Lehigh Valley PA, investing
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Specialist · Lancaster, PA · Member since 2018 · 152 posts · 66 votes
6y@Ray T. I am a commercial agent and investor in the lancaster, Pa area. I own property in that general vacinity, namely Reading, Pa. I also have clients from NYC that invest in the Lehigh Valley, and all have been very pleased with the results. In general rental rates are strong and property taxes tend to be very low. My only suggestion is that you research the transfer tax in those areas. Reading city for example holds the highest transfer tax in Pa, 5%. This may not seem like a big deal, but it is something that you will need to nail down and factor into your analysis. Best Wishes!
37 Replies
- Investor · Glen Mills, PA · Member since 2019 · 185 posts · 208 votes5y
Perhaps I'm in the minority here but I've lived in PA for nearly 40 years (on and off) and outside of a few pockets which are growing, just not seeing the opportunities here vs. some of the Southern states like NC, SC, GA, and FL. Not to mention there are some pretty rough areas in Allentown. When flights are cheap it's easy to go see some deals that are not so local. :)
That said - the Harrisburg/Carlisle area seems to always bust into the top 5-10 in the country for rent growth and population growth. My office is in that area, but just not enough of a motivator for me to seriously invest there when there are tons of great locations in the southeast.
- Member since 2021 · 11 posts · 6 votes5yI'm an Easton local and plan to occupy one of the units in my first investment property, so I haven't even looked into other locales. (Looking forward to growing my portfolio one day though!) As far as Easton goes, I think it's an up-and-coming area and the timing is right for me. There are a lot of community redevelopment block grants available as well as tax abatement programs to take advantage of.
- Residential Investor · Allentown, PA · Member since 2012 · 95 posts · 29 votes4y
We have a portfolio in Allentown, Easton, surrounding towns. We were buying a few years ago when prices were attractive. There are probably still deals to be had, but the competition is fierce, as of Feb 2022. And prices have skyrocketed. IMHO, it's not time to buy in the Lehigh Valley.
- Investor · Amityville, NY · Member since 2016 · 2 posts · 1 vote4y
@Eric E. This is great feedback. Can you please expand your thinking? If it's not the time to buy in, Lehigh Valley / Allentown, then where? What other markets in this area make sense to buy (now)?
- New to Real Estate · Grass Valley, CA · Member since 2020 · 15 posts · 9 votes4y
Quote from @Eric E.:
We have a portfolio in Allentown, Easton, surrounding towns. We were buying a few years ago when prices were attractive. There are probably still deals to be had, but the competition is fierce, as of Feb 2022. And prices have skyrocketed. IMHO, it's not time to buy in the Lehigh Valley.
Compared to California the prices seem incredible to me, and rents are pretty high. In my market, northern california, you're lucky to cashflow a cent after purchasing a multifamily property.
- Member since 2024 · 35 posts · 13 votes2y
Quote from @Sean Mcevoy:
@Ray T. I am from Yonkers NY but just moved to rockland county and I invest in the Lehigh valley. I bought a 3 unit on park street in between 6th and 7th street in Allentown last year. I’m closing on a 2 unit in Bethlehem in August if all goes well. I am investing for the cash flow now and future appreciation is a plus. If you want to chat more PM me.
Hey Sean. I am responding literally 4 years after this thread began. I did a search on investment properties in Lehigh valley area and this thread popped up. Funny bc Im currently interested in investing in Lehigh valley as well, and I also live in Rockland County Im in New City. Love it up here originally from Queens. so hello neighbor. Just curious, now that its 4 years later, how are your properties doing? Did it appreciate over the years the way you expected? Do you have any advice on what areas to focus on in PA and or areas to avoid? Im ready to invest and just need to narrow some areas of interest down. also can you plz refer me to your realtor? THANKS SO MUCH
- Rental Property Investor · Valley cottage NY · Member since 2017 · 35 posts · 37 votes2y
Quote from @Gladys Cepeda:
Quote from @Sean Mcevoy:
@Ray T. I am from Yonkers NY but just moved to rockland county and I invest in the Lehigh valley. I bought a 3 unit on park street in between 6th and 7th street in Allentown last year. I’m closing on a 2 unit in Bethlehem in August if all goes well. I am investing for the cash flow now and future appreciation is a plus. If you want to chat more PM me.
Hey Sean. I am responding literally 4 years after this thread began. I did a search on investment properties in Lehigh valley area and this thread popped up. Funny bc Im currently interested in investing in Lehigh valley as well, and I also live in Rockland County Im in New City. Love it up here originally from Queens. so hello neighbor. Just curious, now that its 4 years later, how are your properties doing? Did it appreciate over the years the way you expected? Do you have any advice on what areas to focus on in PA and or areas to avoid? Im ready to invest and just need to narrow some areas of interest down. also can you plz refer me to your realtor? THANKS SO MUCH
Hey neighbor! Just sold my 3 unit and did a 1031 exchange into a 6 unit. Bought the 3 unit for 95k in 2019, renovated and refinanced end of 2019 and pulled 80% of cash out. Sold in June for 365k and netted almost 225k after fees and closing. Still holding on to my 2 unit in Bethlehem because I renovated top to bottom and I am getting cash flow. Only issue now is 95% of deals do not make sense anymore. Tough to buy in this market unless you have cash and can close fast. Sellers still getting top dollar for good assets. Still believe in the growth and trajectory of the Lehigh valley but it’s tough to make some deals work!
- Member since 2021 · 9 posts · 4 votes1y
I'm in north NJ and was just looking online at properties in Allentown as I read that it was a good investment area and it didn't make sense to me. Nice places in the $250-350k range then several in the $150-175K range that either look updated or like it needs to be renovated. So it's unclear to me (for BRRRR purposes) what a good price point would be and what it would be worth after.
- 1yJustin BrownBusiness MemberReal Estate Agent · Allentown, PA · Member since 2017 · 343 posts · 156 votesI started reading this post thinking it was just started, then realized the thread had been started years ago! I was able to buy my portfolio of 22 units over the past 4 years and prices have gone up and are still going up. People who thought it was too expensive four years ago missed out on some good deals. I think like in most markets you have to dig, search and work hard but you can find the deals, and then again time will be a huge help. Happy to help anyone who is thinking about looking in this market!
Quote from @Gladys Cepeda:
Quote from @Sean Mcevoy:
@Ray T. I am from Yonkers NY but just moved to rockland county and I invest in the Lehigh valley. I bought a 3 unit on park street in between 6th and 7th street in Allentown last year. I’m closing on a 2 unit in Bethlehem in August if all goes well. I am investing for the cash flow now and future appreciation is a plus. If you want to chat more PM me.
Hey Sean. I am responding literally 4 years after this thread began. I did a search on investment properties in Lehigh valley area and this thread popped up. Funny bc Im currently interested in investing in Lehigh valley as well, and I also live in Rockland County Im in New City. Love it up here originally from Queens. so hello neighbor. Just curious, now that it’s 4 years later, how are your properties doing? Did it appreciate over the years the way you expected? Do you have any advice on what areas to focus on in PA and or areas to avoid? Im ready to invest and just need to narrow some areas of interest down. also can you plz refer me to your realtor? THANKS SO MUCH
Light House Realty LV4.976 Reviews - Member since 2021 · 9 posts · 4 votes1y
Quote from @Justin Brown:
I started reading this post thinking it was just started, then realized the thread had been started years ago! I was able to buy my portfolio of 22 units over the past 4 years and prices have gone up and are still going up. People who thought it was too expensive four years ago missed out on some good deals. I think like in most markets you have to dig, search and work hard but you can find the deals, and then again time will be a huge help. Happy to help anyone who is thinking about looking in this market!Quote from @Gladys Cepeda:
Quote from @Sean Mcevoy:
@Ray T. I am from Yonkers NY but just moved to rockland county and I invest in the Lehigh valley. I bought a 3 unit on park street in between 6th and 7th street in Allentown last year. I’m closing on a 2 unit in Bethlehem in August if all goes well. I am investing for the cash flow now and future appreciation is a plus. If you want to chat more PM me.
Hey Sean. I am responding literally 4 years after this thread began. I did a search on investment properties in Lehigh valley area and this thread popped up. Funny bc Im currently interested in investing in Lehigh valley as well, and I also live in Rockland County Im in New City. Love it up here originally from Queens. so hello neighbor. Just curious, now that it’s 4 years later, how are your properties doing? Did it appreciate over the years the way you expected? Do you have any advice on what areas to focus on in PA and or areas to avoid? Im ready to invest and just need to narrow some areas of interest down. also can you plz refer me to your realtor? THANKS SO MUCH
Hey Justin, please see my post above. I'm confused by the wide margin in prices seemingly in the same areas though it's possible the neighborhoods are different in such a short distance. Is that true in this case? Looking to do my first BRRRR and I'm priced out of north NJ. Any insight is appreciated. Thanks.
- 1yJustin BrownBusiness MemberReal Estate Agent · Allentown, PA · Member since 2017 · 343 posts · 156 votes
Hey @Brian M.Yes it’s very block by block, especially in Allentown. Big change would be 17th street, west of that is class A, east of that is where it starts being downtown Allentown.
Light House Realty LV4.976 Reviews - Member since 2025 · 6 posts · 0 votes1y
Hey Ray,
I work for a property management company based in downtown Lancaster and we cover all the surrounding counties (not quite in the Allentown area). We have about 600 doors these day and if you want to chat about opportunities, I'd be happy to be a resource.
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