Pittsburgh Suburb for young family (Lebanon, Robinson Township: real estate, apartments, rentals)

[ozkurr]

Wife, 8 month old daughter, 12lb Westie, and I (32yrs old) will be relocating to Pittsburgh from Houston (Heights) in February. We will both be working in Moon Township and would prefer our one way commute to be under 20 minutes.

What is the best area to move to between Moon Township and the city?
w/nearby daycare, kennel, parks, restaurants, shopping, entertainment

Also, we will not be purchasing house as we plan to return to Houston in 3-4yrs. We would like to rent a 2-3br apartment, townhouse or condo. Budget is 1200-1600/month. Amenities would be nice. Any specific apts, townhouses or condos?

Names of places i've jotted down, but i'm open to others
Robinson Township (suggested by my company)
South Hills (suggested by friend)
Mt. Lebanon (read online)
Green Tree (eyeballed on google maps)

I would really appreciate your responses!!!

[jrw271]

It sounds like you're on the right track with neighborhoods. Personally, I recommend looking into Coraopolis, Robinson, or Greentree. Robinson Twp has everything you need (chain restaurants, mall, Walmart, etc...) Greentree is very convenient to the parkway as well as downtown/other areas of the city. An area in Robinson Twp that is growing rapidly is Settlers Ridge, and across the parkway from it is a relatively new townhouse development called Chestnut Ridge. My coworker used to live there and didn't have any complaints. She said it is mostly younger professionals. The area is very convenient to many, many things. There is a GIANT, brand new grocery store, movie theater, L.A. Fitness, Courtyard Mariott and many other smaller stores and chain restaurants in a new shopping center about a mile away from the townhomes. The only downfall to Robinson is that most restaurants are chains (if you can't tell, I prefer non-chain restaurants.) If you love your P.F. Changs, TGI Fridays, Red Lobster, and Lonestar Steakhouse, this area may be for you. Hope this helps!

[Kippy]

Another alternative is Sewickley, which has a quaint small town feel with a walkable downtown business district. However, it might be harder to come by a rental property, and I am not sure about rental pricing.

Borough of Sewickley Pennsylvania

[robrobrob]

If I were in your position I would rather rent a place in a neighborhood than in a complex. I just feel that it might be easier for your wife to meet people to arrage play dates with down the road. I think it would get rather lonely living in a complex with an 8 month old. Sewickley is a good suggestion. It is an affluent area but there are plenty of moderate houses there. Also, it a walkable town so your wife could get out with the stroller in the summer. The big perk there, aside from the Starbucks, is the YMCA which would have lots of programming for your family. I would call the Howard Hanna office, or another real estate office in Sewickley and ask about rentals there. The name of the realtor I know there is Kathy Brandt. I think she is with Prudential Preferred.

[I_Like_Spam]

Moon Township itself has a lot of apartments and townhomes, as well as a lot of basic shopping along Beers School Rd. Its attracts a lot of folks associated with the big university out there as well as the airlines. Moon also has a lot of car dealers covering most makes, making it easier to get your reliable newer model car serviced when that eventuality comes up.

Kennedy Township isn't too far away either, particularly those parts more adjacent to Coraopolis and Montour is a decent school district. Kennedy has a couple of large grocery stores- Giant Eagle and Shop n Save as well as an Aldi in the adjacent Rocks.

[markson33]

I agree with the Sewickley idea.

You could also look at Franklin Park, which, while a little farther away, is probably a better commute than say Mt. Lebo.

[ElijahAstin]

Balancing commute, affordability, and quality of life, Moon is definitely your best bet.

[ozkurr]

Thanks for replying!