The Burgh is the Most Affordable City (Pittsburgh, Indiana: middle-class, 2014)

[Blackbeauty212]

A fact that can be lost on many Pittsburghers themselves..

A worldwide study by Demographia finds Pittsburgh is the most affordable major metropolitan region in the United States.

The study fixed Pittsburgh with a 2.3 Housing Affordability Rating Category, which made it the lowest in the United States and well below the 3.0 or under mark that is considered "Affordable." Also on the list were Atlanta and Indianapolis, both with scores of 2.7.

Internationally, Pittsburgh is No. 18 on the most-affordable, which is the best among the U.S. markets. That's for its $116,000 median home price and the $51,400 median income in the third quarter of 2013, Demographia said.

Pittsburgh: Most affordable city in U.S.? - Pittsburgh Business Times

[Goodjules]

I thought so! Thanks for providing this info. There was a recent list (don't remember where I saw it) that named San Francisco as the best place to have a baby. I couldn't help but think "Yeah, right. For all three families with kids who can afford to live there!" With a median home price of close to $1 million you have to be rich or have bought or rented (thanks to rent control) a loooooooooong time ago for SF to affordable for a young family. Despite somewhat high property taxes Pittsburgh has a wonderful combination of low home prices and a decent economy.

[ferraris]

Originally Posted by Goodjules

I thought so! Thanks for providing this info. There was a recent list (don't remember where I saw it) that named San Francisco as the best place to have a baby. I couldn't help but think "Yeah, right. For all three families with kids who can afford to live there!" With a median home price of close to $1 million you have to be rich or have bought or rented (thanks to rent control) a loooooooooong time ago for SF to affordable for a young family. Despite somewhat high property taxes Pittsburgh has a wonderful combination of low home prices and a decent economy.

As a percentage they are high, but in reality they really aren't that high. I got my 1098 in the mail yesterday and I only paid $600 in property taxes in 2013. With our low values and the homestead exemption the property tax rates are high, but as an actual dollar amount they aren't bad.

[Aqua Teen Carl]

First, the title of this thread is misleading since it only measures metros with a population over 2 million.

Since we are measuring by metro and not city you'll notice that metros that have high levels of crime, and dying economies in the metro area (aka outside of this city) are ranked higher. Since this is ranking places like Fayette County with homes below $30k while we have corporate CEO's in Allegheny County of course we would rank high in this methodology.

Furthermore, the methodology used is median home price vs. median income. Yet, in the PDF there is no concrete numbers on either: Moderator cut: link removed, linking to competitor sites is not allowed

Also, notice that cities with poor public transportation get the highest marks on the list? How about the fact the United States gets one good mark after another while other countries are viewed negatively? Perhaps that's because the person who owns Demographia is a staunch American conservative who is anti-transit: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wendell_Cox

Speaking of which, look at this bad ass site: Moderator cut: link removed, linking to competitor sites is not allowed

I'm not convinced at all that this study is worthwhile.

[szug-bot]

this is not something to crow about. expensive places are that because they are SUCCESSFUL, for the most part. people flock there for better paying jobs.

thats not to say the pittsburgh region hasnt attracted people for jobs. but do you think leaders of this region got together to strategize on how to keep the cost of living low? no, they dont.

[zman63]

Originally Posted by Aqua Teen Carl

First, the title of this thread is misleading since it only measures metros with a population over 2 million.

Since we are measuring by metro and not city you'll notice that metros that have high levels of crime, and dying economies in the metro area (aka outside of this city) are ranked higher. Since this is ranking places like Fayette County with homes below $30k while we have corporate CEO's in Allegheny County of course we would rank high in this methodology.

Furthermore, the methodology used is median home price vs. median income. Yet, in the PDF there is no concrete numbers on either: Moderator cut: link removed, linking to competitor sites is not allowed

Also, notice that cities with poor public transportation get the highest marks on the list? How about the fact the United States gets one good mark after another while other countries are viewed negatively? Perhaps that's because the person who owns Demographia is a staunch American conservative who is anti-transit: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wendell_Cox

Speaking of which, look at this bad ass site:Moderator cut: link removed, linking to competitor sites is not allowed

I'm not convinced at all that this study is worthwhile.

I'm impressed with your breakdown. When I look at any of these articles that either tout Pittsburgh as one of the top or the bottom cities I do the same thing.

This is similar to the recent article that lists Pittsburgh as #2 most likely to achieve the american dream, where it has cities like raleigh, charlotte, atlanta and columbus all at the bottom. I think people just make a list without analyzing the facts. All of those places have higher wages, much better job growth, robust population growth and a similar purchasing cost of a house with less property taxes. If you look at the 27-45 age group in the counties of where these cities are located you will see that population dwarfs that of allegheny county. This is the age group where people are most likely to start a family, business and are in the prime of their earning years. Allegheny County has a big college and an even bigger AARP population.

I don't buy either of these articles.

[PreservationPioneer]

Doesn't Detroit have $500 houses?

Which would naturally make it more affordable than Pittsburgh.

[FreightTrainRunning]

Originally Posted by PreservationPioneer

Doesn't Detroit have $500 houses?

Which would naturally make it more affordable than Pittsburgh.

Not if there aren't any jobs.

[PreservationPioneer]

Originally Posted by GeneW

Not if there aren't any jobs.

Well, I thought the article was about home prices. There are tons of jobs in metro Detroit. I guess the homes in suburban Detroit must be more expensive than Pittsburgh's, making Detroit average higher than Pittsburgh? Still, kind of wacky that Pgh could be seen as more affordable than a place where they are giving houses away.

[zman63]

Originally Posted by PreservationPioneer

Doesn't Detroit have $500 houses?

Which would naturally make it more affordable than Pittsburgh.

This may surprise you... All of these are recent... Detroit seems to be surging past pittsburgh


Guess Where the Middle Class Can’t Afford to Live Now | TIME.com

Detroit conventions setting new record for hotel room bookings | The Detroit News

Lowe Campbell Ewald ad agency eager to revive downtown Detroit | Detroit Free Press | freep.com


This article is from 2013. When was the last time Pittsburgh added 11,000 employees to their downtown in 18 months?

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article...wntown-by-2016