Help! PA (Allentown, Reading, Hershey: real estate, crime, houses)

[NomadNY38]

The wife and I are looking at PA to move... currently live in Waterloo NY she has her eyes set in leighhigh valley hospital (she’s in health care) question is we were looking to live maybe in Emmaus? Any good? We along with everyone am sure doesn’t not want to live next to “the hood” or have to worrie about our house getting broke into etc. any suggestions or any input?

[ki0eh]

I moved (with one place in between) from Central NY to southern PA. You will find things much more crowded and expensive in PA than in Seneca County for sure. However, there is generally much more economic opportunity in southcentral/southeastern PA.

Traffic is much worse in PA.

Lot sizes will be much smaller than what you are used to; houses, even in small towns, are built right on top of the road, porches right on the sidewalk. This seems to be a deep seated cultural difference from colonial times, compared to the New England/upstate NY town plan beautifully exemplified by Waterloo. There are many row homes in PA with just a wall between you and your neighbor. Sometimes, the houses are double side by side in separate ownership; this is referred to as "semi-detached." Even a fully detached house might be only 10 feet from your neighbor. Many homes have no driveways, or may have a tiny garage in a very narrow alley behind. Sometimes, the alleys are maintained by you and your neighbors in common (a great source of arguments); sometimes, the alleys are maintained by the local government ("township" in PA is roughly equivalent to a "town" in NY State; "borough" is sort of like a NY "village" except that in PA the borough is not a part of the surrounding township; a "village" in PA is not separately incorporated, it's a community that is often called a "hamlet" in NY.)

Crime is tremendously variable by community; this site has a lot of useful and relatively objective data. You could compare, say, to your "favorite" neighborhoods of Rochester and/or Syracuse to get an idea. Visible homelessness is much more common in some Lehigh Valley communities, too.

With respect to particular neighborhoods and communities, you will want to check out the Lehigh Valley sub-forum.

[NomadNY38]

this sucks! I want the best for her and she wants to work at a good big hospital! Just everyone we find the surroundings are not the greatest.. I guess that’s what makes them a good hospital? lol

[John F S]

Originally Posted by NomadNY38

The wife and I are looking at PA to move... currently live in Waterloo NY she has her eyes set in leighhigh valley hospital (she’s in health care) question is we were looking to live maybe in Emmaus? Any good? We along with everyone am sure doesn’t not want to live next to “the hood” or have to worrie about our house getting broke into etc. any suggestions or any input?

I moved to Emmaus about 3 and a half years ago. It is a VERY nice town.
I have no idea what working in Lehigh Valley Hospital is like, although that is where I go when I have a medical problem.

[fisheye]

Why not also check out the big Geisinger hospital in Danville. I cannot tell you what kind of real estate you will find around there; but I am sure it will be more rural (if that is what you want). Lehigh is also expanding into many areas of our State: https://www.lvhn.org/find-a-location. Possibly some of their other locations might interest you better than the main, original, hospital? Of course your wife would have to see what positions are available and you would have to see if anything your interested in.

[Icy Tea]

Route 222 and 22/78 are bad for commutes so don't go too far out and expect them to have accidents and to be treacherous in the winter. Trucks kill people regularly on them. But I'd definitely pick western Lehigh over other areas and northeastern Berks has a real small town rural feel to it. Berks has very highly regarded hospitals( Reading and St. Joes) although Lehigh is known for its trauma center. Hershey does, too. Allentown has many commuters going into NJ and NYC so its bad on that side as well. And I saw bad traffic( and bad drivers) in Quakertown so its on all sides, even north into the Poconos has traffic and commuters.
Towns like Kutztown and Topton have charm. Fleetwood has a huge battery manufacturing facility and you start getting mushroom houses between there and Temple so I'd avoid those direct areas. But you'll also get cheaper housing in Berks in general.

[toobusytoday]

Emmaus is a great town and if she works at Lehigh Valley on Cedar Crest, the commute couldn't be any easier, it's literally down the road, no highways to get on. Emmaus has a great Sunday Farmers Market, two brew pubs, coffee shops, two independent bookstores and a neat old theater. Great walkable downtown. East Penn School District is a large one, but one of the best in the Lehigh Valley. The only downside (IMO) is the train that goes through it that whistles. Sadly, it's a freight train line, not passenger, so annoying and not helpful. We live over the hill from Emmaus and I pop in there frequently. I highly recommend it.

[blazerj]

Originally Posted by NomadNY38

The wife and I are looking at PA to move... currently live in Waterloo NY she has her eyes set in leighhigh valley hospital (she’s in health care) question is we were looking to live maybe in Emmaus? Any good? We along with everyone am sure doesn’t not want to live next to “the hood” or have to worrie about our house getting broke into etc. any suggestions or any input?

It all depends on where she would work (Lehigh Valley Hospital has a bunch of locations and multiple hospitals). If it's the main LVH on Ceder Crest, then Emmaus is where a lot of the employees live. It's a nice generic suburban town - no "hood" to worry about.

[NomadNY38]

Thank you all so much I very much appreciate the insights!

[toobusytoday]

Originally Posted by blazerj

It all depends on where she would work (Lehigh Valley Hospital has a bunch of locations and multiple hospitals). If it's the main LVH on Ceder Crest, then Emmaus is where a lot of the employees live. It's a nice generic suburban town - no "hood" to worry about.

To me suburban tends to mean rows of homes with no town. Emmaus is a historic town founded in 1759. Blazerj is right, there is no hood. Just avoid living right next to the train tracks.
Very good point about the multiple locations. LV seems to be competing with St. Luke's to see who can have the most locations in the LV. Healthcare is the #1 employer here and there are hospitals, clinics, offices and urgent care centers in every small town, in the cities and out in the country.