Moving from MD to Pittsbrugh?!?! (Pittsburgh, Avalon: homes, safe area, buying)

[SuburbanPioneer]

Originally Posted by ohyellowbug

Do I want to google what happened to Sarah and Susan Wolfe or will that freak me out?

My parents are recommending I visit the area in August to make sure this is where I really want to move too and also to visit 2 more times if I can before officially moving. They were much happier with this choice because for college I moved to Arizona and I didn't plan much at all and that ended badly. They like that ya closer and in between both my families. My dad and I are going to sit down and make a budget. I should add that I am 23 and I wont be moving before I turn 24 that's for sure haha.

What more solid info should I get? I think my August trip will be more checking out areas to move and seeing where I like best. Will start applying for jobs when I finish college.

Your parents are giving you good advice.
I would also suggest not buying right away. Especially since you don't have any family here and your options are wide open. Pittsburgh suburbs have very very distinct neighborhoods east, west, north and south of the city. Most people living here never traveled from one direction to another in their entire life time. So renting for a while and getting to know which direction works best for you would be a good idea. Finding out where exactly your comfort level is would also be important.

Real estate doesn't appreciate here too fast, so if you buy and then decide to move in a couple of years, you would likely be selling at a loss. Although, considering that otherwise you would be wasting money on rent, you could break even or ahead. The rental market on the other hand is somewhat tight and expensive no matter where you look around here.

[ohyellowbug]

Originally Posted by SuburbanPioneer

Your parents are giving you good advice.
I would also suggest not buying right away. Especially since you don't have any family here and your options are wide open. Pittsburgh suburbs have very very distinct neighborhoods east, west, north and south of the city. Most people living here never traveled from one direction to another in their entire life time. So renting for a while and getting to know which direction works best for you would be a good idea. Finding out where exactly your comfort level is would also be important.

Real estate doesn't appreciate here too fast, so if you buy and then decide to move in a couple of years, you would likely be selling at a loss. Although, considering that otherwise you would be wasting money on rent, you could break even or ahead. The rental market on the other hand is somewhat tight and expensive no matter where you look around here.

My dad has always been "anti renting" and even when I was looking into my move to AZ he took me to more condos to buy then to rent. It was a good thing I moved into a dorm because I left after 6 months. Distance and money were the factors. College at ASU isn't cheap for an out of state girl haha.

My dad will be coming with me for the first trip which is nice. He did the whole house hunting thing in Pittsbrugh when we moved there before. He broke even when we sold the house in Pittsburgh after a year.

Here in Maryland rent is like 1,200 or more for something decent so my dad always said his mortgage is 1,000 so he said renting is like throwing money away because you don't own it and there more rules and restrictions with apartments.

It will be nice to go out and visit and see what's best for me. My dad always drags me out at night because he said it's good to check out areas at night to see if anyone hangs around and what is happening. We did that in AZ too.

Any places that rent condos or townhomes? That are pet friendly? I have to have my little doggie but renting with him makes me nervous because he barks alot

[Paul2421]

Originally Posted by ohyellowbug

My dad has always been "anti renting" and even when I was looking into my move to AZ he took me to more condos to buy then to rent. It was a good thing I moved into a dorm because I left after 6 months. Distance and money were the factors. College at ASU isn't cheap for an out of state girl haha.

My dad will be coming with me for the first trip which is nice. He did the whole house hunting thing in Pittsbrugh when we moved there before. He broke even when we sold the house in Pittsburgh after a year.

Here in Maryland rent is like 1,200 or more for something decent so my dad always said his mortgage is 1,000 so he said renting is like throwing money away because you don't own it and there more rules and restrictions with apartments.

It will be nice to go out and visit and see what's best for me. My dad always drags me out at night because he said it's good to check out areas at night to see if anyone hangs around and what is happening. We did that in AZ too.

Any places that rent condos or townhomes? That are pet friendly? I have to have my little doggie but renting with him makes me nervous because he barks alot

your dad doesn't know what he is talking about

[theta_sigma]

The thing about buying and selling houses is that just the transaction itself costs money. Many thousands of dollars. Closing costs, transfer taxes, home inspections and appraisals, etc.... And get to know your friend the amortization schedule. What that means is that for the first decade of a 30 year loan, not a whole lot of your payments are going towards building equity. Most of it is going straight towards interest, and you will never see that money again.

I am very pro buying rather than renting, it's worked out really well for us and I think that if you're smart about it it can be a great thing for financial security. But I would not recommend that anyone buy unless they know they are going to stay put for at least 5 years. The costs associated with buying and selling are going to put you in the red until you build up some real equity in your property, and that does not happen overnight.

[ohyellowbug]

Originally Posted by Paul2421

your dad doesn't know what he is talking about

My dad has done pretty well for himself to not know what he is talking about. Owns his own home. He rented for only a short time when we left Flint, but he has always owned and he does well. I trust his opinion. He got himself out of the east side of Flint and was able to become a doctor. Pretty sure he knows what he is talking about in terms of renting being a waste of money vs. owning.

[ohyellowbug]

Originally Posted by theta_sigma

The thing about buying and selling houses is that just the transaction itself costs money. Many thousands of dollars. Closing costs, transfer taxes, home inspections and appraisals, etc.... And get to know your friend the amortization schedule. What that means is that for the first decade of a 30 year loan, not a whole lot of your payments are going towards building equity. Most of it is going straight towards interest, and you will never see that money again.

I am very pro buying rather than renting, it's worked out really well for us and I think that if you're smart about it it can be a great thing for financial security. But I would not recommend that anyone buy unless they know they are going to stay put for at least 5 years. The costs associated with buying and selling are going to put you in the red until you build up some real equity in your property, and that does not happen overnight.

Thanks for the advice. I appericate! I have been told owning is a good move if you see yourself there in five years. I don't like moving haha. Did that enough as a kid so I hope that when I move that I stay there.

How high are property taxes in Pittsburgh and how are those paid? Is it the start of the year or monthly?

[Paul2421]

Originally Posted by ohyellowbug

My dad has done pretty well for himself to not know what he is talking about. Owns his own home. He rented for only a short time when we left Flint, but he has always owned and he does well. I trust his opinion. He got himself out of the east side of Flint and was able to become a doctor. Pretty sure he knows what he is talking about in terms of renting being a waste of money vs. owning.

I didn't mean that as an insult to your dad but holding those kinds of views as facts is what has lead people to make bad decisions. Sure it worked out for him but ask somebody that got foreclosed during the mortgage crisis. Like all things in life, your mileage may vary.

[ohyellowbug]

Originally Posted by Paul2421

I didn't mean that as an insult to your dad but holding those kinds of views as facts is what has lead people to make bad decisions. Sure it worked out for him but ask somebody that got foreclosed during the mortgage crisis. Like all things in life, your mileage may vary.

Sorry! I took it the wrong way. I think he has just always been smart about it and bought for less then he was approved for. He's very good with managing money and I respect his opinion. Of course I wouldn't buy a house that I didn't think I could keep up payments on or even rent an apartment for that matter. Just some areas renting is just as high if not higher then owning.

Once again sorry if that came off snarky

[theta_sigma]

Originally Posted by ohyellowbug

Thanks for the advice. I appericate! I have been told owning is a good move if you see yourself there in five years. I don't like moving haha. Did that enough as a kid so I hope that when I move that I stay there.

How high are property taxes in Pittsburgh and how are those paid? Is it the start of the year or monthly?

We have several layers of property taxes here, so it depends on where you live. The millage rate for Allegheny County is 4.73, but the municipality you live in will charge on top of that some sort of municiple tax and then on top of that the school district will add on more (school tax is generally the highest of the three layers). Pittsburgh's city millage rate is 8.06 and the Pittsburgh school millage is 9.84, so all together if you live in the city, you're paying 25.63 mills on property. Outlying municipalities tend to have lower municipal rates but higher school rates. (Example because I have it handy: Reserve Township is 4.47 mills for municipal but a whopping 21.87 mills for school. Keep in mind though that wage taxes can offset this--wage tax for city residents is 3% and in outlying municipalities is usually 1%, so you save on wage tax but your school taxes are higher.)

All my taxes are escrowed so I have no idea how often they are paid. It just magically happens.

[ohyellowbug]

Originally Posted by theta_sigma

We have several layers of property taxes here, so it depends on where you live. The millage rate for Allegheny County is 4.73, but the municipality you live in will charge on top of that some sort of municiple tax and then on top of that the school district will add on more (school tax is generally the highest of the three layers). Pittsburgh's city millage rate is 8.06 and the Pittsburgh school millage is 9.84, so all together if you live in the city, you're paying 25.63 mills on property. Outlying municipalities tend to have lower municipal rates but higher school rates. (Example because I have it handy: Reserve Township is 4.47 mills for municipal but a whopping 21.87 mills for school. Keep in mind though that wage taxes can offset this--wage tax for city residents is 3% and in outlying municipalities is usually 1%, so you save on wage tax but your school taxes are higher.)

All my taxes are escrowed so I have no idea how often they are paid. It just magically happens.

Thanks! I know that's higher then what Baltimore county taxes are, but then again I think that is offset by the fact that homes are more expensive here.

What's gas like out there? I know that changes so quickly. We are 2.19 to 2.30 right now.