If you are concerned about the real estate market in Pittsburgh, don't be, read the following article ... 

"Normal market not a 'recession'
In the first three months of 2001, home sales in the five-county Pittsburgh metropolitan area totaled 3,786, according to the West Penn Multi-List. During the same period this year, 3,987 homes were sold.
Nonetheless, an April 17 Post-Gazette article declared that western Pennsylvania has entered a real estate “recession.” In an isolated and misleading comparison, the article cites sales from the first quarters of 2007 and 2008 only. Last year, winter home sales in the region approached an eight-year high. Compared to that pleasant anomaly, sales this winter have declined by about 12 percent.
On its own, this figure is meaningless. A detailed examination of historical reference points—rather than a single year—demonstrates that unit sales are in fact holding steady relative to the long-term average. For most of this decade, the number of first-quarter home sales in the metropolitan region has hovered around 4,000. In some years, this figure is up or down by 200 to 500 individual transactions, which are spread among five counties and a population of nearly 2.1 million.
Furthermore, unit sales are only one of the many relevant metrics that must be considered in assessing the health of a real estate market.
In Greater Pittsburgh, home prices continue to appreciate year after year. Despite fewer unit sales, the average selling price of homes in Allegheny County increased by more than 7 percent from the first quarter of 2007 to this year. This fact alone distinguishes western Pennsylvania from the real estate bust afflicting other parts of the nation. When headlines proclaim a national real estate crisis, they are referring primarily to markets such as California and Florida where hemorrhaging sales have been accompanied by a sharp drop in home prices.
Four times per year, the respected PMI Mortgage Insurance index analyzes 381 metropolitan areas to determine the risk that home prices will decline. This study has consistently reported that Pittsburgh is one of the “safest” of those markets. This means that home values here are less likely to decline than almost anywhere else.
It’s true: Home sales in metropolitan Pittsburgh have waned after reaching a mid-decade peak. The past several years were characterized by above-average sales activity. Following a well-established cyclical pattern, that boom has ended, and our region has returned to a normal market.
In western Pennsylvania, a normal market consists of stable sales, appreciating home values, and a wide array of affordable inventory for buyers to consider. That’s the reality today. This market is not through the roof, but the roof is not falling as some media reports falsely suggest.
Every market is different, and Pittsburgh’s is more stable than most. Misleading headlines notwithstanding, 2008 is a great time for western Pennsylvania consumers to invest in a new home."
Anthony J. Mete