2020: The Fuse Is Lit

When the world shut down in 2020, Lehigh County's housing market did the exact opposite—it exploded. Low interest rates, remote work, and a sudden craving for backyards sent buyers scrambling. Detached homes—once modest family spaces—turned into bidding war battlegrounds.

2021: Real Estate on Rocket Fuel

By 2021, the market had turned red hot. Properties barely hit the MLS before flying off the shelf, often for tens of thousands over asking. Average days on market dropped into the single digits in some neighborhoods. Allentown surged. Bethlehem caught fire. Rural townships like Washington and Weisenberg saw prices jump 20 to 25 percent—in one year.

2022: Welcome to Peak Housing

This was the crescendo. Prices hit record highs across the board. New Tripoli soared past 70% appreciation over five years. Emmaus cracked $366,000 on average, and Salisbury jumped 15% in one year. The Fed may have been sounding the alarm on inflation, but here in Lehigh County, sellers were still ringing the register.

2023: Cracks in the Foundation

Then the Fed slammed the brakes. Interest rates climbed, and the market flinched. Suddenly, not every house sold in a weekend. Some homes lingered. Others had price reductions—words we hadn’t heard in three years. Appreciation slowed to single digits, and in places like Macungie and Upper Milford, prices dipped for the first time in recent memory.

2024–2025: The Great Cool-Down

By mid-2025, the verdict is clear: the boom has cooled. Not crashed—cooled. Coopersburg, Lower Macungie, and even trendy Emmaus have all seen small year-over-year declines. Upper Saucon is flat. Meanwhile, areas like South Whitehall and Bethlehem continue to post modest gains, suggesting that location, price point, and school district now matter more than pandemic panic.

Winners and Losers (So Far):

Biggest 5-Year Winners:

• New Tripoli (Lynn Township): +73%

• Weisenberg Township: +70%

• Washington Township: +66%

• North Whitehall: +61%

• South Whitehall: +60%
  

2025 Year-Over-Year Decliners:

• Macungie Borough: -4.4%

• Lower Macungie: -3.3%

• Hanover Township: -2.7%

• Coopersburg: -3.4%
  

The Takeaway?

This isn’t a bust—it’s a balancing act. The easy money days are over, but this market isn’t collapsing. Buyers are pickier. Sellers need to be smarter. And appraisers? We’re watching the numbers like hawks.

Bottom Line:

The pandemic lit the fire. The Fed poured water on it. And now, here in Lehigh County, the housing market is trying to find its new normal. The wild ride may be slowing, but the story is far from over.