Braddock--giving it some thought-want some input (Pittsburgh, Allentown: cheap house, neighborhoods, buying)

[Catia]

Braddock--a hot mess for sure.

But I am giving it some serious thought for buying a home.
My job has taken me outside of the city of Pittsburgh, & Braddock is now on the radar, because it is a short commute. Considering the cheap prices on the houses, the $$ I'd save in gas over a few years would pay for LOL.

I am kind of fascinated by the 'possibilities' Fetterman is trying to foster, & that he himself is actively involved & invested in these 'possibilities'.
The mayor is & has been doing some really great stuff & think I might want to be a part of it.

Fetterman is crazy to have jumped into everything he has, but I think it's the right brand of crazy for this particular situation & place.
He is offering viable alternatives to just demolishing the entire area, & that means thinking outside of the box.
I love that he's involving the kids in the community.

Yes it is decayed & crumbling to hell (& might someday come back partially).
I am one of those twisted Pittsburgers that it drawn to the decayed industrial look.

That being said, I'm not wearing rose colored glasses.
There is a LOT I need to consider.

I'd like some input from people who actually have direct experience with Braddock, people who live there now, or have lived there in the past & have family/friends there.

I'm not raising kids at this point in my life, so that makes a huge difference.
Am more looking for a super cheap place that is closer to my work.
I've lived in some Pittsburgh 'hoods'--like Allentown, & have also lived in some rough parts of Philly, so have some experience with rough neighborhoods.

I am NOT interested in moving to an area that is striving to be gentrified.
I Am looking for a place striving to become stable.

***My goal is to not become taxed out as the years go by.***

I want to 'dig in' somewhere while I try to recover from this recession & save for retirement, & possibly stay during my retirement. Retirement is more than 20 yrs off--

I'm just tired of working really hard & being penalized by property tax increases every time I dare to
do any type of *miniscule* improvement to the outside of a house.
The last 2 times I DARED to improve the outside, time 1:
I painted the old double entry doors up nice my own labor & less than $25 on materials.
Time #2, I bought a roll of screen & some furring strips & screened in my front porch, about $75 in materials.
Both times this resulted in me having to appeal the tax assessment--Because the outside looked slightly improved, my taxes doubled.
Appealing the assessments is a process that takes a lot of time & effort & I am just sick of it.

Anyway, I'm seeing some houses on the market in Braddock that have had some improvements, or were well maintained in the 1st place--going cheap.
The exodus seems to continue, & while there are plenty of houses needing torn down, or are full gut jobs to make livable, there are still some decent houses, & judging from the interior pics I've seen of a few, it looks like older home owners moving out-judging by the furniture & decoration & maintenance. Also, some of these houses have big yards & views. And with torn down houses, the side lots go cheap.

I am wondering what/where are the "better" sections of Braddock, the spots where the people are involved in the community. Also wondering where the more 'backwoods nooks' are--the places with only a few houses on a block that no one goes to because it's off the beaten path, or a dead end.

Please don't flame or troll me, I KNOW Braddock has serious issues, & that anyone in their right mind would stay far away from it. I am considering it anyway.

I'm also curious/concerned about the express way that might go through, I'd not want to buy a house that eminent domain is going to force me out of.
I've seen enough of that. Happened to my grandparents, when I was a tot, with the East St Ext, happened to a few friends with the new stadiums.

[selltheburgh]

I'd honestly contact fetterman and ask him to put you in touch with a handful of newer residents who bought homes. I got to tour a really cool live work space that somebody bought there through mutual friends. It seems like a good place if you want a cheap house or work space that isn't very convenient to much of anything.

[PreservationPioneer]

If you've lived in Allentown, I don't see much difference. Braddock is like any number of downtrodden urban neighborhoods in and around the city. As long as you're comfortable with blight, bad schools, and the potential for crime, I'm not sure there is anything to worry about. Braddock is very similar to Hazelwood, in my opinion.

[Hopes]

Good luck getting in touch with Fetterman in any other way than going down there in person. He doesn't return phone calls or emails, but somehow the media always reaches him. I'm not saying that to be nasty. He has his priorities because getting media coverage is important for Braddock. I just wish he realized that people contacting him with interest in buying there are an equally important part of the solution to Braddock's problems.

[Catia]

So what is the difference between Braddock, North Braddock & Braddock Hills--Meaning it appears they are all separate boroughs--are they all taxed differently? Does each have it's own separate mayor/police etc? That just seems crazy for these tiny towns.

Trying to figure out the dividing lines while driving through today was impossible.

For example--what is the area at the intersection of Grandview & Pallas actually considered?
Or Wolfe & Pallas?

Selltheburgh--you are the 2nd person who told me to just contact Fetterman direct--I guess he is easily accessible.
I think I 1st need to figure out the dividing lines--I saw a lot I had no interest in, & I also saw a lot of off the beaten path stuff.
I think I am going to view a house this week.

[PreservationPioneer]

Braddock and North Braddock are like two halves of the same town, but are different municipalities with different mayors. Braddock Hills is basically suburban Braddock, with mostly mid century homes on the outskirts of town.

[Catia]

thanks--I read some of your previous posts--I think you were scouting houses around Braddock at some point--Your info says McKeesport--So did you buy in McKeesport?

Just took a look at some of UptownKid's maps--gotta say--I appreciate the time & effort--I haven't seen all of them, but the ones I have seen are pretty darn accurate on neighborhood assessments--

[Hopes]

Originally Posted by Catia

I guess he is easily accessible.

He is easily accessible if you go to a Braddock event and find him in person. He can be easily accessible via City Data because his wife sometimes reads posts and responds via private message. She did that with me when I was trying to reach him and complained here. There's no guarantee she's reading this week, or even month, so you should be more proactive in contacting him. You can leave voicemail messages and emails, but your chances of actually talking to him increase if you track him down in person at an event.

[sskink]

Originally Posted by Hopes

Good luck getting in touch with Fetterman in any other way than going down there in person. He doesn't return phone calls or emails.

Glad to know it isn't just my emails he's ignored.

[PreservationPioneer]

Originally Posted by Catia

thanks--I read some of your previous posts--I think you were scouting houses around Braddock at some point--Your info says McKeesport--So did you buy in McKeesport?

Just took a look at some of UptownKid's maps--gotta say--I appreciate the time & effort--I haven't seen all of them, but the ones I have seen are pretty darn accurate on neighborhood assessments--

I was considering some of the Mon Valley towns and eventually decided on McKeesport. It had more to do with finding the right house on the right street, at the right price, than anything else. If you're considering Braddock, but waiting for the right property, you could expand your area of interest to include other towns like McKeesport, Homestead, Hazelwood (city), East Pittsburgh, Wilmerding, Turtle Creek, etc.