Brighton Heights insight (Pittsburgh, Wilkinsburg, Washington: middle-class, fit in, transplants)

[Goodjules]

Originally Posted by BornSteeler

It sort of reminds me of when I used to live in a quiet little but mostly Italian-American neighborhood in the northern edge of the Bronx - and everyone I met in Manhattan and Brooklyn gasped in horror when this professional-looking white girl would say, "I live in the Bronx."

Interestingly, in a conversation with a new realtor yesterday evening, he gave roughly the same reaction as that friend did when I mentioned Brighton Heights. He said he'd take me out to have a look and get a real feel for the area, but seemed to have some of the same perception of potential depreciation and/or crime coming into the neighborhood. Crafton and Ben Avon were areas that he seemed to think were a "safer" bet. I feel like I probably should take a look at all of the areas for myself.

Thanks, as always, for being such a helpful group.

I had a similar experience when I lived in a predominantly Hispanic neighborhood in Redwood City, CA. A co-worker told me that she grew up there but i wouldn't know the neighborhood she lived in because she had heard it was "very bad" now. I asked her what street she grew up on and it was in my neighborhood just a few blocks from where I lived. I explained that the neighborhood was fine except for the street that ran alongside the freeway. She was surprised. I lived in that neighborhood for over 20 years.

Hope you can open your realtor's mind about BH. Crafton has a lot of grand old historic homes very reasonably priced. That's where I bought. I really wanted a house with lots of period detail. The house I saw in BH was charming, but didn't have quite as much period charm. Still, I almost bought that house because it had enough original detail and I loved the street. But it didn't have AC and a previous owner had done a really weird kitchen addition, both of which would have been very costly to deal with.

[eschaton]

Originally Posted by Hopes

Someone else had a similar experience with a realtor. You run into that problem if the realtor is from a different side of the city. They have zero clue about other neighborhoods. They also tend to play this game in hopes of selling more expensive houses in more trendy neighborhoods. After spending six months looking at houses throughout the state, I've come to the conclusion that there are very few good realtors, most are completely incompetent.

My wife dealt with this before we got married. She was initially the one looking for a house, and I was going to move in with her, but it ended up flipping for various reasons. She wanted to look in Lawrenceville and Bloomfield, but her realtor kept showing her places she didn't want to live, like Swissvale and (ironically enough) Brighton Heights. She'd actually request to see particular houses and her realtor would say "that isn't a good place for a single woman to live."

[Goodjules]

I had a wonderful realtor. He was very knowledgeable about the areas in and around Crafton. He had worked there for 35+ years. He told me he would take me to any part of the city I wanted to see and never discouraged me from looking at a particular area. He also never made assumptions about an area he wasn't familiar with. I haven't found this to be the case with many other realtors. PM me if you want his contact info.

[norcider]

JulieGT, sorry, my experience is painted by a close friend living there in the 90's. There just wasn't much to do when I'd visit her and she missed her hometown of, gasp, McKees Rocks!

[Goodjules]

Originally Posted by norcider

JulieGT, sorry, my experience is painted by a close friend living there in the 90's. There just wasn't much to do when I'd visit her and she missed her hometown of, gasp, McKees Rocks!

You're probably right, there isn't much in that way of bustling retail streets in Crafton. That was one of the things in my "cons" column when I was weighing the pros and cons of buying there. I haven't lived there long enough to get a real feel for the place. I'll keep you posted. But, anywhere I live can't be completely blah, right?

[AntiAgingNP]

Thanks to all that replied. I, too, have a friend in Squirrel Hill that I asked about BH as I'm movingto Pbgh for work and haven't a clue about the city. She said it's transitional and not to go running after dark. This broke my heart because there are some turn-of-the-century homes I would be interested in buying should the job work out. Being a small female with no husband, safety is the highest priority on my list. It's nice to know that I might be able to actually get the house I'm already in a relationship with in my mind.

[Uptown kid]

It's not as "safe" as Squirrel Hill, but its safe & by no means dangerous. BH south of Davis Ave, may have a few incidents every year, but overall the neighborhood including the southern section is very nice. I'd say go for it as Brighton Heights is IMO easily in the top 30 out of 90 Pittsburgh neighborhoods. Large portions Perry Hilltop & to a lesser degree Marshall-Shadeland are rough/high crime and gang-affiliated. So avoid those places, but BH along with Observatory Hill & Summer Hill very livable.
If for Pittsburgh standards its not bad, than for Chicago's standards southern Brighton Heights is safe... Even Marahall-Shadeland/Perry Hilltop aren't too bad compared to neighborhoods in Chicago's east & north sides (let alone south & west).

[CaptainPittsburgh]

Originally Posted by AntiAgingNP

She said it's transitional and not to go running after dark.

Pittsburgh may have more fraidy cats per capita than any other city I've been in, haha.

The most fear I've felt in Brighton Heights after dark was this Halloween when I had to run out to the store for supplies. There were a zillion kids on the sidewalks, and I was afraid one might jump out onto the road in front of my car.

[AntiAgingNP]

Originally Posted by Uptown kid

It's not as "safe" as Squirrel Hill, but its safe & by no means dangerous. BH south of Davis Ave, may have a few incidents every year, but overall the neighborhood including the southern section is very nice. I'd say go for it as Brighton Heights is IMO easily in the top 30 out of 90 Pittsburgh neighborhoods. Large portions Perry Hilltop & to a lesser degree Marshall-Shadeland are rough/high crime and gang-affiliated. So avoid those places, but BH along with Observatory Hill & Summer Hill very livable.
If for Pittsburgh standards its not bad, than for Chicago's standards southern Brighton Heights is safe... Even Marahall-Shadeland/Perry Hilltop aren't too bad compared to neighborhoods in Chicago's east & north sides (let alone south & west).

East sides?? There isn't really east. There's southeast with the south shore, pullman neighborhoods that have some issues, but they are no Garfield Park or Englewood. I live in Lakeview/Boystown and love the walkability, but won't be able to afford buying in SH or SS unless Prince Charming shows up when I move there. When I looked at a crime site, looked like there were mostly drug possession charges and some missing teens (missed curfew??) I love turn-of-the-century, so probably will end up in BH unless something changes in the market or my budget

[AntiAgingNP]

Originally Posted by CaptainPittsburgh

Pittsburgh may have more fraidy cats per capita than any other city I've been in, haha.

The most fear I've felt in Brighton Heights after dark was this Halloween when I had to run out to the store for supplies. There were a zillion kids on the sidewalks, and I was afraid one might jump out onto the road in front of my car.

That's good to hear. No matter where I buy I plan on having a security system, big dog, and a gun (thankfully PA is more gun friendly)