Pittsburgh Neighborhoods Perfect for Investors: 5 of the Best Pittsburgh Locations to Invest In Now
Pittsburgh is packed with residential homes that are quickly appreciating in value. That’s great news for Pittsburgh investors focused on quick returns.
The reasons for the quick appreciation are plentiful. Pittsburgh has become a great city to live and work, thanks in part to economic growth and recent massive investments into the communities.
Smart Pittsburgh real estate investors are looking ahead at the communities that are primed for massive growth based on location alone.
If you know where to look and how to read the news, you can pinpoint great locations for investment properties.
Best Neighborhoods to Invest in Pittsburgh: Top Neighborhoods to Look In 2021
Here are some of the best neighborhoods for investing in Pittsburgh, based on the latest developments and recent trends we’re seeing.
Garfield
We’ve all heard the “location, location, location” cliché, but Garfield really is in a great location. Garfield is nestled right beside hot neighborhoods like Lawrenceville and Shadyside, with easy access to the Children’s Hospital, Highland Park, and the Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium.
Comparatively speaking, Garfield is significantly more affordable than any of those nearby neighborhoods. The median home value in Garfield is less than $100,000, but the median home value in Lawrenceville (about $150,000) and Shadyside (about $375,000) is significantly higher!
As people looking for the convenience of Lawrenceville and Shadyside explore more affordable options, Garfield becomes an obvious choice.
Garfield has also seen major investments in both the arts and local businesses. Along Garfield’s southern border, Penn Avenue is a popular location for some of Pittsburgh’s best restaurants and exciting art galleries.
Another major draw for Garfield is the historic synagogue at 327 N. Negley Avenue currently undergoing a $18.5 million renovation and slated to reopen in 2022. The renovated building will feature:
45 units of mixed-income rental housing (38 will be affordable with rent ranging from $750-$900 a month).
Space for artists, classes, and performances in the building’s enormous rotunda.
“Green” design with rooftop solar panels.
An urban farm to meet the community’s need for fresh produce.
With so much innovation and re-investment, Garfield is quickly becoming a more attractive space to live, and property owners will see strong appreciation over the coming months and years.
North Versailles
Unlike Garfield, North Versailles isn’t a quick shot from the heart of Pittsburgh. Instead, it’s located off of Route 30, about four miles south of Forest Hills.
Nestled along the Monongahela River, North Versailles is sandwiched between two towns that have experienced rough patches in recent decades: Braddock and McKeesport. While Braddock and McKeesports have initiated their own redevelopment in recent years, North Versailles has started its own transformation.
Nowhere is North Versailles’s rebirth more apparent than the old Eastland Mall. What was once a bustling shopping attraction has sat vacant for more than a decade.
Now, though, Dallas-based developer Trammell Crow Company is building a 141,000-square-foot warehouse on the site, and recent reports have suggested that Amazon will use the warehouse as a last-mile delivery facility.
That new facility alone could attract hundreds of jobs to North Versailles. For reference, Amazon’s recently-constructed facility in Findlay Township created 1,000 new jobs!
That’s great news for North Versailles, and it should continue to nurture the region’s growing property values. In the last year alone, the median property value in North Versailles has increased to $110,000—a jump of about $20,000!
Honorable Mentions
As exciting as the changes in Garfield and North Versailles are, other neighborhoods are seeing rapid growth and reinvestment. That includes:
Sharpsburg - Once a busy industrial town, Sharpsburg’s home value and economic opportunities crashed with the rest of the Steel industry. In recent years, however, Sharpsburg has become a desirable neighborhood for its proximity to the Allegheny River and affordable housing opportunities. Plus, Sharpsburg is in the Fox Chapel school district, which has some of the best public schools in Pittsburgh.
Etna - Like Sharpsburg, Etna struggled after the Steel industry downsized in Pittsburgh. But recent investments in its local economy (Kiya Tomlin, the wife of Steelers coach Mike Tomlin, has her clothing shop there) has helped it rise once more.
Monroeville - Monroeville may suffer from an above-average unemployment rate (7% versus the 6% national average), but it has numerous factors working in its favor: it’s easily accessible via Route 376, it’s packed with restaurants and bars, and there are plenty of parks to unwind.
Looking Ahead: Pittsburgh Neighborhoods to Watch in the Future
While it’s valuable to understand where property values are about to appreciate in Pittsburgh, it’s just as valuable to think ahead in multiple decades at a time.
The Pittsburgh 2070 Mobility Vision Plan helps. This plan was developed after dozens of community events and meetings in 2019 and 2020 when the city collected ideas from stakeholders and residents about mobility and connectivity.
If you can understand how Pittsburgh’s infrastructure will evolve over the coming decades, you can begin to pinpoint regions primed for growth, both economically and residentially.
The PGH 2070 Mobility Vision Plan has already sources recommendations that include:
Car-free boulevards
Aerial transit routes
Accessible sidewalks through the city
Drone deliveries
Hyperloop connections to other major cities nearby
These sorts of innovations could dramatically transform surrounding communities and alter home prices everywhere in Allegheny County.
Pay close attention in the coming years! When you understand exactly how the city aims to invest in itself, you can identify other locations primed for growth.
