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Cost of living, pay and housing

40.69° N · 75.27° W · GEOID 4257680

Palmer Heights

Northampton County, Pennsylvania · part of the Allentown, PA metro

Limited data population under 5,000

PennsylvaniaPalmer Heights, PAPalmer HeightsPalmer Heights

The short answer

Palmer Heights is home to 3,624 people. Median household income is $99,815 a year and median rent is $1,411 a month, 17.0% of income (a ratio of two medians, not any one household's burden). Rent pressure is lighter than in most places. The median home is valued at $309,100, about 3.1x annual median household income.

Median gross rent
$1,411
3% above the median place
Median household income
$99,815
24% above the median place
Median home value
$309,100
3% below the median place
Unemployment
4.9%
1% above the median place

Compared with the median of the 6,645 places we track. The bundle was checked 2026-11-14; each measure may refer to an older release.

What stands out about Palmer Heights

  • 98% of homes are owner-occupied, more than in 99% of the 2,476 places under 10,000 people we track. It is the 2nd-highest of 271 Pennsylvania places.
  • The median resident is 48.5 years old, older than in 89% of places its size.
  • Only 7% of workers mostly work from home, fewer than in 82% of places its size.

Rent is light relative to pay, but the county has a FEMA natural hazard risk score of 90 out of 100. Budget for insurance before counting the savings.

01

Moving to Palmer Heights

Northampton County gains about 4.0 residents per 1,000 a year to moves between counties.

Moved in14,099
Moved out13,056
Net+1,043

Where people come from and where they go, top counties

Within Pennsylvania, other states or abroad

Arrivals
Leavers
Within PennsylvaniaOther statesAbroad

Income per tax return

Arrivals$69K
Leavers$73K

People on tax returns who moved between counties, from IRS migration data, 2022 to 2023. Figures are for all of Northampton County; flows under 20 returns are not published.

Who moves here
6.1% of residents arrived from another county in the past year, 2.4% from another state. County figure.
Who arrives and who leaves
Households moving into Northampton County report $69,100 a year in income on average; those leaving, $73,000, so leavers earn more than newcomers.
Income you would need
$56,400 a year to rent the median home at the 30% line. From your city
Rent or buy
Median rent is $1,411 a month; owners with a mortgage pay $2,060 a month including taxes and insurance, on a median home of $309,100.
Getting to work
23 minutes each way on average; 6.8% work from home.
If it is close but not quite
Canyon Lake, TX matches it on character. Compare the two
Net movers per 1,000 people7
4.0
above the median place (median -0.6)
Moved from another state1
2.4%
23% above the median place
Income of households moving out7
$72,962
4% above the median place
All 5 moving measures
MeasurePalmer HeightsAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Moved here in the past year1County figure6.1%6% above
Moved from another state1County figure2.4%23% above
Net movers per 1,000 people7County figure4.0above (median -0.6)
Income of households moving in7County figure$69,1092% below
Income of households moving out7County figure$72,9624% above
02

What it costs to live here

Homeownership is 98.4%, 48% above the median place.

Palmer Heights17.0%
Typical place20.4%

Share of the median household income that goes to the median rent. Above 30% is the usual stress line.

Income needed to rent
$56,440
a year, at the 30% line
Rent to income
17.0%
17% below the median place
Home price to income
3.1x
18% below the median place

Could you afford it?

The median rent would take
17%
comfortably under the 30% line
Left after rent, in US prices
$84,000
a year
Vs the typical household here
Same
as the median household

Uses the median rent in Palmer Heights, $1,411 a month, and local prices for everything else (98.8 against a US average of 100). It runs in your browser and stores nothing.

Like Palmer Heights, but easier on the budget

Close matches on income, rent, home value, education and age, where rent takes a clearly smaller share of income.

PlaceRent to incomeMore left a year
Smithfield, VA12.7% vs 17.0%$17,400Compare
Bristol, WI12.9% vs 17.0%$21,500Compare
Mack, OH13.4% vs 17.0%$24,700Compare

Moving from somewhere else? Work out the salary you would need in Palmer Heights.

Sponsored · exampleMoving to Palmer Heights? Compare quotes from licensed movers. No partner is signed yet. Sponsored offers are always labelled and never change the data.
Homeownership1
98.4%
48% above the median place
Property tax rate1
1.6%
76% above the median place
Median year built1
1966
1% below the median place
All 16 cost and housing measures
MeasurePalmer HeightsAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Median gross rent1$1,4113% above
Rent to income117.0%17% below
Property tax rate11.6%76% above
Home price to income13.1x18% below
Prices vs US average2Metro figure100.01% below
Fair market rent, 2 bedrooms3County figure$1,83914% above
HUD area median income4County figure$104,4003% below
Property tax paid (median)1$4,95352% above
Median home value1$309,1003% below
Home prices, 1-year change5County figure6.2%93% above
Home prices, 5-year change5County figure58.8%14% above
Homeownership198.4%48% above
Renters paying 30%+1County figure50.0%1% below
Owner costs with a mortgage1$2,06010% above
Vacant homes1County figure5.3%25% below
Median year built119661% below
03

Work and pay

Commutes by transit is 0.0%, below the median place (median 0.8%).

Commutes by transit1
0.0%
below the median place (median 0.8%)
Works from home1
6.8%
45% below the median place
Median household income1
$99,815
24% above the median place

More on work and pay, against the typical place

Mean commute23 min −9%
Income per person$43,661 +9%
Unemployment4.9% +1%
All 10 work and pay measures
MeasurePalmer HeightsAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Median household income1$99,81524% above
Income per person1$43,6619% above
Unemployment14.9%1% above
Average annual pay6County figure$62,9765% below
Pay growth, 1 year6County figure4.4%19% above
Jobs6County figure122,79518% below
Poverty rate1County figure8.8%19% below
Mean commute123 min9% below
Works from home16.8%45% below
Commutes by transit10.0%below (median 0.8%)
04

Who lives here

Median age is 48.5, 24% above the median place.

Median age1
48.5
24% above the median place
High school or higher1
95.5%
3% above the median place
Bachelor's or higher1
37.2%
16% above the median place

More about who lives here, against the typical place

Homes with broadband91.3% −1%
Household size2.5 +2%
Born abroad8.5% −4%
All 8 people measures
MeasurePalmer HeightsAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Population13,6246646th largest
Median age148.524% above
Bachelor's or higher137.2%16% above
High school or higher195.5%3% above
Household size12.52% above
Born abroad18.5%4% below
No health insurance1County figure4.4%31% below
Homes with broadband191.3%1% below
05

Life in Palmer Heights

65 sites are on the National Register of Historic Places, 3 of them National Historic Landmarks.

Out the door, against the typical place

Parks per 10k residents27.6 2.7×
Playgrounds per 10k55.2 5.9×
Grocery stores per 10k0.0 −100%
Restaurants, cafes and bars per 10k41.4 3.7×
Libraries per 10k5.5 6.3×
Named paths and bike trails2 km −25%
Bus and rail stops per sq mi0.0 −100%

Mapped by volunteers in OpenStreetMap inside the city limits (Census boundaries), so coverage is fuller in some places than others. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.

Businesses per 10,000 residents (county figures)

Restaurants and bars22.2 +7%
Shops26.0 −14%
Arts, recreation and fitness3.8 −7%
Doctors' offices and clinics15.0 −26%
Child care centers2.9 +26%

Counts businesses with paid staff, so small owner-run shops are not included.

Public school students11
38,316
above the median place (median 4,897)
Public schools11
60
above the median place (median 9)
Doctors' offices and clinics per 10k8
15.0
26% below the median place
All 16 schools and local life measures
MeasurePalmer HeightsAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Public schools11County figure60above (median 9)
Public school students11County figure38,316above (median 4,897)
Students per teacher11County figure13.413% below
Restaurants and bars per 10k8County figure22.27% above
Shops per 10k8County figure26.014% below
Arts, recreation and fitness per 10k8County figure3.87% below
Doctors' offices and clinics per 10k8County figure15.026% below
Child care centers per 10k8County figure2.926% above
Parks per 10k927.6171% above
Playgrounds per 10k955.2above (median 9.4)
Grocery stores per 10k90.0below (median 2.1)
Restaurants, cafes and bars per 10k941.4271% above
Libraries per 10k95.5above (median 0.9)
Named paths and bike trails91.525% below
Transit stops per sq mi90.0below (median 0.2)
National Register listings10County figure65400% above
06

Safety, weather and risk

Wildfire risk is 28.6, 53% below the median place.

No crime figure yet. Either the city police department did not report to the FBI for the latest year, or our monthly fetch has not reached Palmer Heights. Larger places are fetched first.

Wildfire risk13
28.6
53% below the median place
Median air quality index14
38
12% below the median place
Annual precipitation12
49.2 in
12% above the median place
All 11 weather and risk measures
MeasurePalmer HeightsAmong 6,645 placesVs median
July average high12County figure85°F2% below
January average low12County figure19°F24% below
Average temperature12County figure51°F7% below
Annual precipitation12County figure49.2 in12% above
Natural hazard risk13County figure90.03% below
Hurricane risk13County figure87.123% above
Tornado risk13County figure80.91% below
Wildfire risk13County figure28.653% below
Heat wave risk13County figure94.14% above
Median air quality index14County figure3812% below
Good air days14County figure72.1%5% above
08

Palmer Heights in 2030: where the trends point

If recent trends hold, the median rent will take about 18% of the median income in 2030, up from 17% now.

Citytistics projections to 2030: each figure's own trend, blended with the typical trend across the places we rate, eased toward long-run US growth and carried forward from the latest release. The range is where 80% of places landed when we tested the same method on past releases.

MeasureLatest2030 projectionLikely rangeAvg. per year
Median rent$1,411/mo (2023)$1,870/mo$1,510 to $2,320/mo+4.1%
Median household income$99,815 (2024)$126,500$106,500 to $149,500+4.0%
Median home value$309,100 (2024)$443,000$321,000 to $610,000+6.2%

The median home would be worth 3.5 years of the median income in 2030, against 3.1 now.

A projection of recent trends, not a prediction of the economy or advice to buy or sell. How we project.

09

Places like Palmer Heights

The closest matches on income, rent, home value, education and age, and the places nearby.

PlaceRentIncome
Canyon Lake, TX$1,327$97,301Compare
Kensington, CT$1,351$109,447Compare
Hampstead, MD$1,309$97,871Compare
Northford, CT$1,408$105,174Compare
Northford, CTHampstead, MDKensington, CTCanyon Lake, TXPalmer Heights, PACanyon LakeKensingtonHampsteadCanyon LakeKensingtonHampstead

Common questions

Is Palmer Heights a good place to live?

It depends on what you need, so here is what the numbers say. 98% of homes are owner-occupied, more than in 99% of the 2,476 places under 10,000 people we track. It is the 2nd-highest of 271 Pennsylvania places. The median resident is 48.5 years old, older than in 89% of places its size. See how it ranks with your own weights.

Is Palmer Heights expensive to live in?

The median rent takes 17.0% of the median household income, against 20.4% in the typical place we track. Housing is a lighter load here than usual. The median home is valued at $309,100.

What salary do you need to live in Palmer Heights?

To rent the median home without spending more than 30% of income on rent, a household needs about $56,440 a year. Work it out from your current city.

What places are similar to Palmer Heights?

On income, rent, home value, education and age, the closest matches are Canyon Lake, TX, Kensington, CT, Hampstead, MD and Northford, CT.

Sources and methods

The small numbers beside each measure point here. Every dataset is public; links go to the publisher.

  1. American Community Survey 5-year estimates · US Census Bureau · 2020 to 2024 estimatesTables B01002, B01003, B05002, B07003, B08013, B08301, B15003, B17001, B19013, B19301, B23025, B25002, B25003, B25010, B25035, B25064, B25070, B25077, B25088, B25103, B28002, S2701
  2. Regional Price Parities · US Bureau of Economic Analysis · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14
  3. Fair Market Rents · US Department of Housing and Urban Development · Fiscal year 2027
  4. Income Limits · US Department of Housing and Urban Development · Fiscal year 2026
  5. House Price Index · Federal Housing Finance Agency · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14
  6. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages · US Bureau of Labor Statistics · 2025 annual averages
  7. SOI Tax Stats, county-to-county migration · Internal Revenue Service · Tax years 2022 to 2023Counts tax returns and the people on them; flows under 20 returns are suppressed.
  8. County Business Patterns · US Census Bureau · 2023 data
  9. OpenStreetMap · © OpenStreetMap contributors, available under the Open Database License (ODbL) · Map data as of 2026-11
  10. National Register of Historic Places · National Park Service · Listings through 2026-05-22
  11. Common Core of Data · National Center for Education Statistics · 2024 release
  12. 1991-2020 climate normals · NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information · Series updated 2026-11-05Averages for 1991 to 2020 computed from NOAA's county climate series (nClimDiv).nClimDiv county series
  13. National Risk Index · Federal Emergency Management Agency · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14NRI data and maps
  14. Air Quality System, annual AQI by county · US Environmental Protection Agency · 2025 dataAirData download files

Derived by Citytistics from the tables above: rent to income (B25064, B19013); property tax rate (B25103, B25077); home price to income (B25077, B19013).

What stands out compares Palmer Heights with places of a similar size, using only figures measured for Palmer Heights itself; county and metro figures never count. Survey figures are estimates with margins of error. Formulas and definitions: methodology. API: /api/v1/places/palmer-heights-pennsylvania

Citytistics. “Palmer Heights, Pennsylvania.” Data as of 2026-11-14. https://www.citytistics.com/city/palmer-heights-pennsylvania/

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.