how is the economy in the Pittsburgh area?

[Donnachaidh]

My brother wants us to move out of the South, and told me that several of his co-workers have moved to the Pittsburgh area. Can anyone give us some info on the area - from what he says it has not been hit as hard as other areas.

I'd really appreciate any info and advice about this. I've about had it trying to survive in a right to work state. Thanks.

[livetohike]

1. I don't have a link, but the unemployment rate in Pgh/Allegheny

County is 2% less than the national average. Housing is very affordable in our area.

If you check some of the job web sites you will see many openings. Health care is a major industry and there are lots of colleges/universities. Other major employers include Heinz Corp. and Westinghouse is hiring like crazy since they have a huge nuclear plant construction contracts in the U.S. and in China.

Here's a link for the Chamber of Commerce member directory:

http://www.alleghenyconference.org/chamber/MembersCategory.asp

Of course not all of the businesses are listed there.

I think Pgh./western PA is a great place to live, but then I am biased :-).

[Donnachaidh]

2. thanks so much for the info!

We're really thinking of leaving in the next few months. Have one son who is a sophomore in High School. Jobs here are bad, despite our stupid Governor thinking otherwise. The only thing that might give my kid some shock is SNOW. He's never lived anywhere there is snow in accumulation.

I'd give my eye teeth for affordable living.

[blue neen]

3. It's basically the whole health "industry" in this area that is keeping people employed.

My son works for a company that makes MRI machines and other very technical medical equipment. His girlfriend just got hired by a large pharmaceutical mail order company that is currently expanding!

I'm employed as a Pharmacy Technician in a retail pharmacy, and we have been very busy lately...unfortunately it was a tough winter here--a lot of people have had the flu, bronchitis, pneumonia.

My husband does not work in the health care field. He's an auto insurance estimator. They were very busy this winter--lots of fender benders and total losses because of the snow and ice we had.

Housing prices are reasonable and stable. Western PA did not have a housing boom, so it did not experience a bust, either. There is actually some new home construction going on around here!

I love living here, but the winters can be tough. It's the lack of sunlight that actually seems to do you in after a while...but, we had a beautiful spring day today, and it makes it all worthwhile!

Take a trip up and see how you like it. Good luck! :)

[SteelPenguin]

7. Also specialized manufacturing

The 'big' industries like steel basically are gone (1 mill left) and the heavy manufacturing is gone, but there is a ton of specialized small manufacturing. Things with highly specialized equipement and tech there to make widgets and things that people generally don't think about but are used in all sorts of stuff. It's easy to move unskilled manufacturing other places, but the highly technical stuff is a bitch to move and train people up.

So with that, the health and biotech stuff, as well as new movements for green industry as well as robotics out of CMU there are alot of both high and mid tech jobs and specialized manufacturing that just aren't as hard hit by the current economy.

[ebbie15644]

4. Here is a link

to look for employment.https://www.cwds.state.pa.us/staffonline/Participant/ManageJobMatchBrowse/BrowseJobOrderList.aspx

The site is a little hard to use at times but make the search as broad as possible, don't narrow it down!! or you might end up with no jobs listed.

[Donnachaidh]

5. thanks!

It already looks quite promising, just from the search at the link.

[taxjustice51]

6. tax refunds

Banks and Corporations get massive sales tax refunds courtesy of the Penna Legislature.
Anyone care to find out how this is done?

[SteelPenguin]

8. Another symbol - home sales

In my neighborhood this year, in the city, 12 houses that I could see went on the market around February (ie there were signs out front). We've been watching. The four that were on my street are all sold already, and only 2 aren't sold in the neighborhood that I can see, with one of them marked 'reduced' on the sign now, because they were asking WAY too much for the place.

Anyway compare that with other places and it seems pretty good here. Not to mention that these are all 3-5 bedroom homes and range from 100k-150k in a nice city neighborhood.

Great place to live.

[MrMickeysMom]

9. Housing is much more stable...

An older infrastructure, for sure exists.

As far as a culture of folks, you'd have to go a long way to beat the kind of down to earth people I've met in the 11 yrs we've lived here.

We do have a much better climate and yes, health and education are still recession proof in my book. We have potential to re-industrialize with green industries and there are some progressive getting behind this movement.

Ya'll come.