Clairton, PA — Momentum Score, Home Values & Best-For

Allegheny County · Pittsburgh · population 5,945

AffordabilityShrinkingSmall-town feel
View watchlist →
52
Stable
Momentum score · 0–100

Where Clairton stands

Population shrinking 1.0% per year. rents up 14.8% in the last year.

Median home $161,741
1-year -2.5%
5-yr CAGR +2.2%
vs 5-yr peak -4.6%
Population -1.0%/yr

Home value trajectory · last 10 years

Zillow ZHVI · monthly
peak 2024-12$162k$85k$116k$146k$176k201620182020202220242026

Lifestyle scores

🚶
Walkability
25/100
Very car-dependent
Estimated from population density. Higher = denser, more amenities within walking distance.
🚉
Public transit
10/100
Transit limited
Curated list of major US transit systems + population-based estimate. Higher = real subway/rail/bus options.
💻
Remote work fit
51/100
Workable for remote workers
Composite of city size, housing cost, state tax structure, and region's remote-work track record.

Scores are heuristic estimates from population density, state, and known transit/walkable cities. Not based on a paid Walk Score / Transit Score API — see methodology for the formula.

Rent trajectory · last 5 years

Zillow ZORI · monthly
$1,393/mo$1,039$1,258$1,47720242026

Home value vs rent · indexed to 100

Both rebased at first month of ZORI data (~2015)
Home valueRent10312610012020242026

Rent vs buy

Price-to-rent ratio: 9.7
Buy

At a 9.7 price-to-rent ratio, buying generally beats renting in Clairton on a long-enough horizon. The headline math is that one year of mortgage payments approximates 9.7 years of rent — well below the 15+ threshold where ownership starts to dominate.

How the momentum score breaks down

methodology →
Home YoY
38 · w22%
Home 5-yr CAGR
48 · w22%
Distance from peak
62 · w18%
Population growth
30 · w16%
Rent YoY
85 · w12%
Home 10-yr CAGR
66 · w10%
Long thesis

Clairton has held up across the cycle: home values at $161,741 with +2.2% 5-year CAGR. The bull case is structural — population, location, employer base — and holds even if next year's print is soft.

Short thesis

Clairton's population is shrinking 1.0% per year. Housing demand has to come from somewhere — if people are leaving, the buyer pool is shrinking faster than the inventory. That eventually shows up in price.

About Clairton

Clairton is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, with an estimated population of 5,945. It anchors the Pittsburgh metro area. The population has contracted 1.0% per year on average since 2020. The median home value in Clairton is $161,741 as of 2026-04, down 2.5% over the last 12 months. Over the last five years, home values have averaged +2.2% annual growth (-4.6% from the 5-year peak). Rents in Clairton average $1,393 per month, up 14.8% year-over-year. The composite momentum score is 52 of 100 (Stable). Conditions are neither hot nor cold, so the local fit matters more than market timing.

Bull case

Cheap entry point: $161,741 median home is well below the US median of $355k — room to grow without overpaying.
Hot rental market: rents up 14.8% YoY — landlords have pricing power, supports new investment math.

Bear case

Cooling: -2.5% over the trailing year — momentum has stalled.
Flat or shrinking population: -1.0% per year. Housing demand has to come from somewhere — verify the source.
Rental squeeze: rents up 14.8% YoY — tenants face tough renewals. Affordability deteriorating fast.
Thin housing market: small population means fewer transactions and slower resale. Liquidity risk on exit.

Playbook

Buyer

Lifestyle fit matters more than market timing in a Stable market. Take your time on the home and neighborhood; the macro trend isn't urgent. Negotiate normally.

Seller

Price competitively from day one or risk a 60+ day listing. Staging, photography, and presentation matter more in Stable markets than in Hot ones.

Investor

Stable cap rates, no big appreciation story to lean on. Underwrite this as a pure cash-flow play — the math has to work on rent alone.

Local safety & alerts

No active National Weather Service alerts for Allegheny County right now.

Public-safety links are official .gov sources, not curated by us. Allegheny County routes NWS alerts; check the state EM portal for non-weather emergencies.

Cities like Clairton

Sources: Zillow ZHVI (home values), Zillow ZORI (rents), US Census ACS + place population. Updated when source agencies publish revisions.

Climate & natural-disaster risk

Winter (Jan)
36° / 21°
avg high / low
Summer (Jul)
83° / 63°
avg high / low
Sunny days/yr
186
~51% of year
Annual precip
42″ rain
30″ snow
Disaster risk (1=very low, 5=very high)
Hurricane
Low
Tornado
Low
Wildfire
Very low
Earthquake
Very low
Flood
Moderate

State-level averages from NOAA Climate Normals (1991-2020) and FEMA National Risk Index. City-level conditions can vary significantly within a state.

Local sports teams

Major professional teams the Pittsburgh area cheers for. Detailed stats, schedules, and player pages on intherafters.com.

Current weather

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7-day forecast on weather.gov →

Find rentals & listings

Open current Clairton listings on the major real-estate sites.

Links open the live search on the destination site — results are always current.

Local economy & environment

Humidity
71%
Humid climate
Median household income
$73,800
Pennsylvania state median
Top industries (state-level)
Healthcare (Pittsburgh)Finance (Philly)Manufacturing

Humidity is annual average relative humidity (NOAA). Income is Census ACS 5-year estimate. Industries are largest employment sectors statewide (BLS); the local mix in a given city may vary.

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