Affordable-ish Housing: Freedom for frugal freelancers edition

Pittsburgh keeps landing on various lists. We’re the second-best sports city . We have the best colleges . We’re the best place to start over , apparently. Per Giggster, whatever that is, we’re also “one of the fastest-growing freelance markets in the country, ranking #15 out of the 30 largest U.S. metro areas for freelancer business growth since 2019.” Have you ever been a freelancer? It can be really fun — when you actually want to be a freelancer, that is. When you don’t want to be one — for example, when a media outlet closes and you’re suddenly scrambling to figure out where your next paycheck is coming from — it’s less fun. So is being a fast-growing freelance market good? I suppose it depends on why you’re suddenly in the position of chasing down overworked editors to ask after the $100 they owe you for writing a listicle about soup or whatever three months ago. [Editor’s note: We pay more than that and we also have a new invoicing system that gets you your money pretty fast so this ain’t us! -Ali T] In the meantime, these Pittsburgh dwellings are reasonably priced enough that freelancers can afford at least a month of rent or mortgage (assuming timely payment, of course). For sale: 1826 St. Patrick St. , Mt. Oliver. $130,000 Is Mt. Oliver having a moment? Certainly, there are some freelancer-friendly happenings going on in the borough and neighborhood of the same name. There’s the Ormsby Ave. Café. There is, or was , ECHT Coffeehouse. There’s lots of shops along Brownsville Road. And, of course, there’s this $130,000 cutie that features a walk-out basement and a wee baby yard, perfect for burning last year’s 1099 forms! Just be aware that, at some point, those box gutters are gonna start leaking. 1416 Lager St. Credit: Courtesy of Zillow For rent: 1416 Lager St. , Troy Hill. $900/month. As a freelancer, I was known to enjoy a good lager, particularly on days when it