$234,547Average Value$177Average Price per Sq Ft14Homes For Sale
Palmerton is a tight-knit enclave in the Blue Mountains of Pennsylvania
A small-town spirit and a history of industry define Palmerton. This Carbon County borough, about 87 miles northwest of Philadelphia, rests between the Blue Mountains and a swath of farmland along the Lehigh River. The enclave was established in the early 1900s, when the New Jersey Zinc Company opened two plants and built the community to house its workers. The borough’s name honors the company’s then-president, Stephen S. Palmer. Today, zinc-related industry remains a pillar of Palmerton’s economy. The borough is home to roughly 5,600 people enjoying the region’s natural beauty and outdoor adventure, as well as a historic downtown stretch, home to mom-and-pop shops and local restaurants. “It’s a very giving and generous community that looks out for its neighbors. People are always willing to lend a hand,” says Susan Arner, a resident for over 40 years. “People moving here feel it’s a safe, tight-knit community and want to get away from the city. They like the school district and what the community has to offer.”
Palmerton’s tight-knit community thrives beneath the rolling Blue Mountain ridge.
Palmerton Pub is within walking distance of the downtown area.
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Palmerton homes feature architecture unique to Pennsylvania
Most homes in Palmerton sit close together on wide gridded streets named after colleges and universities like Princeton and Columbia. Garden beds and a few ornamental trees adorn small front yards framed by sidewalks. Sheds and detached garages dot backyards that often have driveways connecting to alleyways. Lots are typically less than a tenth of an acre, but properties farther from downtown typically rest on larger lots. The Residence Park neighborhood offers a more suburban vibe with homes lining winding streets shaded by mature trees. Palmerton features architectural styles commonly found throughout Pennsylvania, like American Foursquare twin homes, Upright and Wing homes, and Pennsylvania German Double Door Farmhouses. Familiar styles like Colonial Revival, Georgian and Federal are also available. The median price for a single-family home is around $250,000, well below the national figure, and prices range from less than $100,000 to around $570,000. Potential buyers should note that with several creeks running through Palmerton and the Lehigh River nearby, many properties have some risk of flooding, according to FEMA flood maps.
American Foursquare twin homes are a common sight in Palmerton.
Pennsylvania German Double Door Farmhouses are popular in Palmerton.
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Palmerton parks and outdoor adventures in Lehigh Valley
Palmerton has a few parks, including centrally located Borough Park. The park features a playground, open green space with walking paths and the Palmerton Area Veterans Memorial. Palmerton Memorial Park is a summer hotspot with a swimming pool featuring a spiraling waterslide and diving boards. Nearby, golfers can tee off on a public 18-hole course at Blue Shamrock Golf Club. A stretch of the Appalachian Trail crosses the Kittatinny Ridge south of town. Several trails meet at Lehigh Gap Nature Center, home to a nearly 800-acre wildlife refuge that was once a Superfund site. Superfund sites are areas that were cleaned up after having been deemed to be among the country’s most contaminated by the Environmental Protection Agency. The Lehigh Gap Boat Launch is down the road from the nature center, allowing residents to get out onto the Lehigh River, which is popular for tubing and fishing. Blue Mountain Resort, less than 10 miles from Palmerton, offers snow sports and mountain biking. Several state parks are in the region. Beltzville State Park is the closest and features a large lake with a sandy beach for swimming and boating.
Locals enjoy the swings and other activities at Borough Park.
The creek that runs through Borough Park is a popular spot.
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Fair fun for a good cause at Palmerton Community Festival
Palmerton buzzes with activity on the weekend after Labor Day during the annual Palmerton Community Festival. The fair-like celebration, held at Borough Park, features rides, games, classic carnival food, craft vendors and performances by the Palmerton Community Band, which has been in existence for more than a century. A few thousand people attend the event each day, according to Arner, one of the organizers. “It’s very rewarding. We’ve got a great group of volunteers. You see what it does for the community,” Arner says. “The festival provides a means for local nonprofits to raise funds for their causes. For many of the groups, it’s the biggest fundraiser of the year. For some, it’s the only fundraiser.” The Palmerton Lions Club and the S.S. Palmer/Parkside PTO are two of the participating organizations.
The Palmerton Historic District has a love for small businesses and pizza
The Blue Mountain Ridge peeks out from between century-old buildings lining Delaware Avenue in downtown Palmerton, also known as the Palmerton Historic District. Here, small businesses, services and restaurants sit between institutions like the Borough Hall, St. Luke’s Health Center - Palmerton and the Palmerton Historical Society and Heritage Center, where residents can explore local history. While restaurants offer a range of cuisine from American and Mexican to Chinese, Arner highlights the community’s plethora of pizzerias: “Each one is very unique in some of their offerings,” she says. “Papa Al’s is known for their Italian specialty dishes. There are various sandwiches and pizza toppings at Tony’s. Siro’s has other Italian offerings you don’t see at other places and Joey Bs has a family-friendly tavern atmosphere.” Grocery shoppers most often head to Country Harvest Family Market. Supermarket chains like Aldi and Giant and national retailers such as Walmart Supercenter and Lowe’s Home Improvement are in Lehighton, about 8 miles away.
Local businesses such as Silver Scissors Salon line Delaware Ave in Palmerton.
Palmerton locals enjoy a drink at One Ten Tavern.
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Public and private education options in Palmerton
The Palmerton Area School District receives a C-plus overall rating from Niche. Most students in Palmerton attend the same four schools, starting with Parkside Education Center, which earns a B rating and serves kindergarten and first grade. Students can move on to the C-plus-rated Stephen S. Palmer Elementary for second through sixth grade. Palmerton Area Junior High gets a C-plus. The school shares a campus with Palmerton Area High, which also receives a C-plus rating. Palmerton is home to the private Saint John Neumann Regional School. The Catholic school, which Niche does not yet rate, offers kindergarten through eighth grade.
The teachers at Parkside Education Center receive top marks from Niche.com.
Students finish up their schooling at Palmerton Area High School.
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Highway access and public transportation options in Palmerton
The urban layout of Palmerton provides some walkability for those who live on the blocks surrounding downtown. Lehigh and Northampton Transportation Authority bus stops dot the borough and take riders to destinations like Lehigh Valley Mall in Whitehall Township.
For those who prefer to travel by car, State Route 248 parallels the Lehigh River and connects Palmerton to nearby communities like Bowmanstown and Lehighton. State Route 145 heads to Allentown, the nearest city less than 20 miles away. It’s home to Lehigh Valley International Airport. The closest on-ramp for Interstate 476, a major highway through northeast Pennsylvania, is about an 8-mile drive from Palmerton to Franklin Township.
Palmerton receives about 30 inches of snow annually. From November to April, the borough has snow removal regulations that impact parking when snowfall is above two inches.
The Palmerton Zinc Pile and a low risk of crime
Palmerton is home to a Superfund Site tied to the community’s beginnings as an industry town for zinc smelting. According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, the so-called Palmerton Zinc Pile contains heavy metals that impact Blue Mountain, Aquashicola Creek and nearby groundwater and surface water. While a majority of impacted properties have been remediated, the EPA says residents should not have direct contact or ingest contaminated water from this area and should not eat fish from Aquashicola Creek.
The risk of crime is relatively low in Palmerton. Between January 2023 and January 2025, the Palmerton Borough Police Department reported only 5 incidents of violent crime, according to the Pennsylvania Unform Crime Reporting System. In that same time period, the department reported 83 incidents of property crime.
Written By
DeeVa Payne
Photography Contributed By
Jay Ratchford
Video By
Drew Webster
Interested in learning more about homes in this area?
Reach out to
James (Jim) Galligan,
an experienced agent in this area.
On average, homes in Palmerton, PA sell after 34 days on the market compared to the national average of 53 days. The median sale price for homes in Palmerton, PA over the last 12 months is $245,000, up 11% from the median home sale price over the previous 12 months.
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