Housing data for Penn Forest Township, PA
Penn Forest Township, PA has an estimated 10,157 residents and 7,029 homes (US Census Bureau, 2020–2024 American Community Survey).
It is a township in Carbon County.
10.4% of households rent.
The median gross rent is $1,326 a month.
Its population grew measurably since 2015–2019 (+5.5%).
Figures last updated on .
- Residents
- 10,157 (±24)
- Housing units
- 7,029 (±282)
- Households that rent
- 10.4%
- Median gross rent
- $1,326
- Residents since 2015–2019
- +5.5%
What stands out in Penn Forest Township
Working from home: 20.5% (±7.4 points) in Penn Forest Township, higher than in Carbon County (10.1%).
Homes heated by fuel oil: 10.9% (±3.3 points) in Penn Forest Township, lower than in Carbon County (40.5%).
Households that rent: 10.4% (±3.2 points) in Penn Forest Township, lower than in Carbon County (23.6%).
Homes built before 1980: 20.7% (±4.5 points) in Penn Forest Township, lower than in Carbon County (59.6%).
- Commute and cars in Penn Forest Township
- Heating fuel in Penn Forest Township
- Renters and owners in Penn Forest Township
- Age of homes in Penn Forest Township
Housing in Penn Forest Township at a glance
- Median rent: $1,326 median gross rent a month
- Rent by bedrooms: $1,347 median gross rent, 2 bedrooms
- Rent burden: 52.4% of renters pay 30% or more of income
- Renters and owners: 10.4% of households rent
- Income and affordability: $67,045 median household income
- Home values: $250,100 median home value
- Homeowner costs: $1,658 median monthly cost with a mortgage
- Property taxes: $3,120 median real estate taxes a year
- Types of homes: 0.0% of homes are in buildings of 5 or more units
- Bedrooms: 83.4% of homes have 3 or more bedrooms
- Age of homes: 20.7% of homes were built before 1980
- Vacancy rate: 16.7% rental vacancy rate (Small sample: wide margin of error)
- Heating fuel: 52.0% heat with electricity
- Commute and cars: 42.1 minutes average trip to work
- Growth: +5.5% residents since 2015–2019
- How long people stay: 16.2% moved in since 2020
- Crowding and facilities: 2.1% of homes have more than 1 person per room
Penn Forest Township against Carbon County, its state and the nation
| Penn Forest Township | Carbon County | Pennsylvania | United States | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 10,157 (±24) | 65,382 (exact) | 13,018,639 (exact) | 334,922,499 |
| Housing units | 7,029 (±282) | 34,417 (±64) | 5,806,452 (±672) | 143,775,355 |
| Households that rent | 10.4% (±3.2 points) | 23.6% (±2.1 points) | 30.7% (±0.2 points) | 34.8% |
| Median gross rent | $1,326 (±$186) | $994 (±$42) | $1,209 (±$5) | $1,413 |
| Median household income | $67,045 (±$8,615) | $67,554 (±$3,356) | $77,971 (±$342) | $80,734 |
| Median home value | $250,100 (±$23,552) | $211,400 (±$6,685) | $254,500 (±$767) | $332,700 |
| Median real estate taxes (a year) | $3,120 (±$276) | $3,088 (±$117) | $3,311 (±$12) | $3,119 |
| Built before 1980 | 20.7% (±4.5 points) | 59.6% (±2.7 points) | 67.3% (±0.2 points) | 49.7% |
| Average commute | 42.1 minutes (±3.8) | 32.5 minutes (±1.1) | 26.3 minutes (±0.1) | 26.4 minutes |
| Households with broadband | 94.0% (±3.3 points) | 88.7% (±1.7 points) | 89.7% (±0.1 points) | 91.0% |
| Median age of residents | 49.5 years (±2.5) | 46.3 years (±0.4) | 40.9 years (±0.2) | 38.9 years |
Penn Forest Township covers 73.8 square miles of land, about 138 residents per square mile (Census Bureau Gazetteer).
How Penn Forest Township has changed since 2015–2019
| 2015–2019 | 2020–2024 | Amount of change | Verdict | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 9,626 (±29) | 10,157 (±24) | +5.5% | Measurable increase |
| Housing units | 7,069 (±250) | 7,029 (±282) | −0.6% | Not a measurable change |
| Median gross rent | $1,225 (±$124) | $1,326 (±$186) | +8.2% | No measurable change after inflation |
| Median home value | $171,000 (±$7,455) | $250,100 (±$23,552) | +46.3% | Up after inflation |
| Median household income | $63,946 (±$8,023) | $67,045 (±$8,615) | +4.8% | No measurable change after inflation |
| Median owner cost with a mortgage | $1,411 (±$65) | $1,658 (±$119) | +17.5% | No measurable change after inflation |
| Median real estate taxes | $2,885 (±$233) | $3,120 (±$276) | +8.1% | Down after inflation |
| Households that rent | 18.4% (±5.1 points) | 10.4% (±3.2 points) | −8.0 percentage points | Measurable decrease |
| Rental vacancy rate | 0.0% (±3.4 points) | 16.7% (±14.4 points) | +16.7 percentage points | Measurable increase |
The Census Bureau publishes 2015–2019 dollars in 2019 dollars and 2020–2024 dollars in 2024 dollars.
Prices (the CPI-U, US Bureau of Labor Statistics) rose 22.7% between 2019 and 2024, so a dollar figure’s verdict compares the two after raising the earlier one by that much, using the Census Bureau’s test for a difference.
The two periods do not overlap, as the Census Bureau recommends for 5-year estimates.
Crime reported to police in Carbon County
Penn Forest Township has no police department of its own in the FBI’s figures, so this is the figure for Carbon County as a whole.
In 2025, the police departments that report for Carbon County recorded 148 violent and 821 property crimes per 100,000 residents.
A county-wide figure describes the whole county, not this place; crime varies from one community to the next.
ZIP codes in Penn Forest Township
| ZIP code | Share of the ZIP’s land in this place | Residents | Median gross rent | Median home value | Median household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18229 | 79% | 9,248 | $1,022 | $238,800 | $66,875 |
| 18210 | 60% | 7,587 | $1,328 | $231,600 | $70,683 |
A ZIP code is a mail route rather than a boundary, so the Census Bureau publishes figures for ZIP Code Tabulation Areas built from census blocks; the share column says how much of each one’s land lies in this place.
Places near Penn Forest Township
| Place | Distance | Median gross rent | Median home value | Households that rent |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lehigh Township (Carbon County) | 6.7 mi | — | $202,000 | 5.6% |
| Polk Township (Monroe County) | 6.8 mi | $1,397 | $262,400 | 13.3% |
| Towamensing Township | 7.0 mi | $972 | $249,400 | 10.9% |
| Indian Mountain Lake | 7.0 mi | $1,361 | $208,100 | 17.1% |
| Franklin Township (Carbon County) | 7.2 mi | $914 | $234,700 | 15.6% |
| Kidder Township | 7.3 mi | $1,077 | $270,800 | 5.5% |
| Sun Valley | 8.6 mi | — | $235,000 | 0.4% |
| Weissport East | 8.8 mi | $762 | $193,500 | 21.8% |
Places in Pennsylvania most like Penn Forest Township
| Place | Median gross rent | Median home value | Median household income | Households that rent |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Indian Mountain Lake | $1,361 | $208,100 | $71,547 | 17.1% |
| Lake Township (Wayne County) | $1,464 | $198,700 | $59,873 | 15.8% |
| Hemlock Farms | $1,629 | $334,000 | $79,980 | 9.4% |
| East Penn Township | $1,114 | $228,500 | $70,294 | 13.0% |
| Chestnuthill Township | $1,180 | $292,400 | $89,842 | 6.1% |
| Thornhurst Township | $1,611 | $210,200 | $71,625 | 9.2% |
Matched on rent, home value, income, the share who rent, the age of the homes, the share in apartment buildings and the commute, each measured against the spread across Pennsylvania.
HUD Fair Market Rent for Penn Forest Township, fiscal year 2027
| Studio | 1 bedroom | 2 bedrooms | 3 bedrooms | 4 bedrooms |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $1,302 | $1,519 | $1,839 | $2,306 | $2,482 |
HUD income limits for Penn Forest Township, fiscal year 2026
| Household size | Extremely low (30%) | Very low (50%) | Low (80%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 person | $21,950 | $36,550 | $58,450 |
| 2 people | $25,050 | $41,800 | $66,800 |
| 3 people | $28,200 | $47,000 | $75,150 |
| 4 people | $33,000 | $52,200 | $83,500 |
| 5 people | $38,680 | $56,400 | $90,200 |
| 6 people | $44,360 | $60,600 | $96,900 |
| 7 people | $50,040 | $64,750 | $103,550 |
| 8 people | $55,720 | $68,950 | $110,250 |
These are the limits HUD sets for its housing programs in the Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA HUD Metro FMR Area, where HUD’s median family income for fiscal year 2026 is $104,400.
A program can use its own limits; tax-credit and local programs often do.
The figures for Penn Forest Township include the places inside it that have pages of their own: Towamensing Trails.
Survey years: 2020–2024 (American Community Survey 5-year estimates), compared with 2015–2019.
Margins of error are at the 90% confidence level.
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Questions about Penn Forest Township
What is the average rent in Penn Forest Township, PA?
The Census Bureau publishes the median rather than the average: the median gross rent in Penn Forest Township is $1,326 (±$186) a month (2020–2024 American Community Survey), so half of renting households pay less and half pay more.
How much is a two-bedroom apartment in Penn Forest Township?
The median gross rent for a two-bedroom home in Penn Forest Township, PA is $1,347 (±$301) a month (2020–2024 American Community Survey).
Are renters in Penn Forest Township rent-burdened?
52.4% of renting households in Penn Forest Township pay 30% or more of their income in gross rent, the share housing researchers usually call rent-burdened (2020–2024 American Community Survey).
How many renters are there in Penn Forest Township?
Penn Forest Township has an estimated 449 (±139) renting households, 10.4% of its occupied homes (2020–2024 American Community Survey).
What is the median household income in Penn Forest Township?
The median household income in Penn Forest Township is $67,045 (±$8,615) a year (2020–2024 American Community Survey).
What is the average home value in Penn Forest Township, PA?
The Census Bureau publishes the median: $250,100 (±$23,552) for owner-occupied homes in Penn Forest Township (2020–2024 American Community Survey).
Is Penn Forest Township growing?
In Penn Forest Township, the number of residents went from 9,626 in 2015–2019 to 10,157 in 2020–2024 (+5.5%), a measurable increase.
What ZIP codes are in Penn Forest Township?
The ZIP codes that cover Penn Forest Township are 18229, 18210.
What is the median rent in ZIP code 18229?
The median gross rent in ZIP Code Tabulation Area 18229 is $1,022 (±$232) a month (2020–2024 American Community Survey).
Sources
- Demographic and Housing Estimates (DP05), 2020–2024 ACS 5-year estimates — Penn Forest township, Carbon County, Pennsylvania
- Selected Housing Characteristics (DP04), 2020–2024 ACS 5-year estimates — Penn Forest township, Carbon County, Pennsylvania
- Selected Economic Characteristics (DP03), 2020–2024 ACS 5-year estimates — Penn Forest township, Carbon County, Pennsylvania
- Median Real Estate Taxes Paid by Mortgage Status (B25103), 2020–2024 ACS 5-year estimates — Penn Forest township, Carbon County, Pennsylvania
- Selected Social Characteristics (DP02), 2020–2024 ACS 5-year estimates — Penn Forest township, Carbon County, Pennsylvania
- Total Population (B01003), 2015–2019 ACS 5-year estimates — Penn Forest township, Carbon County, Pennsylvania
- Median Gross Rent (B25064), 2015–2019 ACS 5-year estimates — Penn Forest township, Carbon County, Pennsylvania
- HUD Fair Market Rents, fiscal year 2027: Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA HUD Metro FMR Area
- HUD Income Limits, fiscal year 2026: Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA HUD Metro FMR Area
- US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year estimates for ZIP Code Tabulation Areas
- Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), US city average, all items, US Bureau of Labor Statistics: annual averages 2019 and 2024
- US Census Bureau, 2024 Gazetteer Files
To check these figures in the Census Bureau’s own API, request the variables below from the 2024 ACS 5-year data profile (acs/acs5/profile) for Penn Forest township, Carbon County, Pennsylvania (county subdivision:58968, in state:42 county:025).
Each estimate (E or PE) has a margin of error beside it (M or PM).
The 2015–2019 figures are B01003_001E, B01003_001M, B25064_001E, B25064_001M from the 2019 release.
The API needs a free key.
DP05_0001E, DP05_0001M, DP04_0001E, DP04_0001M, DP04_0047PE, DP04_0047PM, DP04_0134E, DP04_0134M, DP03_0062E, DP03_0062M, DP04_0089E, DP04_0089M
This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Figures are published by the US Census Bureau, HUD, the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the FBI; Seayora reproduces them and does not adjust them, except where a sentence says it compares dollar figures after inflation. They describe the whole place, not any one building or street, and are not an appraisal, a rent determination, a tax bill, a safety rating or legal advice.
Figures last updated on .