Best place to look. Stressed! (Pittsburgh, Oakmont: apartments, leasing, crime rate)

[StormFreak]

First Post. Here is my formal hello. "Hello".

Anyway, my wife and I are planning to move to Pittsburgh in the next few weeks. She will be taking graduate classes at Pitt, and I will be working for the University at the RIDC. We are having some trouble finding an apartment, and moreso knowing what ads to trust that we see online. We want to be in a safe part of town, but also not spend an arm and a leg. We are hoping to keep our total cost around 800-850 a month. A 2BR is preferable, but a large enough 1BR could also work.

We are really looking for input from those who know the city as to what areas we should really be focusing on. I would hate to see us get a "bargain", but then end up in a rough neighborhood. From what I understand, alot of the "managed" apartments near the university can be shady. Is this true?

Any input or help would be greatly appreciated.

[ajl777]

800-850 a month should find you a two br somewhere in the east end. i would recommend friendship or highland park (pretty easy access to RIDC from there) and oakland is pretty close as well. Aspinwall would be closer to RIDC but I don't know what renting is like there

[StormFreak]

Yeah, we have been looking anywhere from Squirrel Hill up to Highland Park. We have found a few apts in Highland Park from both Forbes and Colebrook management that look decent, but our issue is we really don't know what companies are reliable, and what ones are slumlords.

[Mr. Mon]

You'll likely find a nicer place in your price range from an individual rather than a leasing company. $800 doesn't get a whole lot in a company owned apartment building. So, I suggest Craigslist, and the classifieds in the Post Gazette and Pittsburgh City Paper.

Highland Park is probably the most central location, and the easiest for you wife to reach Pitt via transit without a bus transfer.

[StormFreak]

Thanks for the info. We are going to be in town on Saturday and have 4 interviews/appointments lined up. One in Highland Park with Forbes, another in Highland Park with the same people who own Highland Park Club and then 2 independent ones in Squirrel Hill. The rent isn't bad, but I hear gas prices are outrageous in the winter...

[PeterRabbit]

Gas prices are high when you live in or around the city. If you rent a place in a converted house the heat is usually included with the rent.

Aspinwall is the best place to live overall although Squirrel Hill is very good. In Sq. Hill your wife would be walking distance to Pitt (if she's capable of walking about a mile) and the drive to RIDC is kind of across traffic rather than with or against it - ask us for the shortcuts.

Neither area will get you away from high utilities.

Blawnox is where RIDC is and only a mile down the road from Aspinwall. Between the two towns is a decent shopping center(s). Rent in Blawnox is dirt cheap. It's not as charming looking as Aspinwall, but it's just as safe and has the same highway convenience to Oakland/Pitt as Aspinwall.

Monroeville likely has the nicest looking apt. bldgs. which include all the amenities. It's an eastern suburb and the east has the worst traffic and Monroeville the worst of the east. Your wife could hop on the parkway there which would take her almost directly to Pitt. You could get on the turnpike which would take you to Rt. 28 and directrly into RIDC. However, to go only 10 miles on the crappiest road in the state will cost you 95c each way. There's a shortcut that takes the same amount of time.

Use craigslist and let us know what you find that you're interested in. Zip codes here don't always represent what you might think they should.

Cancel your Highland Park appointments if you're comcerned about safety.

[BrianTH]

I very much disagree about Highland Park and safety. Here are some statistics:

Part One: Pittsburgh neighborhood crime statistics

The violent crime rate in Highland Park was well below the Pittsburgh average, less than in Shadyside, and not much more than in Squirrel Hill South.

[xtant64]

I think Verona and maybe Oakmont could be on your list also. Verona is a nice neighborhood in most places, and Oakmont is even nicer (but more costly). These are suburban areas, but they still are close to the city. I had a 2BR/1BA duplex in Verona for $600 a month. I had on street parking and no central AC though. I would not rent that exact place again, but if I was looking for a convenient place, I would look around there. It was less than 30 min. to get in/out of the city on a bus in rush hour (about the same with a car), plus you should be able to get to RIDC rather easily.

[hnsq]

Highland Park is really great - just stay north of Stanton Ave. Anything between Stanton and Penn Ave should be avoided.

Shadyside/Squirrel Hill are great, I live in Shadyside now and am moving to Squirrel Hill in August.

Friendship/bloomfield are great as well. Not as upscale as Shadyside/Squirrel Hill, but very safe. (you will also find much cheaper prices). If you look in Friendship, stay a few blocks south of Penn Ave, and don't look near the Garfield border. I subletted in friendship for a few months (corner of Negley Ave and Friendship Ave) and loved it. It was a LOT cheaper than other places, and it was right on a few major bus lines.

I would also check out Morningside, it is less of a city feel, but you might be able to find a nice house to rent.

I would stay away from Oakmont/Verona if your wife is taking classes at Pitt. The drive in (no practical bus from there) would be miserable. Way too much traffic...

Check out this website: LandOrSlum.com it lets people rate landlords in Pittsburgh.

Please stay out of Oakland. It isn't terrible, but it is saturated with undergrads. If you live there you will constantly deal with drunk undergrads...not too fun if you are out of college.

[robrobrob]

I would be careful in selecting an apartment in Highland Park. It is clearly not as nice as Shadyside or Sq. Hill. All you have to do is drive through the blocks between Negley and Highland around Stanton. These blocks don't look the greatest.