Northeastern Pennsylvania's Residential Market (Q1 '26 - Q2 '26) - Focus on Luzerne County

The Period at a Glance

From January 1 through June 30, 2026, 1,075 single-family homes, townhouses and condominiums closed in Luzerne County through the multiple listing service. The median sale price was ($225,000), up (7.1%) from ($210,000) over the first half of 2025. The number of sales slipped (3.1%), from 1,109 to 1,075.

Homes sold close to asking. The median home sold for (99.6%) of its final list price, against (100%) a year earlier, and spent a median of 18 days on the market, against 14. (32%) of the period's sales closed above asking, against (33%) in the first half of 2025, so competing offers remained a normal part of the market.

The spring market did most of the work. The first quarter of 2026 produced 455 sales at a median of ($215,000), and the second quarter produced 620 at a median of ($232,000).

Median Sale Price by Town

A countywide median hides the most important fact about this market, which is that price depends on where you look. The table below shows the twelve areas with the most closed sales in the period, grouped by mailing address. Smaller towns had too few sales to publish a median that means anything.

The older urban cores, Wilkes-Barre, Nanticoke and Pittston, remain the most affordable way into the market, with medians between about ($167K) and ($176K). Mountain Top, Dallas, Drums and Shavertown carry medians from about ($295K) to ($368K), reflecting newer housing stock, larger lots and school district demand. For a buyer, the town you choose moves the budget more than almost any other decision.

Sales by Price Band

Six in ten homes sold for less than ($250,000). The ($150,000) to ($250,000) band was the deepest at 435 sales, (40%) of the total. 124 homes, about (12%), sold for ($400,000) or more.

Multi-Family and Small Rental Property

The MLS tracks two to four unit buildings separately, as residential income property. 203 of them closed in Luzerne County during the period at a median of ($250,000), up (7.5%) from ($232,500) a year earlier on fewer sales, 203 against 224. They sold for a median (99.3%) of list price after a median of just 9 days on the market, and (31%) closed above asking.

Small multi-family trades close to the single-family median and moves faster than it. That is the backbone of local rental ownership, and investor demand for these buildings held firm through the spring.

A Note on Lackawanna County

Most Lackawanna County sales are recorded in the Greater Scranton Board of REALTORS multiple listing service rather than the one this report draws from, so we do not publish a county median for Lackawanna. For reference, 70 Lackawanna homes closed through our MLS in the period, most of them in Scranton and Old Forge, at a median of about ($239K). Treat that as a sample, not a county figure.

The Longer Run Price Trend

For price direction over time, the most authoritative public source is the Federal Housing Finance Agency House Price Index, a repeat-sales index built from mortgage transactions. The county series for Luzerne shows steady long-run appreciation without the boom and bust swings of more speculative metros. FHFA publishes its county indexes as developmental index values rather than dollar figures, and they lag the current quarter, so we use them for direction rather than as a headline price.

That durability is the story worth telling buyers and investors. NEPA did not see the price spikes that priced families out of coastal and gateway markets, and it has not seen the sharp corrections either. For a buyer that means affordability relative to income. For an owner it means equity that builds steadily.

What This Means by Audience

For Buyers

The median home sold in under three weeks and nearly a third sold above asking, so the well-priced ones still go quickly, especially in spring. Get pre-approved before you shop, and decide on the town first, because it sets the price range more than anything else.

For Sellers

Prices are up and homes are selling close to list, but they are taking a few days longer than a year ago. Pricing to recent closed sales in your own town, rather than to an automated estimate or the countywide number, is what keeps a home out of the price reductions that stretch days on market.

For Investors

Two to four unit buildings sold in nine days at close to list price. Entry prices below the national median are what make NEPA income property work for buy-and-hold investors, and the speed of these sales says the competition for them is real.

Methodology and Sources

Every residential figure in this report is a closed sale recorded in the Luzerne County Association of REALTORS multiple listing service with a close date from January 1 through June 30, 2026, across all listing brokerages. The comparison period is January 1 through June 30, 2025. Residential covers single-family homes, townhouses and condominiums. Two to four unit buildings are reported separately as residential income. A property the listing agent entered twice under two property types is counted once. Nominal transfers recorded under ($1,000) are excluded. Medians are reported rather than averages. Days on market is the MLS figure for each listing. Town groupings follow the mailing address on the listing, which can span more than one municipality.

• Luzerne County Association of REALTORS multiple listing service, closed residential and residential income sales, January 2025 through June 2026, retrieved September 23, 2026
• U.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency, All-Transactions House Price Index for Luzerne County (ATNHPIUS42079A), via Federal Reserve Economic Data (FRED)