the only river town in Fox Chapel School District that I think isn't very nice, but it's safe. And you're right, there are much worse places than Sharpsburg.
Another idea is Shaler School District. Housing in Etna is very affordable. Etna isn't beautiful but it's nicer than Sharpsburg. I think it's nicer than Blawnox for raising children because there is a swimming pool, ball park and other recreational activities in Etna. Now that I think about it, Etna would be better than Aspinwall too for that very reason. Etna is a very safe town. The Shaler Area School District is a good district. It doesn't rank as high as Fox Chapel but Shaler is still among the top districts in the county.
The best way to find houses for rent in these towns is to drive around them. House rentals aren't often advertised. You'll mostly find the dumpy small apartments advertised for rent.
Quote:
Originally Posted by boylocke
The commute to Pitt would be so easy, you could use Route 28 or just go the back way down Fifth Ave the whole time. We're talking about 15 minutes, max. Sharpsburg would be like 10.
It's 15 minutes from both Sharpsburg and Aspinwall. They're both right next to the Highland Park Bridge with the bridge dividing the two. Etna would also only be 15 minutes too.
btw, I take back my suggestion for Swissvale or Edgewood if the house is located in the Woodland Hills School District.
I believe the city school might also be an issue for Regent Square but I'm not sure if it feeds into Wilkinsburg's school (not good) or Squirrel Hill's school (good).
If you buy a home instead of renting, you can find property in Etna for under 100k. The mortgage payment would be lower than 1k per month. Just make sure the property is outside of the flood zone since Etna floods regularly.
Here's a 5 bedroom for sale in Etna: Pre-Listing Special (broken link)
I have no idea how many bedrooms this Etna home has but it has character: "Old World Charm" (http://pittsburgh.craigslist.org/rfs/384463162.html - broken link)
Another idea is Shaler School District. Housing in Etna is very affordable. Etna isn't beautiful but it's nicer than Sharpsburg. I think it's nicer than Blawnox for raising children because there is a swimming pool, ball park and other recreational activities in Etna. Now that I think about it, Etna would be better than Aspinwall too for that very reason. Etna is a very safe town. The Shaler Area School District is a good district. It doesn't rank as high as Fox Chapel but Shaler is still among the top districts in the county.
Okay, you guys convinced me, and I convinced my wife. Pittsburgh is back on the list, particularly because the med school there is highly regarded, especially for the specialty that she wants to go into (psychiatry).
I told her that perceptions were everything, and the fact that we showed up there on a cloudy, nasty, drizzly day affected her opinion of the place. If it had been sunny and warm out, she would have liked it better. She agreed.
Thanks for your help. I'll check out some of the neighborhoods and school districts that you guys recommended.
And yes, Hopes is right, I dont want my kids to live in a seedy area. I'm willing to buy if I think it will be a better deal than renting, and I'm prepared to pay whatever it takes (probably not over 1200 a month rent or mortgage payment, just depends on what I can make at a job there and what benefits I get, as well as what I make on the current house that we own when we sell it) to get in a nice and decent area. I'd take a 3 bedroom with a decent basement as well, one that is either finished and has some rooms in it or one that I can turn into rooms.
You can definitely find a 3 bedroom, split level, with finished basement, in the mid-100k range in Shaler.
Houses in Shaler School District will show up as Glenshaw or Allison Park on real estate listings---in addition to the river town of Etna. Houses in Fox Chapel School District will show up as Glenshaw---in addition to the river towns of Aspinwall and Blawnox.
Both Fox Chapel and Shaler townships are very convenient to Oakland.
Let us know if you have any questions.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
