Not a weird question at all!

The pro tip I always give is to really lean on the "terrain" filter on Google maps when you consider where you want to live. Especially if you come from a mostly flat place, living and driving in the hills can be really difficult, especially when it snows. Also, a house/apartment may look awesome, and then you look on Google maps and discover that it's actually located on a cliff side or in a ravine.

If you plan on using public transportation a lot, do a little research into bus lines to see which places are connected in the way you need!

Oh that's a great tip! We haven't really lived anywhere very hilly. Thank you, I appreciate this!

Driving here is an actual nightmare.

Don't rent from Oxford Development (The Yards, The Helm, Coda). The apartments are built to look nice but are otherwise over priced and poorly made. You can hear every footstep from the apartment above as well as their neighboring apartments, much worse than any other place I've lived. The plumbing has ventilation issues and the p-traps dry out, filling your apartment with sewer smells. They're also not that well managed with lots of other issues.

Well... I'm currently in the DMV area so very much used to that 🤣

Are you looking to actually move to the city of Pittsburgh or a suburb close by.

People who live far from the actual city limits still refer to themselves as “living in Pittsburgh”

Yikes. Sorry for your loss but thank you for sharing and saving others from this 🙏🏼

We're open to the surrounding areas not just the central city area.

It's not the traffic. The structure of the roads with the hills is just so fundamentally Fucked Up.

I also lived in Heinz Lofts (not to be confused with 950 Heinz next to it). It's an old converted building so its built well (concrete between floors) but pretty dirty, especially the parking garage that has steel beams every 5 feet that you have to drive through. The main reason not to live there is poor management. It became clear they didn't flip my apartment at all and that caused a lot of issues. Other billing issues. And still some noise issues. In short, higher rent does not equal better living.

Moved to the North Side a little over a year ago from Denver Co. Don’t regret a thing so far. People, places and food have all been a welcome change from the congestion and chain businesses in Denver. Driving is challenging for me. Still. But I came from a flat grid and this is not that. Haven’t had any issues with drivers, just stuff like missing a turn, then the half hour detour to get back to that spot to start over. I have plenty of nightlife and restaurants close to home, but enjoy seeing the different neighborhoods. The topography makes each area feels like it’s own part in the city. Good luck and hope you like as much as I do if you make the move.

I have a somewhat similar story. I visited Pittsburgh once to catch a game between my home team and the Pirates. The city and its residents were so fun that Pittsburgh immediately became a city I wanted to move to.

I have been here for 3 years now. My tips are:

• Cost of living is wildly different in different parts of the region and even within neighborhoods. You can find apartments as expensive as NY/SF. You can find cheap apartments.
• If you buy a house, pay careful attention to the property taxes. Real estate websites are uneven on capturing the public records for the property taxes here. And the local school district will likely appeal to increase your property taxes if they are currently low.
• If you have a car, dedicated off-street parking will make your life significantly easier.

Ooh thanks for the tips! Hadn't considered that about property taxes/school districts.

I'm also originally from the west coast so driving on the east coast in general is definitely a hard change! I'm glad you've enjoyed your move so far, makes me feel a bit more confident in our decisions. Thanks for sharing! 🤗

I moved from the DMV area and it is 10 times better driving here, trust me. People who have only ever lived here have no idea what it's like trying to drive to your friend's house 5 miles away in an hour and the possibility of ending up on a one-way road to the Capitol if you make a wrong turn lol

Absolutely blows my mind how long it takes to get anywhere in the DMV. Glad to hear it's better there!

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We moved to Pittsburgh from the DMV too. I grew up here and swore I’d never come back, and here we are.

COL is hugely different. Even in the “fancy” burbs here, you’ll get far more for your money than in the DMV. The tax info mentioned above is important. Schools are all independent districts, managed separately, not like the county systems in the DMV. That can be tricky to manage and understand.

Driving is like the DMV in that many people feel they are more important and drive that way. But there is a special difference here where people feel like they need to be “nice” and let you go when it’s not your turn. The rules of driving tend to get ignored in that way. Pittsburgh nice is a whole different beast, because many people are outwardly nice, but if you’re not in the “in group” socialization can be tough. This holds specifically for parents with school aged children. Many of the other parents have known each other for decades by the time their kids go to school.

Feel free to dm me if you have any other questions.

Also a transplant. One unique thing about Pittsburgh is that neighborhoods can vary a lot block-to-block. I recommend visiting the actual block you plan to live on a few times on different days and times to get a feel for what it's like before you commit to a place.

Also, the rain here is no joke sometimes. If you decide to buy a house, pay attention to potential drainage issues. It is shitty to deal with your basement repeatedly flooding.

Lastly, I am not sure where you're coming from, but compared to other urban areas, I have found our public transportation less accessible. Fewer busses, especially during evenings and weekends. If you are planning to commute to work by bus, look up the nearest stop and how often the busses run.

Regarding the latter part about “nerd” interests, you can find plenty of it, perhaps due to the large university and tech population that supports and embraces such pursuits. If you dig into this sub you can learn more, but Squirrel Hill for example has independent bookstores and a pretty cool board game shop.

Crucial aspect of my life. Thank you for your contributions 🙏🏼

There is so much to do in Pittsburgh you’ll be surprised. It’s got a small town feel with big city amenities. Not expensive to live in either as you pointed out — recently was scored as the most affordable city in the country to live in if you look at the cost of housing versus the average wage.

Some recommended activities (this list is by no means exhaustive, just a place to start):

Carnegie Museum of Natural History to see the dinosaurs including Tyrannosaurus and Brontosaurus; but way more impressively, it has the Holotype for Diplodocus carnegii. Casts of Dippy have traveled all over the world- it’s been displayed more than any other sauropod.

Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Garden in Oakland is fantastic, with seasonal displays throughout the year. It looks like a crystal palace from the outside.

The National Aviary on North Side for huge birds of prey, and for feeding nectar to the Lorikeets from your hand, and the Pittsburgh Zoo and PPG Aquarium with fun activities like net climbing, animal encounters and more. I have been to over 20 zoos in the US and Europe and I would put this in the top 5.

Andy Warhol Museum on N Side to see Americas #1 artist’s works, don’t miss the Silver Clouds exhibit

The Duquesne Incline to Mt Washington overlook that has the best view of downtown Pittsburgh

The Strip District near downtown which has numerous stores and restaurants. Try Colangelos on 21st street for fresh pizza and La Prima Espresso next door espresso shop; The Pennsylvania Macaroni Company shop has one of the top cheese counters in the US.

Rivers of Steel 1 hour tour about the history of Pittsburgh, boat leaves from next to the Carnegie Science Center on N Side

South Side all along Carson Street with great bars, tattoo parlors, restaurants (try Nakama for hibachi), and interesting local shops with all kinds of knick knacks.

Seven Springs is an hour away and you can go skiing; in late spring or summer you can go whitewater rafting, canoeing, or cycle the Allegheny Gap Trail which is a former rail line turned into an award winning bike trail with a basically flat and straight course through the woods and over bridges.

Nearby is Falling Water, the Frank Lloyd Wright house built over a stream, it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, one of only 24 in the US.

Point State Park and the history museum called the Ft. Pitt Museum about the diamond-shaped fort that was at the point, along with a stroll out to the fountain where the 3 rivers of Pittsburgh meet.

If you want to photograph things, the numerous churches and cathedrals are a fantastic subject. Check out the one in the Strip District at the corner of Smallman and 21st St, the cathedral on Polish Hill, or Heinz Chapel at Pitt. Ones all over town, Bloomfield on Liberty Ave, South Side, etc.

The Cathedral of Learning at the center of the University of Pittsburgh has what are called nationality rooms that are designed in the theme of architecture from specific countries around the world. You can do a self guided tour and you will see some really cool stuff.

The Frick Collection in Point Breeze has a historic home with an art and antique furniture collection, and a great “Car and Carriage” museum along with a cafe for lunch.

Bicycle Heaven is the largest bike museum/store in the world and has PeeWee Herman’s bike from the movie PeeWees Great Adventure.

Grand Concourse restaurant is an old train terminal with amazing architecture, ask for a table in the River room so you can sit right by the Monongahela River and watch the barges go by.

If you want good Bavarian beer and brats right by the river, Hofbrauhaus Pittsburgh; afterwards take a stroll along the river on the Three Rivers Heritage Trail.

Lawrenceville is a newly renovated and upcoming area with great old bones of buildings and all kinds of cool stores and bars along Butler Street. Try the rolled ice cream store, NatuRoll Creamery or The Abbey which is a restaurant and bar.

Schenley Park Oval - in winter for the view of the city and the ice skating rink and in summer for the frisbee golf course.

If you like sports, in winter go see the Pittsburgh Penguins Ice Hockey team and the Pitt Panthers Basketball team; in fall the Steelers whose newest quarterback, Kenny Pickett, just graduated from Pitt; in summer PNC Park where the Pirates play has often been voted the best baseball park in the US.

My partner (M, 27) and I (F, 27) are looking into Pittsburgh as well! We only know about it from our online research, but we will be up there this week to check it out. What reasons made you two consider moving here?

Oh interesting, we're the same ages! When we visited earlier this year we experienced nothing but kindness from the locals, the city life seemed to offer enough for us (with concerts, sporting events, etc.) and most importantly the housing prices are more in the range we're looking for.

What interests you two in Pittsburgh?

This list was amazing to read through. Thank you so much for all the very specific suggestions! My husband is actually into disc golf so that's a good pull I'll definitely relay. I appreciate the time you put into this!

Pittsburgh itself has 90 neighborhoods. It can be a lot to digest, and that's the City not even counting the suburban municipalities.

I'm a Pittsburgh lifer so I have no experience elsewhere. I am a Plumbing/HVAC service tech so I do travel all over. I would tend to favor the East Suburbs. That's where I am. The further East you get, the more rural it gets but you don't have to go all that far to get back into the city pretty quick for cultural stuff and entertainment like on the south side. If you get too close to the city, you are most likely going to be in an older home. The good ones do have character and fine craftsmanship, they just don't build them like that anymore, but it may also come with the downside of a 100+ year old house needing maintenance. Then again you might get shoddy builders on the new ones. Avoid a Ryan home. North of the city is pretty upscale too. But you have to go up towards Cranberry and Wexford. South is Mount Lebanon and Upper St. Claire. Upscale, Not too familiar with that area.

People are people wherever they're from but I would say that Yinzers lean toward easy going. OK. Nuff.

Good insight! Thank you very much!

Thanks for the drainage tip 😬 I'll definitely keep that in mind!

Yea, definitely need an all wheel drive SUV type thing around here with aggressive tires. Take your car out off road or to a mall parking lot when there is a nice snow and do donuts and goof around in the snow. Gun it, cut the wheel, play in a safe place. Then when the day comes and you hit an icy patch on a steep curving hill. You will grin when you pull out of it!

One other tip that most people are not aware of is the cost of water is just astronomical. This is because Pittsburgh is required by the environmental protection agency to redo all of its pipes, so ALCOSAN is passing on the cost to customers. My mothers water bill is four times what the cost of our water bill is in Northern Virginia for the same time period. And same amounts. If you get a house with a big lawn and water it in the summer, watch out….

Oh, noted. That's a bit alarming. Thank you very much!

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• any cool places for nerd things (we both love to read books/comics/manga, play board/video games)

Black Lotus Pizza (pizza restaurant + board/card game space), Games Unlimited (Board game/TPRG/etc. store and game space), The Exchange (store that sells used music and DVDs with an ample anime/manga selection)

Depending on the distances from where you need to be, you can walk, bicycle, or take public transit. All viable options in many parts of Pittsburgh city proper.