4 Reasons Why Pittsburgh Is Good for Real Estate Investments
We love Pittsburgh! And, yes, we’re a little biased because we’re from the city and our team members live and play in Allegheny County, but Pittsburgh has been good to all of us, especially because it’s a great city for real estate investments.
That’s right: The Steel City, which once struggled after the collapse of the Steel industry and became part of the Rust Belt, has emerged as a major player in the real estate investment space, and investors from all over the world have set their sights on this city and the rest of Allegheny County for great ROI.
But what makes Pittsburgh so good for real estate investments? We’re taking a closer look!
Why Pittsburgh Is Good for Real Estate Investments
Here are a few of the biggest reasons why Pittsburgh is such a great market for real estate investors:
1. Pittsburgh housing has been less expensive than the national average.
One of the reasons Pittsburgh has emerged as one of the best cities for real estate investors is its long history of affordable housing, especially after the Steel industry moved overseas.
At one time, Pittsburgh’s population was nearly double what it is today. But when people started moving out of the town once the Steel industry dried up, we didn’t have enough people moving in to replace them.
Like many cities in the Rust Belt, we saw a larger supply than there was demand. Some houses fell into disrepair (contributing to the number of blighted homes throughout Pittsburgh), and others decreased in value.
That lower point of entry becomes especially attractive to investors when you consider how much growth Pittsburgh is seeing—especially for some of the reasons we’ll list below!
2. Pittsburgh has an excellent school system.
Pittsburgh boasts world-class schools on all levels of education—from middle school through college, and that success helps attract and retain homeowners from around the country.
Pittsburgh’s college-level success is well known. Carnegie Mellon University is a best-in-class research institution, and its Robotics Lab is single-handedly responsible for sparking a variety of spin-off tech companies and opportunities within Pittsburgh. The University of Pittsburgh, meanwhile, is renowned for its strength in Medicine, Education, and Engineering, and Duquesne University is praised for its strength across a variety of disciplines.
And while the reputations of universities like Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh University, and Duquesne University may draw many students to the area (and many of those graduates wind up staying within the region for jobs), home-buying families often choose to place their roots in the Pittsburgh area because of the strength of its middle schools and high schools.
In fact, the top schools in Pittsburgh also rank among the best schools in Pennsylvania and even the United States! Fairview Elementary School (Fox Chapel), Fox Chapel Area High School, Markham Elementary School (Mount Lebanon), Mt. Lebanon Senior High School, and Upper Saint Clair High School are all in the top 1% of Pennsylvania public schools!
That’s great news for parents who relocate to Pittsburgh in search of new jobs, as their kids will have excellent educational opportunities even in the public school setting.
3. Pittsburgh is actively reinventing and rebuilding its economy.
Pittsburgh admittedly fell on hard times after the Steel industry left, but the city has since reinvented itself through Technology, Energy, Finance, and Healthcare.
Thanks in part to CMU’s excellent technology program and Pittsburgh’s history of low-cost housing, major companies like Google, Amazon, and Uber have opened offices in the city. Their emergence has contributed to high-paying jobs and increased demand for housing, a fact that has been beneficial to investors throughout the region.
Pittsburgh has also become a significant energy hub. In fact, the logo for EQT, the global natural gas giant, has long been a landmark on the Pittsburgh skyline. More recently, construction for the Shell cracker plant in Monaca created thousands of jobs and sparked demand for housing and other basic needs throughout the area.
On the healthcare side, Pittsburgh has a long history of success—and the city was once celebrated for its “Eds and Meds” helping to revamp the economy. From ongoing research at facilities like Magee Women’s Research Institute to UPMC and Highmark Health’s status as the two biggest employers in southwestern PA, the healthcare industry is critical to the region’s economic success.
4. High housing demand, low vacancy rates, and numerous opportunities.
Like many cities across the country, Pittsburgh is currently a seller’s market, meaning property owners are experiencing excellent appreciation and competition among buyers.
And although seller’s markets inevitably shift into buyer’s markets eventually, that’s not the full picture. Pittsburgh landlords also enjoy relatively low rental vacancy rates, meaning there’s consistently good competition among renters to get into houses and apartments.
That’s excellent news for property owners. But for people who don’t own investment properties or are interested in buying more, Pittsburgh has numerous opportunities—especially for individuals who aren’t afraid of carpentry. Pittsburgh has thousands of abandoned and blighted properties that can be quickly acquired and fixed up to be ready for families. And that’s just in addition to an already healthy housing stock!
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