Lycoming County, Pennsylvania Eviction Risk: Moderate

Lycoming County scores 4.3/10 (Moderate) across its 14 tracked cities, placing it in the higher-risk third of Pennsylvania: 17 of the state's 67 counties carry more risk, while 49 are more landlord-friendly. With an average rent of $905 and a rent-burden rate of 28.2%, a meaningful share of tenants are financially stretched, which elevates the probability of late payment and contested evictions. Investors entering this county should price that operational friction into their underwriting from day one.

The county-wide average, however, obscures a substantial internal range. Scores across Lycoming County's cities run from a low of 3.4 to a high of 6.1, a spread wide enough that the wrong neighborhood choice can transform a manageable portfolio into a problem-prone one. The 43.5% average renter share means rental housing is a significant part of the local economy, but conditions are far from uniform.

The cities inside Lycoming County

The county's highest-risk addresses are split between Williamsport and Montgomery, both scoring 4/10. Williamsport, the county seat, carries that score across a population of 27,612, making it by far the largest concentration of rental risk in the county. South Williamsport (population 6,211) follows at 4.6/10, and Hughesville comes in at 4.5/10. These four cities alone account for most of the elevated-risk exposure in the county, and landlords who concentrate holdings there should plan for longer vacancy cycles and more frequent court involvement.

The lower-risk end of the county offers a noticeably different operating picture. Montoursville scores 4/10, the lowest among the larger cities, and Kenmar sits at 4.3/10 across a population of 5,077. Jersey Shore comes in at 3.8/10. Risk in Lycoming County is genuinely hyper-local: a landlord operating in Montoursville faces a fundamentally different probability of eviction than one operating less than ten miles away in Williamsport.

State-level laws that apply here

Pennsylvania eviction laws sets the procedural baseline for every eviction in the county under 68 P.S. § 250.101 et seq. (Landlord and Tenant Act of 1951). Notice requirements vary by circumstance: nonpayment of rent triggers a 10-day notice under 68 P.S. § 250.501(b); a material breach by a tenant in residence fewer than one year requires 15 days, and one year or more requires 30 days, both under 68 P.S. § 250.501(a). End-of-lease terminations require no additional notice period. Once a complaint is filed, uncontested cases typically resolve in 30 to 60 days; contested matters can stretch 60 to 150 days. Court filing fees run $130 to $250, sheriff lockout fees add $50 to $150, and attorney fees commonly range $500 to $3,000. The Pennsylvania eviction process is notably landlord-accessible in that no just-cause requirement applies statewide and the state preempts local rent-control ordinances, so Lycoming County landlords face no local rent caps. For a full breakdown of what these proceedings actually cost, see Pennsylvania eviction costs. Pennsylvania security deposit limits and Pennsylvania tenant protections are also governed at the state level, so no local carve-outs apply here.

With a poverty rate of 16.8% across the county, financial fragility among renters is a real operating variable; the city-by-city grid above is the most direct tool for identifying which specific markets carry the most concentrated exposure.