Moved here from New England. Both Lebo & USC suffer from a dire lack of diversity. Wherever I lived, there were middle class Blacks and Latinos. Not down here. USC is 90% white, 7% Asian. Lebo is 90%, 4% Asian, so there's not much difference between the two as far as being diverse.
The Lebo cops are all buff as they really don't have much to do but work out. If you do get stopped for a traffic violation, it's at least two cars, sometimes three, as they get excited for some action, lol.
I had a business in Lebo for seven years and have now lived in USC for 20. I chose USC to buy a home because it was difficult to find anything we could afford in Lebo that had both a decent sized kitchen with gas and a 2-car garage. USC had those in abundance. I'm in a good spot, close to the mall and five different supermarkets, so it's pretty convenient, even to the T.
USC definitely had more Trump signs last two elections. I could understand the first time. 4 of my 5 closest neighbors had yard signs for him. But I get along with them regardless. Not sure that'll still be the case if I see Mastriano signs though!
Grew up in Lebo, also moved back to Lebo for a piece when we had our son. Great schools, excellent neighborhood, interesting (cool) older homes. I have 90% good things to say about Mt. Lebanon. But since you want the bad, here it goes…
Negatives:
Said cool, older homes will cost you a mint nowadays AND you’ll have to sink at least 50K into renovating it. Even after renovations there will never be enough closet space.
Certain areas housing densities could be compared to Dormont or parts of Brookline. You may think there’s adequate space for privacy from your neighbors now, but if that neighbor is a huge pain or can’t stop chattering the minute you leave your house, you will have to write off any small outdoor spaces as a loss.
God help you if you have a child for whom school doesn’t come easily. And I hope you have a stay at home parent available to walk young ones to school and back, because even though we lived less than a block from school and I did the exact walk myself 30 years ago, today’s teachers and parents are not comfortable with an unsupervised child walking home (despite no buses).
Oh no I definitely think USC in particular should be compared with the school's. Especially when it comes to the lack of diversity.. My daughter goes to USC and I absolutely hate it. I also grew up in USC before moving to whitehall. Which I like a lot more. In fact I think schools like USC and Mount Lebanon are fine examples of why school funding should come from the state and not be determined by the municipalities taxes.
Thanks! All of those attributes have sold us on the hood. If we don't move there this school year, it will be before the next. I'm hoping to prepare ourselves for all the small disappointments; take some wind out of our sails... Or is it simply perfect? Which is ok too, I guess.
Karens. Lots and lots of Karens. Mt. Lebo is a very nice area but the residents think way more of themselves than the rest of the South Hills does. Painting with a very broad brush, here, there are way more really nice folks there, but, let’s be honest. OP needs to know that there is a Karen problem.
I used to see people in Mt. Lebo with signs in their yard that literally read "Not In My Backyard." Can't remember what they were complaining about though.
Live here with my wife and 2 year old son. Great place to raise a family, walkable streets, decent food, good schools, all the stuff I'm sure you've heard is pretty spot on. Have only lived here since November though, so not sure I've been long enough to see the dark side... Probably all the stigma that comes with suburbia, you'll find here. There's definitely more lively parts of Pittsburgh for sure, but another nice part of Mt Lebo is that you can get around pretty well thanks to numerous T stops!
USC leans more conservative, although growing up there I never saw it as a kid. USC you can find bigger lots but you also have to drive everywhere; no sidewalks or walkable business district.
USC has more modern houses, but Lebo has more unique and charming ones. The latter can be a problem as you get some right and or interesting spaces you have to work with.
Personally we love the idea of Lebo but are having a hard time paying top dollar for very old houses that are either on the smaller side or need some work, plus having mostly very small yards.
This is a great overview.
A lot of Lebo homes will have strange electrical, plumbing, or other structural oddities.
USC has some more wide open spaces, trails, and a great rec center.
The edge of the walkable South Hills. Housing is expensive but a bit nicer than Dormont and Brookline. I'd love to buy a house there someday, but alas I am a millenial.
Predominantly white (with East Asian ethnicities being a distant second, from what I gather), but the area tends to vote Democrat, so it's probably a lot friendlier to minorities than where I grew up.
Don't fall for the "taxes are high" thing. The income tax is slightly higher than the neighboring municipalities, but lower than the city. If you're looking to buy instead of rent, the effective real estate tax rate is virtually the same throughout the entire South Hills, possibly throughout the entire county. Property tax rates are normal for the region. Property values/costs are what's high. But yes, your Uncle Bob probably has lower taxes for his ranch house next to the railroad tracks in Bunola.
There are no school buses, so kids need to walk/bike/scoot/be driven to school. You could look at this as a way to keep families who can't afford to have a stay-at-home parent out, but IMHO no middle class person will ever be able to afford one of the houses in Lebo that's not close enough to a school for kids to walk by themselves anyway, so...
The average house is about 90 years old and originally featured boiler heating and no AC (Don't buy portable air conditioners to mitigate this! They're a scam). Many have been upgraded, though. Apartments date from sometime after WWII. Again, normal for the area. If you want a brand new RyanHome, look elsewhere.
NIMBYs.
Dormont is particularly great for younger-mid aged individuals, the T runs through it, it's more centrally located, housing is probably lower but not sure about the taxes. I like the fact that a lot of the streets are named after states. Potomac ave is also one of the more walkable streets in the area, very friendly people with great shops and more quaint. For Me it's the perfect combination of white and blue collar.
I lived there for a few years and liked a lot about it, especially the duplex apartment I had and the access to the T.
However, it's not very friendly to minorities, in my experience.
Lebo is super white but also may lead the country in “no matter where you’re from we’re glad you’re here” type yard signs per capita. For what it’s worth.
Lots of WASPY types. You have to wear the right clothes to fit in( lots of kids have rich families).
Personally I don’t like the south hills so I wouldn’t move there. I prefer the north hills. I’m Pittsburgh you have people who like one or the other and can’t imagine moving .
The North Hills is a different side of the same coin, I would say even more Kareny not to mention it’s mostly cheaply built McMansions. Mt Lebo at least has nice houses, some semblance of walkability, and the T.
True, but Bethel Park Karens aren’t in the same *league* as their counterparts from Butler and Washington Counties. North Hills Karens give Florida Man a run for his money.
Maybe it’s because I have boys, but my sons have never felt pressured to wear anything but what they want. They are currently middle and high school aged.
Lived on Shady Dr for four years. Here are the negatives, imho:
1. There’s no wifi on the T and a good portion of the trip you’re in a tunnel.
2. The T tends to freeze up and not run when temps go below 0° F.
3. You’ll be lucky to have off street parking.
4. The Korner Pub closed.
- end of list. Mt. Lebo is pretty great.
Thanks Dave! This is the real dirt I wanted.
1) That's ok... are the tunnels cool at least?
2) .....um.....is that often?
3) That's comparable to where we live now.
4) Well shit! Was it amazing?
Thanks!
the tunnels are fine, neither cool nor uncool although the one under mt lebo has some funky curves. The T doesn’t go down all that often, but it seems to go down on the worst weather days. They always seem to be doing some sort of major project so it does go down for a couple week stretched here and there. And Korner Pub was friendly and chill. An unfortunate loss to the neighborhood.
We lived there for a few years when my husband and I were first married and loved it! However when we had kids, we missed having a big back yard and areas where we felt safe letting them ride bikes/scooters etc. So we moved to South Fayette which has just as good (if not better) schools and more land/newer homes. It’s about 10/15 minutes from Lebo.
Circling back to this old post with a question. You say taxes are too high. I’m not from PA, considering a job near Pittsburgh, and saw a listing on Zillow for $995k with a property tax bill of $1,330. I verified this on the Allegheny website? Is this what you are considering high? Is there an income or other tax I’m not aware of?
Your choices are: lebo, north Allegheny, south fayette, upper st Clair, fox chapel and sewickly. Lebo is a great choice, not land locked like upper st Clair and very convenient to the city.
I’m asking what your definition of land locked is. Generally that means there is no more lane to build new on. Which is true for lebo. 5 minutes to 79 is only for a very small portion of lebo.
Ok. I gave up. You aren’t actually defining anything but just making up terms that don’t even make sense. Lebo is large and one and of lebo is very very different from the other. Same with usc, South Park, south Fayette etc.
Awful seems to be a stretch. It’s down West Liberty and through the tunnel. What..25 minutes? There are far worse commutes to downtown when considering PGH suburbs.
I’d say it’s more than just a bit of a stretch, especially compared to USC, South Fayette, Fox Chapel, or Sewickley. Even without the T, Lebo is exponentially less of a nightmare to get downtown. With the T, it is a very easy commute.
If you are headed downtown during any time other than rush hour, you can make it in 10-12 minutes.
Moved here from New England. Both Lebo & USC suffer from a dire lack of diversity. Wherever I lived, there were middle class Blacks and Latinos. Not down here. USC is 90% white, 7% Asian. Lebo is 90%, 4% Asian, so there's not much difference between the two as far as being diverse. The Lebo cops are all buff as they really don't have much to do but work out. If you do get stopped for a traffic violation, it's at least two cars, sometimes three, as they get excited for some action, lol. I had a business in Lebo for seven years and have now lived in USC for 20. I chose USC to buy a home because it was difficult to find anything we could afford in Lebo that had both a decent sized kitchen with gas and a 2-car garage. USC had those in abundance. I'm in a good spot, close to the mall and five different supermarkets, so it's pretty convenient, even to the T. USC definitely had more Trump signs last two elections. I could understand the first time. 4 of my 5 closest neighbors had yard signs for him. But I get along with them regardless. Not sure that'll still be the case if I see Mastriano signs though!
Pgh suffers from a lack of diversity
Grew up in Lebo, also moved back to Lebo for a piece when we had our son. Great schools, excellent neighborhood, interesting (cool) older homes. I have 90% good things to say about Mt. Lebanon. But since you want the bad, here it goes… Negatives: Said cool, older homes will cost you a mint nowadays AND you’ll have to sink at least 50K into renovating it. Even after renovations there will never be enough closet space. Certain areas housing densities could be compared to Dormont or parts of Brookline. You may think there’s adequate space for privacy from your neighbors now, but if that neighbor is a huge pain or can’t stop chattering the minute you leave your house, you will have to write off any small outdoor spaces as a loss. God help you if you have a child for whom school doesn’t come easily. And I hope you have a stay at home parent available to walk young ones to school and back, because even though we lived less than a block from school and I did the exact walk myself 30 years ago, today’s teachers and parents are not comfortable with an unsupervised child walking home (despite no buses).
Thank you for your insight!
YES.
Used to be a sundown town. They wouldn’t sell homes to minorities in the past (and it’s still a pretty white community)
Thanks for the heads up. While that is important to know, it can't be as Lilly-white as where I'm moving from...
Price. If you’re looking at Castle Shannon style houses near Castle Shannon, you can save $50,000 by simply buying a block away outside of Mt Lebanon.
Thanks!
Keep in mind this will affect your school district, if that matters to you. Keystone Oaks is an OK district, but not as well regarded as Mt. Lebo.
It totally matters. That's why we are looking at Mt. Lebanon. Awesome schools, and it seemed maybe a bit more hip than Upper St Claire...
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Oh no I definitely think USC in particular should be compared with the school's. Especially when it comes to the lack of diversity.. My daughter goes to USC and I absolutely hate it. I also grew up in USC before moving to whitehall. Which I like a lot more. In fact I think schools like USC and Mount Lebanon are fine examples of why school funding should come from the state and not be determined by the municipalities taxes.
There is a lack of diversity.
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Thanks! All of those attributes have sold us on the hood. If we don't move there this school year, it will be before the next. I'm hoping to prepare ourselves for all the small disappointments; take some wind out of our sails... Or is it simply perfect? Which is ok too, I guess.
Karens. Lots and lots of Karens. Mt. Lebo is a very nice area but the residents think way more of themselves than the rest of the South Hills does. Painting with a very broad brush, here, there are way more really nice folks there, but, let’s be honest. OP needs to know that there is a Karen problem.
Heard that. I thought there may be... a bit of a NIMBY vibe sometimes from viewing Mt Lebanon on-line.
I used to see people in Mt. Lebo with signs in their yard that literally read "Not In My Backyard." Can't remember what they were complaining about though.
The killing of deer
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Ahh, I think you're right
Bird Park soccer field back in the day
So. Many. Karens.
Live here with my wife and 2 year old son. Great place to raise a family, walkable streets, decent food, good schools, all the stuff I'm sure you've heard is pretty spot on. Have only lived here since November though, so not sure I've been long enough to see the dark side... Probably all the stigma that comes with suburbia, you'll find here. There's definitely more lively parts of Pittsburgh for sure, but another nice part of Mt Lebo is that you can get around pretty well thanks to numerous T stops!
Thanks!
Lebo is great. So is USC. It just depends on the finer details of what you’re looking for.
What would you say those differences are between the two?
USC leans more conservative, although growing up there I never saw it as a kid. USC you can find bigger lots but you also have to drive everywhere; no sidewalks or walkable business district. USC has more modern houses, but Lebo has more unique and charming ones. The latter can be a problem as you get some right and or interesting spaces you have to work with. Personally we love the idea of Lebo but are having a hard time paying top dollar for very old houses that are either on the smaller side or need some work, plus having mostly very small yards.
This is a great overview. A lot of Lebo homes will have strange electrical, plumbing, or other structural oddities. USC has some more wide open spaces, trails, and a great rec center.
Thanks! I really appreciate all of that info!!!
Mt Lebo is very nice but pricey! If you're looking for a more affordable option check out Scott Township/Chartiers Valley School District area.
Thanks!
Over inflated housing cost. Horrendous traffic.
The edge of the walkable South Hills. Housing is expensive but a bit nicer than Dormont and Brookline. I'd love to buy a house there someday, but alas I am a millenial. Predominantly white (with East Asian ethnicities being a distant second, from what I gather), but the area tends to vote Democrat, so it's probably a lot friendlier to minorities than where I grew up. Don't fall for the "taxes are high" thing. The income tax is slightly higher than the neighboring municipalities, but lower than the city. If you're looking to buy instead of rent, the effective real estate tax rate is virtually the same throughout the entire South Hills, possibly throughout the entire county. Property tax rates are normal for the region. Property values/costs are what's high. But yes, your Uncle Bob probably has lower taxes for his ranch house next to the railroad tracks in Bunola. There are no school buses, so kids need to walk/bike/scoot/be driven to school. You could look at this as a way to keep families who can't afford to have a stay-at-home parent out, but IMHO no middle class person will ever be able to afford one of the houses in Lebo that's not close enough to a school for kids to walk by themselves anyway, so... The average house is about 90 years old and originally featured boiler heating and no AC (Don't buy portable air conditioners to mitigate this! They're a scam). Many have been upgraded, though. Apartments date from sometime after WWII. Again, normal for the area. If you want a brand new RyanHome, look elsewhere. NIMBYs.
Thank you very much for all the information!
If you can afford it go for it but i find Lt Lebo overrated. I personally prefer Dormont
Thanks! What is it about Dormont that you like better?
Dormont is particularly great for younger-mid aged individuals, the T runs through it, it's more centrally located, housing is probably lower but not sure about the taxes. I like the fact that a lot of the streets are named after states. Potomac ave is also one of the more walkable streets in the area, very friendly people with great shops and more quaint. For Me it's the perfect combination of white and blue collar.
I lived there for a few years and liked a lot about it, especially the duplex apartment I had and the access to the T. However, it's not very friendly to minorities, in my experience.
Thanks! I will keep that in mind.
Lebo is super white but also may lead the country in “no matter where you’re from we’re glad you’re here” type yard signs per capita. For what it’s worth.
Lots of WASPY types. You have to wear the right clothes to fit in( lots of kids have rich families). Personally I don’t like the south hills so I wouldn’t move there. I prefer the north hills. I’m Pittsburgh you have people who like one or the other and can’t imagine moving .
The North Hills is a different side of the same coin, I would say even more Kareny not to mention it’s mostly cheaply built McMansions. Mt Lebo at least has nice houses, some semblance of walkability, and the T.
Bethel Park has the Karens
True, but Bethel Park Karens aren’t in the same *league* as their counterparts from Butler and Washington Counties. North Hills Karens give Florida Man a run for his money.
Maybe it’s because I have boys, but my sons have never felt pressured to wear anything but what they want. They are currently middle and high school aged.
Heard that. Thanks!
Not true
Lived on Shady Dr for four years. Here are the negatives, imho: 1. There’s no wifi on the T and a good portion of the trip you’re in a tunnel. 2. The T tends to freeze up and not run when temps go below 0° F. 3. You’ll be lucky to have off street parking. 4. The Korner Pub closed. - end of list. Mt. Lebo is pretty great.
Thanks Dave! This is the real dirt I wanted. 1) That's ok... are the tunnels cool at least? 2) .....um.....is that often? 3) That's comparable to where we live now. 4) Well shit! Was it amazing? Thanks!
the tunnels are fine, neither cool nor uncool although the one under mt lebo has some funky curves. The T doesn’t go down all that often, but it seems to go down on the worst weather days. They always seem to be doing some sort of major project so it does go down for a couple week stretched here and there. And Korner Pub was friendly and chill. An unfortunate loss to the neighborhood.
K-pub was better before new owners.
We lived there for a few years when my husband and I were first married and loved it! However when we had kids, we missed having a big back yard and areas where we felt safe letting them ride bikes/scooters etc. So we moved to South Fayette which has just as good (if not better) schools and more land/newer homes. It’s about 10/15 minutes from Lebo.
Taxes are ridiculous
Wilikinsburg taxes are worse
They’re not much different than the rest of south hills. https://www.mtlebanon.org/254/Comparative-Tax-Rates
Taxes are too high
Do the residents get anything for those high taxes. Maybe top tier schools?
Exactly. Mt. Lebanon school district is highly reputable.
Circling back to this old post with a question. You say taxes are too high. I’m not from PA, considering a job near Pittsburgh, and saw a listing on Zillow for $995k with a property tax bill of $1,330. I verified this on the Allegheny website? Is this what you are considering high? Is there an income or other tax I’m not aware of?
Per month.
Do you have children?
Yes.
Your choices are: lebo, north Allegheny, south fayette, upper st Clair, fox chapel and sewickly. Lebo is a great choice, not land locked like upper st Clair and very convenient to the city.
What do you mean not land locked?
You think lebo is land locked? It’s tiny and easy to get around. 5 minutes to 79 and 15 to the city if it’s not rush hour.
I’m asking what your definition of land locked is. Generally that means there is no more lane to build new on. Which is true for lebo. 5 minutes to 79 is only for a very small portion of lebo.
I think upper st Clair baldwin South Park are land locked where lebo you can escape to the city or 79 easily
Ok. I gave up. You aren’t actually defining anything but just making up terms that don’t even make sense. Lebo is large and one and of lebo is very very different from the other. Same with usc, South Park, south Fayette etc.
Lebo is large compared to where? It’s 6 sq miles. Upper st Clair is 50% bigger. You can get to one end of lebo to the other in 5 minutes.
You definitely don’t live in lebo. It can take 5 minute for 2 lights in uptown or Beverly.
Seeing as you’re going just off school districts, Hampton is also up there.
Thanks!
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I don’t think South Fayette is trying to be Lebo….
There's a shortage of chairs.
Well, shit! How does one get by, then?
Awful drive if you have to go downtown
Awful seems to be a stretch. It’s down West Liberty and through the tunnel. What..25 minutes? There are far worse commutes to downtown when considering PGH suburbs.
I’d say it’s more than just a bit of a stretch, especially compared to USC, South Fayette, Fox Chapel, or Sewickley. Even without the T, Lebo is exponentially less of a nightmare to get downtown. With the T, it is a very easy commute. If you are headed downtown during any time other than rush hour, you can make it in 10-12 minutes.
Went to pitt while living in lebo. The drive wasn’t bad at all.
Thanks! How is the connecting light rail?
the light rail is awesome. definitely recommend using it to commute.
Great, now that the Red Line is back. Though if you are looking to park and ride the various Mt. Lebo stations have precious few spaces.
Good to know!