Kaitlyn Hughes | news editor

Student debt might not be so crushing if students plan to stay in Pittsburgh, experts say.

As rising seniors begin what might be their final year of college, they may have started to think about where they’ll live after they cross the stage at graduation.

The “Steel City” is a large metro area that continues to be affordable, said Nadia Evangelou, senior economist and director of real estate research for the National Association of Realtors.

“Compared to other areas, Pittsburgh is still a bargain,” she said.

Evangelou said that renting is usually the first step for a college graduate after dorm life, which is affordable in comparison to the national average. The average rent in the Pittsburgh area is about $1,400 a month while the average rent nationally is $1,800 a month.

“We’re talking about hundreds of dollars saved every month,” Evangelou said.

The rate at which properties are being leased is increasing, which is a sign of a strong market, she said.

Slow economic growth is part of the reason Pittsburgh continues to be an affordable place to live, said.

Sabina Deitrick, a professor of urban affairs at the University of Pittsburgh who focuses on post-industrial cities and how they change. With the loss of the steel industry in the 1980s, there were strong periods of population decline and slow population increase as time went on.

“We’ve had some job growth, but we’ve not had the kind of fast job growth that fast-growing regions in the country have,” Deitrick said.

When there is a high demand, prices go up, but if the demand is not increasing rapidly the prices will not rise, she said, which is what happened in Pittsburgh.

Pittsburgh’s affordability is comparable to cities are also in the Rust Belt, Deitrick said.

“We’ve got a lot in common with Buffalo, with Cleavland, with St. Louis,” she said. “These are not fast growing areas. They definitely have a more affordable housing stock for many income levels.”

On top of housing, another part of getting on your feet is finding transportation, said Sarah Cook, who works with those experiencing poverty to help them seek financial stability as the executive director at Pittsburgh Community Services Inc.

“Having a plan about that is important,” she said. “I think that for young people getting started it’s going to require waiting for what we may imagine adulthood looks like.”

Along with the necessities, understanding financial basics such as how to build credit and how to manage debt will help new graduates in the long run, Cook said. Places like the financial empowerment center, which provides free one-on-one money management counseling, is a resource for financial literacy.

Additionally, affordability only matters if there are jobs available, Evangelou said.

The average hourly wage in Pittsburgh is $30.22, whereas the national average is $32.66, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Although wages are lower than the national average, the ratio between income and renting prices is smaller making the area more affordable, Evangelou said.

“If you compare that starting salary to Boston or San Francisco, it’s lower. But when you factor in the cost of living, cheaper land, rent and lower everyday cost, a paycheck goes further,” she said.

Along with an affordable cost of living and stable job market, it is also important for new graduates to consider what kind of arts, culture, entertainment and outdoor recreation are available in an area before living there, Deitrick said.

“Quality of life for someone might be better because they’re factoring in access to parks or outdoors or things like that,” she said.

Along with quality of life, finding a job that best suits the person is important, Deitrick said.

“Live in a place where you can afford your student loan payments and your rent and your basic necessities and have some money leftover and have some savings,” Deitrick said.

“Find a job that you like, a job that you want, a job that’ll be interesting and rewarding and challenging … Sometimes that means you have to move because there’s no opportunities, but sometimes the opportunities can be right in front of you, and you need to think about the different ways of looking for them and be very happy in the decision that you make.”

Cook said this process may take time, but to help discover the correct job it is important for people to ask themselves questions about the kind of work environment they like best.

“Don’t be dismayed if the first opportunity is not your forever opportunity,” she said. “I would also treat every opportunity as an occasion to learn something about yourself and the kind of work that you want to do.”

Kaitlyn Hughes can be reached at hughesk10@duq.edu