We are planning to move to Pittsburgh this summer with 2 kids (4 and 7) any suggestion of good area to live in? I read a few things but they are kind of old (2005), something with good public school and affordable housing.

Thanks.

Hello Varda

I would say that it depends on what you are looking for.  If you would like a more "city" feel I would definitely head to Mt. Lebanon.  Very charming older houses and an awesome school district.  Has a little main street that runs through it.  It is kind of congested though-not a lot of green space.  A little further out is Upper St. Clair which is the best school district in the state.  Much more suburban and may be on the pricey side-you will pay more because of the high desirability of the area.  While these 2 areas have the best school districts they are also large public schools.  If you are looking for a school district that is small but also top notch- (it is #3) I would head to Hampton.  Lots of green space here too-very pretty area.  Much less congested.  I also like Quaker Valley a lot.  Great school district and very small.  Cute area also.  (I mention the size of the districts because this is important to me-may not be for you)

Hope this helps.  There are many great areas to consider besides these-they are simply my personal preferences based mostly on school district but also on quality of the area.  If you want to post some of your parameters for your search it will be easier  to help you narrow it down some.  (such as do you need to be close to a specific area for work, etc)

Fox Chapel is a great public school district and many of the municipalities within that district are affordable.

Length of stay is important too.  If you're passing through for 5-7 years or less and hate to commute for work.  There are good areas to live within the Pittsburgh School District.  Grab a house on a feeder street for Colfax ALA.  It is a K-8 which, if you work in Oakland or surrounding area, allows you to be close to school functions while you work.  I quick stop by now and then while your kids are in school.  If you commute too far it's tougher to visit your kids at school.

we work in the city and moved before our kids started school, so we could be closer and not spend so much time in the car.  We also had 2 commuter accidents both outside of city limits on our way to work.  Rear ended both times.  We were glad to move within walking distance for my husband and 10min drive for me.  I don't miss my kids so much knowing they are just 10-15min away instead of 45m-1h20m with no way of knowing just how long it would be each day.  Not to mention speeding just to make it home quicker.  now it's 6 stop lights and 5 stop signs away. LOL  I love it.

What we pay in taxes we literally do save in just owning 1 car and walking everywhere on evenings and weekends....not to mention all of the free/cheap events to attend within walking distance that we used to have to drive 30min to get to.  I don't think I'll ever choose to live without sidewalks again.  I've never figured out why suburban Pittsburgh has forgone sidewalks, it's so isolating and dangerous.