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OK, time for a semi-curated array of mildly interesting data points — or a silly Pittsburgh listicle roundup, whichever you prefer.
First, something called RealtyHop (a real estate website) says that it takes 3.82 years to afford a $49,000 down payment on a home. Wow, that sounds terrible. I could eat Mrs. T’s frozen pierogies for every meal for a decade and that wouldn’t make a dent in $49,000.
Oh, wait, according to the report, this is actually good. Pittsburgh is easier/cheaper than all but four of the top 100 American cities. Things are rough out there.
Then, there’s Zumper’s National Rent Index, which notes that Pittsburgh rents — the 49th most expensive market — are up 9.2% in the past year, with the median price of one-bedroom units at $1,300 and two-bedrooms at $1,500. Meanwhile, the national rent index actually decreased this month for one-bedroom units by 0.3%, to $1,534, and increased slightly for two-bedrooms to $1,907. Maybe this is right, and it certainly seems within the realm of plausibility. Even if Zumper sounds like one of those random combinations of syllables thrown together to describe a new medication with a mile-long list of unsettling side effects, like “may cause suicidal thoughts and occasional resurrection after death.”
Then there’s Wallethub’s Best and Worst Cities for Football Fans. Yep, we’re number one — which suggests they haven’t talked to a Steelers fan in the past decade or so. Steelers fans are both the best and the worst football fans in America. We’re pretty knowledgeable; you’re never surprised when anyone (drag queens, philosophy professors, your grandma) can diagram a zone blitz or evaluate the nose tackles in this year’s draft class. But we’re also pretty whiny and entitled, and act like it’s the end of the world when we experience the mildest setbacks — or even just fail to win the Super Bowl every year. It could always be worse; contemplate, just for a second, the soul-destroying despair of the average Cleveland Browns fan. And then thank your lucky stars if you’ve avoided that fate.
For sale: 122 Richbarn Rd., Brighton Heights, 214,900.
Brighton Heights strikes again with this attractive bungalow for a throwback price. That porch seems to have enough room for a dodgeball game, and the interior 1,308 square feet seem very roomy for the price, which has dropped by $5,000 recently. That’s either a good sign or a bad one depending on whether you’re trying to buy or sell.
For rent: Gladstone Residences, 327 Hazelwood Ave., Hazelwood, $696-1,618/month.
Despite the happy talk about new breweries and job opportunities at Hazelwood Green, Hazelwood seemingly grows emptier every year. Part of the problem is just a lack of properties that one could buy or rent. This newly completed redevelopment of the old (1914) Gladstone high school is a drop in the bucket, but a welcome one. It’s got studios and one-and-two-bedroom units in a complex that adapts to challenging hillside topography by connecting two buildings via skywalk. So far, the promises to keep affordable units seem to be holding, though that could obviously change. One side of the property sits on Hazelwood Ave., an unpleasant road that sorely needs some speed bumps. On the other side is a largely abandoned series of streets gradually giving way to the encroaching entropy of the forest.
For sale: 16 Walkers Mill Rd., Carnegie, $120,000.
To get those low, low prices of yore, you have to expect some compromises. You have to decide what you can live with, and what you can’t live without. Usually, windows are one of those things that you don’t need to worry about though. This odd little aquamarine-painted place in Carnegie does exude a certain woodsy charm, with a farmhouse-like ceiling, floors, and a smattering of critter skulls on the walls (which probably don’t come with the house). The color probably grows on you after a while, but presenting a blank, featureless wall to the street is pretty off-putting. Compromises!
For rent: Georgian, 5437 Ellsworth Ave., Shadyside, $1,055-1,255/month.
It’s fun when an apartment building is important enough to have a name, and “Georgian” is pretty good as apartment names go. This is a beautiful building, and rents are somehow still hanging around turn-of-the-century numbers. Sure, that’s a 475-square-foot studio, which is not a lot. But if you’re new to town, or just moved out of a dorm, or simply don’t have the physical and existential weight of decades of stuff weighing you down, it’s probably enough.
For sale: 2126 Lautner St., Troy Hill, $249,000.
Built in 1927, but it doesn’t look a day over 90. Actually, this place cleaned up very nice, and from the inside there’s no way to determine it’s vintage. Very bright, white and minimalist, but the remaining original features — the wooden floor — make it feel a little bit warmer and more inviting.
For rent: 3320 Cargill St., Polish Hill, $900/month.
Are we at that point where “well, at least there are windows” is a meaningful observation? Polish Hill is a great neighborhood, in walking distance to major job centers, amenities, and lots of great places to eat. But the housing stock is still a bit rough, and it’s very hard to build anything here, so you sort of have to take what you can get. Family lore contends that my grandpa, the blacksmith, forged some of the ironwork for the giant, green-domed church in Polish Hill. This might be one of the only neighborhoods that he would recognize, were he alive today, but it would be nice if there were a few new houses/apartments that people could choose.
This article appears in Feb 5-11, 2025.
