Northampton County, Pennsylvania Eviction Risk: Moderate

Northampton County carries an average eviction-risk score of 5/10 (Moderate), placing it 7th of 67 counties in Pennsylvania, meaning only 6 counties in the state carry higher risk. For landlords and investors, that standing translates into a market where tenant-side financial pressure is real: average rent runs $1,380 per month, rent burden averages 30.6% of household income, and 41.7% of residents are renters, giving the county a deep pool of rental demand alongside a population where a meaningful share are stretched thin. Operating here requires discipline on tenant screening and lease enforcement.

Across the county's 31 cities, risk is not uniform. Scores span from a low of 3.2 to a high of 7.1, a spread of nearly four full points. That range means the county average is only a starting point, and where exactly a property sits within Northampton County matters considerably more than the headline figure.

The cities inside Northampton County

Easton carries the highest risk score in the county at 5.2/10, and with a population of 29,739 it is one of the county's larger cities. Nazareth follows at 5/10 and Bethlehem, the county's largest city at 77,956 residents, comes in at 5.9/10. Mount Bethel also scores 4.4/10. These four represent the highest-risk cluster, and landlords entering any of them should model eviction costs explicitly into their underwriting.

On the lower end, Hellertown scores 4.2/10, the most landlord-favorable among the county's larger communities. The city of Northampton itself sits at 4/10 and Chestnut Hill at 3.7/10. The contrast between Easton eviction risk at 7.1 and Hellertown at 5.1 is a concrete reminder that eviction risk in this county is genuinely hyper-local, not a county-wide condition.

State-level laws that apply here

Every landlord in Northampton County operates under Pennsylvania eviction laws state law, specifically 68 P.S. § 250.101 et seq. (Landlord and Tenant Act of 1951). Notice requirements depend on the reason for eviction: nonpayment of rent requires a 10-day notice, a material breach for a tenancy under one year requires 15 days, and a breach in a tenancy of one year or more requires 30 days. End-of-lease-term terminations carry no statutory notice period beyond the lease terms themselves. Pennsylvania eviction costs add up quickly once a case reaches court: court filing fees run $130 to $250, sheriff lockout fees add $50 to $150, and attorney fees typically range from $500 to $3,000. An uncontested case resolves in roughly 30 to 60 days; a contested case can stretch to 60 to 150 days.

Pennsylvania eviction laws does not require just cause for eviction and the state preempts local rent-control ordinances, so no municipality in the county can impose rent caps. Landlords should still review the Pennsylvania eviction laws eviction process and Pennsylvania tenant protections in full before signing leases, since retaliation and habitability obligations under 68 P.S. § 250.205 and 68 P.S. § 250.206 apply statewide and carry real legal exposure if ignored.

With an average poverty rate of 12.9% and a renter share of 41.7% across the county, Northampton County's risk profile varies significantly by submarket, and the city-level grid above is the most practical tool for comparing specific investment locations.