Smaller Markets, Big Results

Not Your Grandpa’s Lehigh Valley

Pennsylvania’s Lehigh Valley—which includes the cities of Allentown, Bethlehem and Easton—has come a long way since Billy Joel wrote about the decline of the area’s steel industry in his 1982 hit, “Allentown.” The former home of industrial giants Bethlehem Steel and Mack Trucks, the area has undergone a transformation that Lehigh Valley native Rebecca L. Francis says she could not have envisioned.

“The old Bethlehem Steel plant is now the Wind Creek Casino. A startup incubator, Factory LLC, took over another steel building and refurbished it,” says Francis, associate broker and leader of the Rebecca Francis Team at Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Fox & Roach Center Valley. Allentown is now the global headquarters for Air Products, a clean energy company. And Bethlehem was never just a steel town: It’s also the longtime home of Just Born Quality Confections, makers of Peeps, Mike and Ike, and other popular candies.

Health care is a big contributor to the region’s growth. “People used to go to Philadelphia or Hershey or into New York City if they had something serious. Now we have two large hospitals, Lehigh Valley Health Network and St. Luke’s. It’s unbelievable how much they’ve grown in the last fifteen years,” Francis says.

The region offers educational opportunities at every academic level including Lehigh University, Moravian University and the Lehigh Valley branch of Penn State University. “We have great public and private schools,” she says.

Lehigh Valley loves to throw a party. Whether it’s Musikfest, a 10-day summer music festival featuring popular acts from every genre, or a celebration of all things Christmas, special events are a year-round draw. The nickname Christmas City is well earned, and the holidays are a big deal, “because, of course, we’re Bethlehem,” Francis says. Two Christmas markets draw natives and tourists to a German-inspired holiday experience that is capped by Peepsfest, a two-day holiday festival celebrating Bethlehem’s own colorful marshmallow treats, with a Peep Drop at 5:30 p.m. on New Year’s Eve—perfect for families.

Recent airport growth makes it easier for snowbirds to flock back to their Pennsylvania homes. “The Lehigh Valley International Airport recently underwent a $35 million expansion, which makes the region more accessible. You can fly to a lot of places in Florida or the Carolinas or other areas that are typical snowbird living scenarios,” Francis says. “This area is relatively affordable in comparison to some nearby very large cities. And it’s a high quality of life for its residents.”

Transplants love saying good-bye to big-city traffic, she adds. “You can get anywhere within about 20 minutes. A bustling nightlife might be a little bit of a stretch, but there really is something for everyone.”

Settling down in her hometown wasn’t originally on Francis’ bingo card. Is she happy with her decision? “I left when I was 21, never to return,” she says. “I’ve gone everywhere and lived in a lot of places, but to me this is the loveliest place to raise my family.

Here Comes the Sun

“When most people think of desert, they just think of dirt and nothing else. But in Tucson, I always say that we’re a green desert, which you see if you get up into the higher areas and you look down on the valley,” says Pam Ruggeroli, CRS, GRI, an associate broker for Long Realty Company. “It’s very, very green, because of all the different varieties of cactus that we have, as well as our palo verde trees. In April, the cacti are in bloom, and the desert is absolutely gorgeous. And it’s slightly cooler than the Phoenix area, because of our elevation.”

Sun seekers drawn to an active, outdoor lifestyle—plus plentiful jobs and nightlife—led to steady growth in the greater Tucson, Ariz., market, between 2012 and 2022. Whether you like to golf, hike, horseback ride, play pickleball or tennis, cycle, or fish—you name it—Tucson is a great place to enjoy the outdoors for most of the year.

Access to culture abounds. The region is a leader in hosting unique dining and tourism events that build community. In 2015, Tucson became the first UNESCO City of Gastronomy designated in the United States, joining the UNESCO Creative Cities Network. “One thing is, we are really a diverse culture here,” says Cathy Swingle Wolfson, CRS, GRI, an associate broker with Coldwell Banker Realty and president of Tucson Association of REALTORS®. “Another nice draw is we don’t have hurricanes, tornadoes or snowstorms.”

The city of Tucson became the first city in the world to have an ordinance to address light pollution for space observation, and nearby Saguaro National Park was named the ninth Urban Night Sky Place.

“You can be at the beach in Mexico in a little over four hours, San Diego or the Grand Canyon in six hours. You can hike or ski nearby Mount Lemmon, or be at the vineyards within an hour,” Wolfson says.

In addition to dining, down-town Tucson offers a streetcar, live music, off-Broadway plays, coffee shops, and a convention center. The abundant opportunities add up to a diversity of buyers who are at various life stages, whether early in their professional careers, relocating from the West Coast or seeking seasonal homes.

“I see quite a number of out-of-town customers, and we always have a lot of retirees moving here,” Ruggeroli says. “Sometimes we sell properties to their children, who may be teaching at the university or working as doctors, and then the kids move their parents out here.”

While housing inventory is tight, mirroring nationwide real estate challenges, many clients are feeling more buying power in the Tucson market compared with other warm-weather cities.

“I believe that we are still probably one of the most afford-able cities of this size. I always say we are the smallest big town I’ve ever lived in,” Ruggeroli says.

Clients come from a number of nearby states, including California, Colorado, Oregon and Washington, both for work opportunities and lifestyle improvements. “Among my clientele, I always see relocation,” Wolfson says. “We do a lot of relocation work with Raytheon, the University of Arizona, Davis-Monthan Air Force Base and the surrounding industries.”

New-construction purchases are hot, both Ruggeroli and Wolfson say, due to incentives by builders to offer reduced closing costs and lending rates. In addition, spec homes are helping to add inventory to the market more quickly than the typical timing to build from the ground up.

“I grew up here. I love living here,” Wolfson says. “I’m looking at the Santa Catalina Mountains right now. Every day when we get to drive our clients around, it’s gorgeous blue skies. I do have an office, but I’m not stuck in it every day. Summer is our best kept secret here. (It’s a dry heat!) It’s quiet, it’s ‘mañana.’ It’s flip-flops. It’s awesome.”

Ruggeroli says that while she may be biased, she believes her clients almost always fall in love with Tucson, even after exploring other parts of the state. “I’ve been here 30 years. I grew up in Las Vegas, and I just have no desire to be anywhere else. Even though we don’t have the ocean, the sky is our ocean.”

Waterfront Wonderland

Whether they’re snowbirds or recent college graduates, many potential buyers are finding reasons to call the Buffalo and Cheektowaga, N.Y., region home. Waterfront activities, skiing, top-rated academic and medical facilities, proximity to Niagara Falls and the Canadian border, and housing affordability are all reasons that several real estate rankings have put the city with a former “Rust Belt” reputation on the radar for a new cohort of clients.

“Folks are starting to come in-land and say, where else can I go that is not overpopulated?” says Vienna Laurendi, ePRO, MRP, Buffalo Niagara Association of REALTORS® president and an agent with Howard Hanna Real Estate Services in Grand Island, N.Y. “We enjoy all four seasons, and they’re all lovely. In the summer, our waterfront is jam-packed with canoers, jet skiers, kayakers and fishermen. That only lasts a short while for us—the 100 days of summer. We don’t waste any time. Anyone with an outdoor patio, anyone with any kind of waterfront activity, they are out there now rocking and rolling.”

A vibrant mix of close-knit local residents and transplants make up most of Laurendi’s clientele. “Once they come and experience what you can enjoy exploring here or living here, then that’s what is causing a lot of extra attention and an uptick in our market,” she says.

“Anyone who is coming from outlying areas is saying, ‘Wait a minute, I can get that 2,400-square-foot house that’s got almost 30,000 square feet of land, for only $400,000.’ They realize it just makes sense because in their market, they’re spending three times as much for a postage stamp–sized lot in a busy city,” Laurendi says.

Generational factors are leading more individuals to stay year-round through the colder winter months. “In the traditional life plan, people say, ‘As soon as my career is completed, I’m going to pull my stakes up and head down south to Georgia, Florida, Louisiana or the Carolinas,’ wherever it may be. There was this idea that ‘we’ve got to leave.’ I personally am seeing a slowdown in that, because our young people are not as quick to move. They are starting their families here, which is causing the grandparents to say, ‘OK, maybe I don’t want to leave the state permanently.’”

Increasing economic health, supported by several renowned universities and two neighboring mid-sized cities—Syracuse and Rochester—is keeping young professionals in the job market. Buffalo State, Niagara University, University at Buffalo–The State University of New York, plus private and community colleges, are sources of graduates who are staying to raise their families and work in the thriving technology and medical industries.

One challenge: finding rentals for younger Buffalo clients who serve in the military or work as border patrol agents and need a short-term home during their assignments. Laurendi says real estate leaders in her region are actively working to educate the local zoning boards about how antiquated zoning laws and master plans are holding back builders from providing much-needed new rentals and starter homes in what remains a competitive housing market.

Post-pandemic, new investors are helping to buy retail spaces that had struggled to keep their doors open. “We have younger vibrant, imaginative, creative entrepreneurs who are coming into the food, beverage and entertainment industry and opening up these amazing places that are thriving,” Laurendi says.