More Philadelphia renters are looking to Lehigh Valley for their next move, report says

The Lehigh Valley can expect to see a little more brotherly love.

A report on renter’s migration patterns by ApartmentList.com suggests the Allentown metro area -- including Northampton County, Lehigh County and New Jersey’s Warren County -- is the second most preferred destination of renter’s leaving Philadelphia.

The analysis categorized all searches by users who live in Lehigh Valley as “outbound” and all searches specifically interested in relocating to the area as “inbound”.

According to the quarterly migration report, 50% of all inbound searches for the Allentown metro area originated from renter’s outside of the Valley. Philadelphia renters comprised the largest share (41%), followed by New Yorkers (19%) and Washington D.C. residents (5%).

The 2020 U.S. Census reported Allentown was the third most popular destination for Philly residents last year.

Apartment List analyzed the data of millions of searches across the country to understand where its users were preparing to move and revealed a pattern of cross-migration between the Lehigh Valley and Philadelphia.

Lehigh Valley outbound searches favored Philadelphia in 17% of searches, then New York (15.5%) and East Stroudsburg (4.5). Fifty-five percent of searches by Lehigh Valley residents showed renters still continued to place the Lehigh Valley as a top priority destination, but not by much.

A trend has emerged in renters and aspiring homeowners opting for midsize cities over large metros since the start of the pandemic when many companies adopted remote work. There have also been trends in rent growth as multifamily rents scored record breaking highs in 2021.

While the average price of a studio apartment in Allentown increased only 2%, to around $1,611, monthly costs for one and two-bedroom apartments rose 38% and 41%, respectively.

Rents increased more than 20% similarly, in neighboring cities like Bethlehem and Easton over the last year.

For reference, here’s a look at what you could rent for under $1,000 in 2018.

Recent rental data indicates that 57% of the region’s apartments now cost $1,000 or more per month, compared to 43% of units from previous years, leaving three out of every ten Lehigh Valley households cost burdened, devoting 30% or more of their monthly income towards housing, according to the Lehigh Valley Planning Commission.

Fortunately, some cities are taking initiative, in light of the influx of new residents, to take care of its current ones. Bethlehem has launched an affordable housing task force, as did Easton, which unveiled a $4 million dollar plan to build new housing for residents in March.

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Glenn Epps can be reached at gepps@lehighvalleylive.com.