2015 BMES Housing Survey

Neighborhood

Address

Squirrel Hill
Squirrel Hill
Southside
Southside
Squirrel Hill

5722 Hobart St.

5571 Hobart
Sarah Street
Stella St
Wilkins ave

Shadyside

270 Shady Avenue

Shadyside

270 Shady Avenue

South Oakland
Shadyside

Juliet Street
625 Copeland

Southside

98 S 12th St

Squirrel Hill

5483 Pocusset Street

Squirrel Hill

2359 Tilbury Ave

Squirrel Hill
Highland Park

2359 Tilbury Ave

823 North Euclid Ave

Greenfield

938 Lilac St

Friendship

111 S. Graham St.

Friendship
Shadyside
Shadyside
Shadyside

S Aiken Ave & Friendship Ave

5435 Claybourne St,Pittsburgh 15232
5920 Walnut St
5628 Fifth Avenue

Shadyside

5030 Centre Ave.

North Oakland

4733 Centre Ave

Southside

1028 E Warrington Ave

Bloomfield
Point Breeze

355 Gross St
Meade Pl & N. Lang Ave

Highland Park

1001 N. Negley Avenue

Shadyside

5449 Potter St

Complex Name
None
Standalone
N/A
Single home
?

Closest Bus Lines

61C & 61D
61ABCD, 64, 58
75
75, 54, 81, 83, 48, 51
67, 69 in front of my house

Franklin West

75, 71B, 71D

Franklin West

75, 71B, 71D

House
Casa del Cafe

Campus shuttles
75, 71AC, 71BD, P3

N/A
House (Arbors Management)

54C, 48
61A-D

Duplex

61C,D; 64; 74

Duplex
My Personal Home

61C,D; 64; 74
71A, 71B, 75

n/a - rental duplex

House

Freundshaft
Claybourne Apartments
n/a
Negley Court

Amberson Plaza

Ambassador Apartments

RE 360

61C/D, 58, 93

y Ave. at Coral St. (71A and 71C)

71A/C, 54, 75, 88

71a,71c,64,82,86,75
71B, 71D
71B, 71D

71A, C

82, 71C, 71A, 54

54C/D

GreenHaus
Howard West Properties
Highlan Park Club Apartments
Julia Lopez

54, 86, 64
67, 69, 71c
71A, 71B, 75, 87
71A, 71C, 75

Number of Bedrooms

Total Monthly Rent

2
2
2
3
3

$750
950
$1,500
$1,000
475 per person

1150

1150

4
2

330 each
1100

600

1650

1200 (400/person)

3
2

1200 (400/person)
na

1600

600-700

7
1
2
1

3100 (442 / person)

1045
1425
860

1240

790

1200

3
2

1400
$1,050

1240

480

Are utilities included? If not, what are their average cost?

No, $20.00
125
No, ~ $200
$300
no, utilities more 100

Water included, electricity and gas = 150/mo

Water included, electricity and gas = 150/mo

No. We pay cable/internet and electric. ~$50 per month per roommate
250

No, average of $100/month plus cable.

No, typically additional $100 per roommate

Not included 100-150 per person per month

Not included 100-150 per person per month

na

$75/mo/person

Yes (including tv & internet)

no, $200 each

100
All but electric (~$50.00 total)
30

~$30

All but electricity ($15-20/month)

No. ~$100-200 each

~300
No, $200
yes
Water included, +~60 each

Is there parking availabIs it pet friendly?

How would you

Street Parking
Free
Yes, $20/yr
Yes, $0
yes, free

No
Yes
No
No
yes, at least for sn

Yes - 50/mo

Cats and dogs under

Yes - 50/mo

Cats and dogs under

Yes, street parking. NotYes

Yes, zero
No

On street permit

Cats yes w/ no extra

Yes, free

no

6
8
9
10
5

7
10

8
10

free street parking

no

free street parking

no
lots of free street parki the area is very pet

3
8

Yes, free

No

Driveway that fits 2-3 c Somewhat

2 person garage plus 3 yes

40 no
1 spot
no
100 yes

5
8
8
10

Free parking but hard t I think only small pe

I don't know...sorry!

Cats are allowed

Street parking. Free.

No.

Yes $50
Yes, none

No
Yes

9
8

yes, not extra

yes

Street permit parking

Yes

10

Please explain you

It is an older hou
Nice older house
Renting a house in
Excellent
There is everythin

Very nice apartme

Very nice apartme

It's not super nic

I have lived here

For the price it i

Beautiful house wi

The neighborhood i

The neighborhood i
This is my persona

Pros: House is safe and in decent repair. Quiet family neighborhood. Good heating and cooling sy

Cons: Decor is dated and dingy (apt is fully furnished). Small kitchen and bathroom. Neighborhood

I have been at th

very large house

Good maintenance,
Common areas are clean and safe.

Ordinary apartment

The building is a

There was no insulation, so the apartment was boiling in the summer and freezing in the winter. O
The layout is nice though (the bedrooms were large) and the view is gorgeous (looks out over dow

Slightly dated, bu
Insulation could
There's a washer a
It's my favorite p

How would you rate your interactions with management?

8
8
10
10
7

10
10

10
4

1
7

5
8
7
10

10
9
9
9

Please explain your rating of your management.

The landlady lives on the first floor, so she is always around to help
if anything goes wrong.
Responsive landlord.
Renting house through co-worker
Excellent
no problems so far
Very good interactions overall, a few minor issues which were
quickly resolved by simply talking to management
Very good interactions overall, a few minor issues which were
quickly resolved by simply talking to management
He is awesome! Many landlords in Oakland are pretty bad (from
personal experience and stories from friends), but our landlord is
very relaxed and fixes things the same day that we ask him to
Private landlord
Landlord genuinely cares about tenants & her property. She's an
eccentric old lady but treats her tenants like family.
The landlord didn't know what was going on in terms of utilities,
bills, repairs, etc.

Management company (Lobos) had very poor business practices.

They sent someone (without notifying us) to clean the ceiling of the
bathroom (nothing else), but would not respond to calls for repairs
(broken locks, handrail damaged before move-in, broken light
switch). Repairs were only completed as they began to show the
apartment, and even then they were not the repairs we asked for.
They also sent two strange men (again, without notifying us) to
change the vanity. The men occupied our only bathroom for
several hours, left a mess, and then deposited the old vanity in the
back yard.
While showing the apartment, representatives would lie to potential
renters, telling them a washer and dryer were included in the unit
(which is not true).
In case it's not clear, DO NOT RENT THROUGH LOBOS
MANAGEMENT.

Management company (Lobos) had very poor business practices.

They sent someone (without notifying us) to clean the ceiling of the
bathroom (nothing else), but would not respond to calls for repairs
(broken locks, handrail damaged before move-in, broken light
switch). Repairs were only completed as they began to show the
apartment, and even then they were not the repairs we asked for.
They also sent two strange men (again, without notifying us) to
change the vanity. The men occupied our only bathroom for
several hours, left a mess, and then deposited the old vanity in the
back yard.
While showing the apartment, representatives would lie to potential
renters, telling them a washer and dryer were included in the unit
(which is not true).
In case it's not clear, DO NOT RENT THROUGH LOBOS
MANAGEMENT.
na

Landlady (Marsha) has a few strange rules she feels strongly about
(like not walking barefoot in the house), but she is very fair and
upfront with you about everything. If you keep the place clean, pay
rent on time, and don't throw wild parties, you will get along with
her well.

"Management" is a young professional that is my own age that

purchased this home 3 years ago. I met her just before she
purchased it and moved in soon after. She is friendly and easy to
reach if problems arise. Currently she lives in one of the rooms on
the second floor. An advantage because she cares about the state
of the house and will fix issues quickly.
The management has been friendly but tardy in responding to
maintenance requests. They also do not keep up the house very
well. A window was broken when we moved in and they replaced it
with a thin sheet of PlexiGlass.
Very prompt
The reparation of damages is made very quickly.
I heard the management is nice, but I haven't interacted with my
management much, and there are a few times where the office
was closed during the hour.
So the main management (Union Real Estate) is extremely
annoying. Luckily, you only have to deal with them during the
getting the apartment stage. After that, you interact primarily with
the landlords, and most of the landlords are awesome!

Management sent people over to deal with our frozen pipes and
electrical issues very quickly. Management was supposed to send
someone to insulate the house, however, and that never
happened. The damage done to the apartment from dealing with
the frozen pipes was also never repaired.

Landlord owns house, is easily contacted, responds quickly

Generally responsive
always tells us when we have packages, fix broken items within the
week or so
Our land lady is chill. It concerns our Type A roommate but the rest
of us don't think it's a problem.

Other General C

Contact info - Br

Students should know that in most cases, people aren't allowed to sublet an apartment without go

Also, I suggest staying away from John CR Kelly. The apartments are slums, and the lessee's nam

Students should know that in most cases, people aren't allowed to sublet an apartment without go

Also, I suggest staying away from John CR Kelly. The apartments are slums, and the lessee's nam
I really like high

The house currentl

We are looking fo

How did you find your apartment listing?

Fellow BioE student
craigslist
Co-worker
Craigslist
Craigslist

Craigslist, walking into office

Craigslist, walking into office

moved in with friends from undergrad who were looking for another roommate
Craigslist

Word of mouth
Craig's List

craigslist

craigslist
craigslist

Craigslist

Friend

CraigList
Google
Zillow
Apartment finder

Friend

Searched online for cat-friendly apartments

Google

Craigslist
craigslist
Apartment Living Booklet
craigslist