already have a thread in GD, but thought I would reiterate here in hometown.

Looks like we are moving to PA this year.  The wife begins employment end of Feb and will be out there by herself for 3+ months.  We are looking to buy property/build in and around Canonsburg.  We also have found some properties available  in/near Cecil/Cecil Twp.  They are rustic lots with no services.  In this area, what would it take ($$$) to bring in utilities/water/cable?  Also are there any reputable builders in the area?

I'm sure there will be more questions, but we are excited to move to a different part of the country and close to where we grew up (MI).

TIA

Cecil is a good area to look.  Property is a lot cheaper and you don't have to deal with the Allegheny County tax.  We live on the Allegheny/Washington County border in Bethel Park and if we had to do it again we would have looked for somewhere in McMurray, Venetia or Finleyville.  I work downtown in Pittsburgh and my wife is out in Southpointe so we settled on the happy medium between the two so I had access to the train stations.

Depending on where she is working, you can find some fairly remote areas with easy access to I-79/Rt. 19 that are only 10-15 minutes from Canonsburg.  McMurray is on the other side of I-79 (compared to Cecil), but there are plenty of undeveloped areas that still have easy access to Canonsburg.

ETA so I can actually answer your question

Our Verizon FiOS (cable/internet) is ~$75-90/mo, gas on average is ~$25/mo (we have gas stove & furnace), and water/electricity total ~$30/mo.  I couldn't tell you what it would cost to have all those utilities installed if they aren't already existing.  

As for builders - we bought a used house but we've put in a new deck and windows, blew out the kitchen, redid carpet, and had garage doors installed.  Send me a PM if you're interested in those services - everyone we used was A+ and reasonably priced.

Take your time picking contractors.  One thing about living in the suburbs of Pittsburgh are there are a ton of people who will gouge you on services.  Being in such close proximity to houses that fetch upwards of a couple million dollars brings all sorts out of the woodwork.  We had quotes for our deck that ranged between $12,000-$30,000 and for our kitchen that ranged anywhere from $18,000-$75,000.

Holy shit....thanks for the intel.  I will keep you in mind.  Also, thanks for the info on possible areas.  My wife will also be working in Southpointe, and for the first 3 months will be in an apartment there on campus.

Stay out of Allegheny county if you can due to taxes.

Venetia, Finleyville, Cecil, Hickory, Eighty Four are all pretty rural within close proximity of Southpointe.

If you go farther south into southern Washington and northern Greene, real estate gets dirt cheap.

Dormont-Mt Lebanon Sportsmans Club is the place to shoot.

If she's out of Southpointe, I'd expand your search to include the areas Scorpion40 and I have mentioned in addition to Laboratory.  If she can deal with a ~20-30 minute commute on highway (I-79) you open up a lot of different areas.  There's some construction going on where Rt. 19 and I-79 intersect, but the worse of it is over and shouldn't have to deal with any of the associated delays.

Shoot me a PM once you get settled in the area.  I'll buy you a beer when I'm working out of our Southpointe office one day.

I didn't see this till now..... Ive helped quite a few move here.

First thing, whats your total budget. sorry to get personal, but I live in the area that you want to move too and on my street there are places between $200,000 and 5 million.  
Secondly, do you have school age kids?  some towns have shit schools.
Thirdly, the nicer communities are on the East side of I79, but over here the commute to Southpoint might be longer.  There are some wonderful homes on the West side of I79 and its easier to get to her work. Just N of Southpoint is where the new highway will be, (more on that below) and just N of that is Allegheny County, so if you move there, expect a tax raping. Directly S of Southpoint is Canonsburg. There are some nice homes there, but you wont get any property. We have a huge play of natural gas here.... make sure you ask about gas rights. If you buy more than an acre of ground, you might have to have someone look at your lease agreement. I can advise you, but I'm not a lawyer.
Do you have a job lined up? From the West side of 79, you pretty much have to drive to Pittsburgh.  From the East side of 79 its much easier and less traffic to drive to the train that goes into Pittsburgh and from the furthest point out its 40 mins, and you can sit next to Burgh and bullshit.

I keep saying E and W of 79 for a reason. It runs N + S and you have to cross under/over it and theres only a few places to do so.  There is also a creek that parallels it that you need to cross, so traffic gets hairy during rush hour.  Then once you get across that there is also another major road that parallels it about a mile E that you will have to cross at a light or chance it without.

There is also something else... The State of PA is building a new highway and the real estate agents don't have to disclose it to you unless your property touches  the easement of the highway.  Its basically going to parallel Route 980 and connect up with I79 just N of Southpoint.   It will be great for getting from this area to the airport and they are in the stages of ripping down houses now.  As time progresses they will be buying up property to the E of 79 and running the highway  through North Strabane, Nottingham, Union and keep going that direction and turn N and hook up someplace near Monroeville, but that's going to be 20 years out.

I'll get you a map of that if you request.

Are you a board member?

Welcome to the neighborhood.  As others mentioned, you'll save some coin in taxes (currently, although I'm told that new assessments are in progress) if you live in the Washington County part of the area.

Bro, Mine  are done. Wasnt a big increase. $150 or so.... S.C. said his were 200.

Your information will be very very helpful in the coming months.  When we were out there initially for her interview, we travelled around in the NW direction of Canonsburg and like the area alot.  This new highway may skew things now.  When she was interviewing, I was exploring and saw that there were few areas to cross under I79.  Only time will tell where we end up, for now she will be in the Apartment complex located in Southpointe.  I will be visiting from time to time as I work on the house here, getting it ready to sell.

Thanks for the information.

If it's the complex off the golf course, those are pretty nice and convenient if she works in Southpointe.  I looked at one of the units when I moved to PA, but decided to get a bigger place near the casino.

Need a little more info op. Price? what type of property? 

A 30 min commute to south point can give lots of options. multi  million dollar estates, country, city, suburbs, ghettos and anything you could imagine for any price. I'm pretty familiar with the 70/79 corridor. Feel free to PM. 

I would avoid Allegheny county if possible. 

I think we will rent for a year to get to know the location as well as live through 4 seasons again.  We will want to keep her commute short <20-25mins, so not sure what that leaves us.  If we could get property, something around 5-10 acres would be nice.  I think our budget would be anywhere from 300-600K.  I work from home and will be staying back in CO for a couple months, so we aren't motivated to fully transition yet.

well you are moving to the right place.  you can exactly what you want for that budget. do you have kids in school?

No nope kids.

Did you check out that map I sent you?
Since you don't have to worry about school districts, it broadens up your search criteria.

Thanks for the map. I can see that coming in handy when time comes to find a place. The wife is renting in Southpoint at the moment, and I'm here visiting for the weekend.

Thanks again for your insight.

Since you're in Southpoint, you'll have to get some Arleos pizza.

And some Sarris' ice cream and chocolate!

Only lived in once by a little old lady that cleaned it every Sunday after she got back from church.

Done and done!  Delicious!

Well things are moving along quickly.  We've decided to stay in the apartment complex in Southpointe for now.  Moving company coming in a month and I'll be there before June 1!

Already been to Ace Sporting Goods looking around.  Any other gun shops to be on the look for?

Johnsons Sporting Goods.  Located a the corner of Brownlee Rd and Route 136 in Eighty Four. John and Mary own the place and are really down home country folks. They are really into supporting the friends of the NRA programs.  They donate to my clubs events.  Great place to find neat stuff.

JMC Defense.  Located at the area known as Donaldsons Crossroads.  Owners name is Jordan Cooper.  Super nice shop and he carries high end stuff as well as everyday brands.  Jordan is generous to my club and provides prizes to some events.   NFA friendly.

Allegheny Arms & Gun Works. Located on Route 88 (Library Road) located in Bethel Park. The owner is Josh Rowe. Josh is a super good dude and a member here. He has been in the gunsmithing world for a good long time and just recently opened his full line shop.  He has NFA stuff and can do all of your engraving.

Pfrogners Firearms. Located in Coal Center, just off the Elco exit of 43. Tom and Mary are the owners. Tom retired and closed his autobody shop and turned it into  a gunshop. Great guy and great place.  I do most of my transfers here.  NFA friendly.

Ace is a fine shop, owned by  George Romanoff. His son Ben is the store manager. They are really good to my gun club as far as donating prizes for our Christmas party and sponsoring our lady shooting events. They are the largest shop of the five. NFA friendly.

JMC Defense deals in NFA products, just for reference.

Thanks E. I'll edit.

A big +1 to Johnson's and Pfrogner's. Both are great shops run by great people. Another one to add to the list would be Elmo's in West Brownsville. They don't have a huge selection but can order you almost anything cheaper than most. They also will accept transfers from just about anywhere. On average, Elmo's can get anything Ace has and it will be way cheaper with better service.

Double tap

Yeah... Elmos too. A+++ place.. and they have a coffee bar.

I don't think Ike does coffee anymore. He has the restaurant up for rent but he still works on computers and of course sells guns. I used to go down there almost everyday when they rented movies and sold hot chocolate upstairs with the computers and guns.

its been a while since I have been there, but according to his website, he does PC's, guns and coffee and that's why I threw that out there.  No biggie.

I like how Trops in Elizabethtown PA does it... they have guns and cigars, an indoor range and a small gym for their employees.  its a real nice place.

I've never been there but it sounds nice. I don't get out of my little area of south eastern Washington county very much except to go up to Southpoint for work.

its southeast of Harrisburg.  I always visit when I'm in Gettysburg.
Do you belong to a gun club? or shoot on your property?

I just posted in the other thread. I belong to Centerville Sportsman club. I used to shoot on my buddies private property but unfortunately he sold it.

well, back to square one....

Wife and I pulled out of our house contract due to the Seller's refusal of replacing the septic system.

Bummer.  Really like that house/property.

Sorry to hear.

Replacing a septic system legally is a yuge expenditure......  around $20,000 to $40,000
If you rent a backhoe and DIY on the weekend and not tell anyone or get permits, you can repair them for less than $2000...... this option is what most  people do, especially people who have more than a few acres.


FYI... every septic system around here has issues eventually, so you have to accept that fact as a homeowner or make sure the property you buy has a new style waste distribution system such as a sand mound system.
Making a decision to purchase a house/land  with regular sewers is another option and it will definitely cost you a premium, but you damn sure will have cable TV and internet.

Leaving tomorrow after the moving truck leaves!  Should be in PA Sunday afternoon!

Thanks for all the assistance over the last couple months.