Mon Valley in 10 years? (Pittsburgh, Allentown: middle-class, for sale by owner, rental)

[robrobrob]

Originally Posted by BMan_152

Hey, thanks all for your input

I was worried that this area was in decline, and was really hoping for the remote possibility that 1 or 2 of the neighborhoods listed may be able to remain stable/appreciate during the decline of the overall area.

I guess I will focus more on Westmoreland county & the white oak area.

BTW: Guy2073, Thanks for your suggestion about Liberty Borough! After a quick look on google, it looks like quite a promising area gonna swing by sometime to check it out in person.

I would also steer clear of White Oak. I doubt it is going to appreciate due to the fact that it feeds to the McKeesport Area School District.

That being said with a budget of 80,000 you may have to settle for a relatively stable area as opposed to one that is primed for appreciation.

[MountainDewGuy]

An $80,000 home in Wilkinsburg and Swissvale will likely be assessed at around $50,000 (or less) each, so the school district portion of the taxes would be about a $500 more in Wilkinsburg. So if you were to find a home for that price in Wilkinsburg that you like better, is it worth eliminating from consideration for $500 more each year?

[robrobrob]

Originally Posted by MountainDewGuy

An $80,000 home in Wilkinsburg and Swissvale will likely be assessed at around $50,000 (or less) each, so the school district portion of the taxes would be about a $500 more in Wilkinsburg. So if you were to find a home for that price in Wilkinsburg that you like better, is it worth eliminating from consideration for $500 more each year?

The problem is that there is a chance that the house will be reassessed at the actual purchase price.

[PreservationPioneer]

I don't understand the reasoning that it's acceptable to live in some far flung suburb like McCandless or Peters Twp. and commute into the city for work, but living in Turtle Creek or Wilmerding and commuting into the city for work is unthinkable. Are jobs really necessary within the town you live, if they can be found within commuting distance in Pittsburgh? The days of needing to live in the same neighborhood you work are gone with the wind.

[MountainDewGuy]

Originally Posted by robrobrob

The problem is that there is a chance that the house will be reassessed at the actual purchase price.

True, but with the purchase being only $30,000 more than in my scenario, it would not be a large tax increase. Unlike buying a home for $250,000 in Wilkinsburg and then seeing the new assessment increase the tax an additional $5,000 (or more) each year.

It is up for the OP to decide, but considering that the budget is only $80,000, I just wanted to point that out.

And (I think) that the Penn Hills school millage rate isn't much higher than the Woodland Hills rate. But PH has a slightly higher income tax than the WH municipalities.

[PreservationPioneer]

Originally Posted by Copanut

I grew up in that area, restaurants, coffee joints and boutiques will NEVER replace the good paying jobs that Westinghouse and US Steel once provided. I would stay out of those areas.

I don't believe you need to replace the lost industries within the town, as long as the town is within reasonable commuting distance to good jobs in the city. In terms of the Mon Valley towns closer to Pittsburgh (Braddock, Swissvale, East Pittsburgh, etc.), they are within commuting distance, especially to the East End. I live in McKeesport and commute to East Liberty for work. It takes me 30 minutes, which isn't a terrible commute. Traffic is usually light on Route 30.

The bigger issue is with school districts, and the appeal of the older towns. If the towns can attract people who like walkable, urban, historic environments, they can rebound. Most of the people who appreciate urban neighborhoods seem to choose to live in the city of Pittsburgh, rather than the outlying older towns. The older towns have their own charms, and sometimes have more amenities and more stable business districts than city neighborhoods.

[jay5835]

Originally Posted by PreservationPioneer

The bigger issue is with school districts, and the appeal of the older towns. If the towns can attract people who like walkable, urban, historic environments, they can rebound.

What do you walk to from where you live now, Jonathon? I hope McKeesport does rebound, btw--not a naysayer.

[PreservationPioneer]

Originally Posted by jay5835

What do you walk to from where you live now, Jonathon? I hope McKeesport does rebound, btw--not a naysayer.

I don't live in a very walkable section of McKeesport, but there are several walkable neighborhoods in that city. If I lived closer to downtown McKeesport or Christy Park, I could walk to restaurants, convenience stores / drug stores, bakeries, bars, grocery stores, dollar stores, gas stations, etc. I live in the 11th Ward, which is a 1920s style streetcar suburb neighborhood on the fringe of McKeesport.

[I_Like_Spam]

Originally Posted by PreservationPioneer

I don't believe you need to replace the lost industries within the town, as long as the town is within reasonable commuting distance to good jobs in the city. In terms of the Mon Valley towns closer to Pittsburgh (Braddock, Swissvale, East Pittsburgh, etc.), they are within commuting distance, especially to the East End. I live in McKeesport and commute to East Liberty for work. It takes me 30 minutes, which isn't a terrible commute. Traffic is usually light on Route 30.
.

Coming into town from McKeesport can be difficult, just making it to East Lib is a bit easier.

The commute from the tube city to town is either Route 30, or over the Mansfield Bridge and through Lincoln Place and Hazelwood.

Neither is that great.


What do you see as the salvation for towns further from Pittsburgh than McKeesport, if they are too far to be bedroom suburbs? Your Donora and Buena Vista, Monessen, Charleroi and Coal Center?

[PreservationPioneer]

Originally Posted by I_Like_Spam

What do you see as the salvation for towns further from Pittsburgh than McKeesport, if they are too far to be bedroom suburbs? Your Donora and Buena Vista, Monessen, Charleroi and Coal Center?

I think these towns really do need industry or some kind of job base to come in. However, there are plenty of healthy small towns in the middle of nowhere that do not seem to rely on industry. Hollidaysburg comes to mind. Where do the owners of those fabulously restored Victorian mansions work? Maybe they're so rich they don't have to work.