Lehigh Valley Real Estate

Lehigh Valley home prices hit a record high in June, matching soaring temperatures and hindering market activity, the Greater Lehigh Valley Realtors said Monday.

The Pennsylvania Public Utilities Commission on Thursday unanimously approved the sale of PPL Tower in Allentown to Wilkes-Barre-based D&D Realty Group. The sale comes more than four months after PPL Corp. announced that its subsidiary, PPL Electric Utilities, had reached a tentative $9 million agreement to sell the building to D&D Realty Group.

The Lehigh County Redevelopment Authority approved a contract between Elias Property Group and Synergy Environmental Group for $67,000 for an environmental study at the former Lehigh Valley Dairy site.

A $6.4 million mansion called Ravenwood Manor caught fire just a day after being sold. Three years later, the owners have donated it to the local government, reportedly as a sign of gratitude for local emergency responders.

Members of Skyline Investment Group came to Wilson Borough Council to talk TIFs and other areas of interest around the proposed 1921 at Dixie Avenue apartment project on Monday.

Northampton County Council has chosen to table a vote on an ordinance which would give the developers behind the Dixie Cup apartment project a significant tax break.

Easton City Council approved a resolution that would allow the city to take the historic Hooper House by eminent domain, but officials would prefer not to fall back on that option, hoping discussions with owner Rock Church may be successful.

The “Easton Commerce Park" proposal for a 1,006,880-square-foot warehouse at the old Pfizer Pigments property off Wood Avenue drew concerns from members of the Lehigh Valley Planning Commission.

A proposed skyscraper on 9th Street in Allentown called Peregrine Tower has garnered local and feasibility concern for its height and impact on the neighborhood.

Home sale prices in Lehigh and Northampton counties neared all-time highs last month, with an average of $333,275 — up 5.8 percent from May 2023, according to the Greater Lehigh Valley Realtors.

Free, 7-week course covers essentials from power tool use to drywall, trim, scaffolding, safety and more, and offers employment interview opportunities for those who qualify.

BPA Executive Director Steven Fernstrom said, “This selection marks the initial stages of the project, and we look forward to sharing more details as they are made available in the coming months."

City planners meet at 5 p.m. Thursday at Bethlehem Town Hall, 10 E. Church St. The proposal for the former Wells Fargo is listed fourth on an agenda of five items.

Units will be spread across seven buildings on an almost-17-acre undeveloped lot, with construction on the approved apartment complex expected to start in the spring.

The developer behind a proposed 37-story skyscraper in Allentown asked planning officials for another delay.

Josh Siegel wants to pursue a housing plan utilized in Montgomery County, Maryland, to create 1,500 apartment units in the region. His transition team includes a committee tasked with responding to Trump administration directives.

Conditional preliminary approval was granted for a six-story apartment on Northampton Street in Easton, provided the developer and a neighboring property owner resolve a property line dispute.

Rabbi Shoshanah Tornberg opened a discussion Sunday by noting many Allentown residents are “one missed paycheck” from being forced to experience homelessness. She called the housing crisis “a challenge that we don’t have to tolerate.”

Bethlehem Parking Authority, the property owner, and applicant Larken Associates, of Branchburg, New Jersey, have plans for a mixed-use building with 105 dwelling units — including 67 one-bedroom and 38 two-bedroom units ranging from 759 sq. ft. to 1,279 sq. ft.

Controller Jeff Glazier said the measure could be "one of the most impactful things council has done in a long time.”

After more than a year of meetings, plan review and expert testimony, Easton Planning Commission on Wednesday denied an application for a million-square-foot warehouse at 1525 Wood Ave.

After a near four-hour hearing, Easton's Zoning Hearing Board continued the session on the Spring Brook relocation — part of the Easton Commerce Park site — to January 2026.

Plans for a 105 single-family home land subdivision along Rising Sun Road received a recommendation for preliminary final approval from the North Whitehall Township Planning Commission.

The city Zoning Hearing Board on Wednesday unanimously denied a developer’s request for a 10-foot variance in lot width for a proposed four-unit, market-rate apartment building in West Bethlehem.