Money article, best place to live in the northeast (Pittsburgh: 2015, house)

[jea6321]

Best Places to Live 2015: The 5 Best Big U.S. Cities

So another list we are graced with being on. They quote that pittsburgh average home price is 2.7 times average salary whereas Austin is at 3.9 and Portland is at 4.8

This is probably a bit skewed as we have a few more lower income/blighted neighborhoods than Portland or Austin. If we were to look at the core of the city and take out some of the southern hill top, homewood, Larimer, Lincoln lemmington, Hazlewood, I would think we would place a lot closer to the 3.9 mark that Austin has.

[infoscott]

Our housing stock is also far older. A lot of the buildings are dated 1890 - 1920, and rate C, D quality on the Allegheny tax rolls. It is an apples and oranges comparison.

[jea6321]

Portland has a lot of older homes as well.
labratrevenge - Justin Palmer

Austin is a much younger city by comparison.

the county website is also not entirely accurate. You will see homes listed as c-d quality even after they have had extensive rehab and are basically brand new.

[Goodjules]

I was in Portland in June. They have a fair amount of 1900 era housing stock. While Pittsburgh is an older city, much of the housing stock in both cities is a similar age. Home prices are a lot higher in Portland. Great public transit. It has the feel of an eco-friendly Disneyland-ish fantasy city. Amazingly easy and cheap to get around without a car using very modern light rail system and buses. It has lots of bridges, a river going through the city, and hills like Pittsburgh. They have made a huge commitment to public transit. Much like a European city.

[doo dah]

You folks know that the grade is not the condition, right?

[jea6321]

Originally Posted by doo dah

You folks know that the grade is not the condition, right?

description from the county on grade "Grade is based on quality of workmanship, interior finishes and features and even heating systems, plumbing and light fixtures. For assessment purposes, condition ranges from excellent to unsound; grade from XX (the best) to E."

so if a home is completely renovated, how could one argue that the grade would not change?

[doo dah]

Originally Posted by jea6321

description from the county on grade "Grade is based on quality of workmanship, interior finishes and features and even heating systems, plumbing and light fixtures. For assessment purposes, condition ranges from excellent to unsound; grade from XX (the best) to E."

so if a home is completely renovated, how could one argue that the grade would not change?

Depends - see page ten. Page fifteen has the condition definitions.

So, was the home completely renovated using average materials, cheap quality, or excellent quality?

[_Buster]

Originally Posted by Goodjules

I was in Portland in June. They have a fair amount of 1900 era housing stock. While Pittsburgh is an older city, much of the housing stock in both cities is a similar age. Home prices are a lot higher in Portland. Great public transit. It has the feel of an eco-friendly Disneyland-ish fantasy city. Amazingly easy and cheap to get around without a car using very modern light rail system and buses. It has lots of bridges, a river going through the city, and hills like Pittsburgh. They have made a huge commitment to public transit. Much like a European city.

Historically though, Pittsburgh was a much bigger city than Portland, more than twice as big for a good part of last century. So Portland's major growth has been relatively recent. Add to that the steel bust, which pretty much stopped growth and home building in Pittsburgh area for a long time from the early 80s onward, I'd say Pittsburgh's average house age must be much older than Portland's.