Northeastern Pennsylvania's Residential Market (Q2 '26 - Q3 '26) - Focus on Luzerne County

The Period at a Glance

From April 1 through September 30, 2026, 1,337 single-family homes, townhouses and condominiums closed in Luzerne County through the multiple listing service. The median sale price was ($235,000), up (4.4%) from ($225,000) over the same six months of 2025. The number of sales rose (3.2%), from 1,295 to 1,337.

This was the strongest stretch of the year for sellers. The median home sold for (100%) of its final list price, the same as a year earlier, and spent a median of 10 days on the market, against 12. (36%) of the period's sales closed above asking, against (34%) a year earlier, so competing offers were common through the spring and summer.

The second quarter of 2026 produced 620 sales at a median of ($232,000), and the third quarter produced 717 at a median of ($240,000).

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.

Wilkes-Barre and Nanticoke remain the most affordable way into the market, with medians of ($170,000) and ($179,000). Mountain Top, Dallas, Drums and Shavertown carry medians from ($280,000) to ($382,500), 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

More than half of the homes that sold, 737 of 1,337, went for less than ($250,000). The ($150,000) to ($250,000) band was the deepest at 497 sales, (37%) of the total. 178 homes, about (13%), sold for ($400,000) or more.

The mix moved up a band from a year earlier. Sales under ($150,000) fell from 268 to 240, while sales from ($250,000) to ($400,000) rose from 364 to 422.

Multi-Family and Small Rental Property

The MLS tracks two to four unit buildings separately, as residential income property. 206 of them closed in Luzerne County during the period at a median of ($249,000), up (6.0%) from ($235,000) a year earlier on fewer sales, 206 against 231. They sold for a median (100%) of list price after a median of 10.5 days on the market, and (33%) closed above asking.

Small multi-family trades close to the single-family median and about as fast. That is the backbone of local rental ownership, and investor demand for these buildings held firm through the summer even as fewer of them came to market.

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, 92 Lackawanna homes closed through our MLS in the period, most of them in Scranton and Old Forge, at a median of about ($244K). 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 ten days and more than a third sold above asking, so the well-priced ones go quickly. Get pre-approved before you shop, be ready to see a home the week it lists, and decide on the town first, because it sets the price range more than anything else.

For Sellers

Prices are up, the median home sold at its list price, and homes sold faster than a year ago. Pricing to recent closed sales in your own town, rather than to an automated estimate or the countywide number, is still what keeps a home out of the price reductions that stretch days on market.

For Investors

Two to four unit buildings sold at list price in about ten days, and fewer of them traded than a year earlier. Entry prices below the national median are what make NEPA income property work for buy-and-hold investors, and the competition for the buildings that do come to market 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 April 1 through September 30, 2026, across all listing brokerages. The comparison period is April 1 through September 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, April 2025 through September 2026, retrieved October 15, 2026 and re-checked October 20, 2026
• U.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency, All-Transactions House Price Index for Luzerne County (ATNHPIUS42079A), via Federal Reserve Economic Data (FRED)