area advice needed (Pittsburgh, Bloomfield, Lawrenceville: neighborhood, college, living)

[TYREX]

I also heard that there are some foreclosure opportunities...probably not as much in Shadyside/SQ Hill, eh?
I dont have a good feel for real estate prices, yet... i come from a city where $250ish is a mid-point

[Hopes]

Squirrel Hill is definitely the way to go. There are many listings in the low 200s.

Howard Hanna Real Estate Services - Real Estate - Pittsburgh - Property - Proplist

Shadyside only has three listings between 200-300 and the quality house in the low 200s is much lower than what's available in Squirrel Hill.

Howard Hanna Real Estate Services - Real Estate - Pittsburgh - Property - Proplist

[Hopes]

Originally Posted by TYREX

I also heard that there are some foreclosure opportunities...probably not as much in Shadyside/SQ Hill, eh?
I dont have a good feel for real estate prices, yet... i come from a city where $250ish is a mid-point

You're definitely moving from a higher cost of living area. That's an important consideration.

Many people who move from an area where housing prices are higher make the mistake of buying a house that's too expensive for their budget.

They often don't realize that our property taxes are rather high.

For example, there are the real estate options in Squirrel Hill in the 100-200 range:

Howard Hanna Real Estate Services - Real Estate - Pittsburgh - Property - Proplist

Many more houses availabe in the lower price range.

It sounds to me like you are concerned about expenses---cutting back on one car, looking for foreclosures.

As a result, I think you would be wise to lower your price range for a house to something more appropriate for the Pittsburgh area.

[greg42]

Yeah, what Hopes said is an important consideration. Average house price in wide are of Pittsburgh is notably lower, but property taxes are higher than many areas of the country. And you are looking in areas of Pittsburgh where if you averaged out just that area the house prices would be some of the highest around. You can still find stuff in your range, even in Shadyside (sometimes), but keep towards the lower end of it.

Transport from Squirrel Hill should be good, and on nice days even walking to Oakland still isn't out of the question I would think, may vary a bit by precise locations. (Not so much fun in winter, perhaps, but people do it then too.)

I'm sure there are some foreclosures everywhere, but I wouldn't expect too many in these areas and in the wider area in general probably less than many other parts of the country.

[TYREX]

Im cautious, not necessarily cost conscious for a couple of reasons
-Uncertainty cause ive never been to pittsburgh
-i had some experience fixing foreclosures up...
Im an engineer by trade and semi-handy

[greg42]

Here's another way to think about the car situation, because I was just reading what Hopes wrote above again: If you're cutting back to one car in order to live in the city, because you really want to live and walk and shop there, etc. I think that can make sense. If, instead, you're looking for a house in the city and thinking of cutting back to one car because you think that will cut your overall expense, then that is highly unlikely to be the case here. In other words, if you don't really want to live in the city and are looking there only for the walking distance without a second car, I think you are making a mistake.

It's just good to be sure, especially before buying. If you're at all not sure about living in the city, I'd recommend renting, even though as is oft repeated around here renting over the long term at least costs more than buying. (But if it turns out to be short term, you'll be happy you paid more for a year to rent.)

[TYREX]

I checked Hopes links to homes and It looks like I may be able to find something in the Shadyside/SQ hill area..
another question - what are common problems with houses in pittsburgh? what to keep an eye for?
also, saw a house with 6 br and 1 bathroom - geez!!! i bet that bathroom gets a LOOOOT of use

[Hopes]

Don't expect kitchens and bathrooms to be updated. Pittsburghers tend to be frugal. They don't renovate very often. Houses go on the market as is.

Older houses will have limited bathrooms like the one you mentioned. But with 6 bedrooms, I'm sure there's room to add more bathrooms.

The upside is that you will realize a return on your renovation if you're doing the work yourself.

The main common problem with Pittsurgh houses is water in basements. We get a lot of rain here.


If you liked working on foreclosures, you might enjoy flipping houses once you are here long enough to understand our market. The last thing you would want to do is put too much money into a flip because houses appreciate slowly in value and consumers aren't overly demanding about interiors here. My brother made a small fortune renovating 5 houses in Brighton Heights they bought for practically nothing (25k to 40k tops). In most houses, they simply tore out the carpeting and painted---making over 50k to 80k in profit within a few months. In one house they added a bathroom and remodeled the kitchen. Since they did the work themselves, it didn't cost them much money. They made profits on all of the properties.

[BrianTH]

Just a sidenote, but you could also look in Polish Hill or Bloomfield/Friendship, which are also very convenient for the hospitals and universities, with walkable amenities nearby. Your budget would go father (a lot farther in Polish Hill), and you might have better luck finding a bit of a fixer-upper.

[TYREX]

my other thought about shadyside/SQ hill is that those houses will always be rentable unless the university goes away.
and i do like owning...location will be the key, maybe i can find a foreclosure in these areas (any links to those kind of properties?)
walking around sounds very appealing to me, so i think shadyside/north SQ hill will be winners. we dont need a good school district or a big yard or acres of land. just want to be in the heart of the city, be close to culture and get some college vibe. i understand we wont find an Austin in Pittsburgh but want as close of an approximation, if that makes any sense