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My husband and I will be moving to PA in the near future. We recently traveled throughout the state and while we liked many areas I think our top 3 choices are Lancaster, Easton, and Williamsport. If you are familiar with all three or even just two out of the three I would be so interested to get opinions on how they compare, reasons to choose one over the others, and negatives about any of them that would make you not want to live there. One big question I have is how would you compare Lancaster, Easton, and Williamsport in terms of safety and crime?
To give an update on our budget we can now go up to $350,000 for a home. We want to pay cash and we are comfortable with that amount if the place doesn't need much work. I know it is still considered a limited budget.
These are three pretty different places in Pennsylvania. I know the least about Easton, but I have been there a few times. My dad's side of the family moved from the Williamsport area to the Lancaster area, so I am very familiar with the two.
Williamsport: The city which will feel more isolated, less economically developed, and the most conservative. Home prices are moderate and your 350K will go much further in this area compared to either Lancaster or Easton. The natural beauty there is fantastic, and the access to places like the PA Grand Canyon for hiking is wonderful. The Williamsport area is what some may describe as peak Pennsyltucky; it is very Appalachian in culture and character. The city proper has more mixed/moderate politics, but the Williamsport area at large is very, very conservative
Lancaster: Lancaster is in an interesting spot right now. The area is thriving economically and growing in population. The area exhibits peak Pennsylvania Dutch culture, and there are huge Amish and Mennonite communities to match. The natural scenery is fantastic, with abundant bucolic rolling hills and farmland. It is the kind of area where you can't go more than 10 (5? 3?) miles without passing by some kind of farm stand or shop with homemade goods. The area does have nice access to Philadelphia (easy by car or train), and Baltimore is not too far either. But beware, traffic in the area is getting progressively worse. The politics of the area remains center-right, but it is becoming more moderate by the year with the influx of outsiders and Gen Zers having an increasing influence in the area's politics.
Easton: Right on the border of New Jersey, and within the "Lehigh Valley" region, it will feel the most truly East Coast of the bunch. The natural scenery is actually pretty nice, with moderately sized hills, mountains, and rivers, plus good access to places like the Delaware Water Gap. An added bonus is the relatively easy access to both Philadelphia and New York City. I think a lot of people in Easton commute to work in Allentown, Bethlehem, or Northern NJ. Overall, traffic in this area will be the worse of the bunch. The city itself is Democratic, and the area is moderate/"purple."
I can't help with the comparison, but would be happy to answer any questions about Lancaster specifically.
Can you tell me about the age mix of people you typically see when out in the city?
Any comments / opinions about the Amish presence / impact on the area?
These are three pretty different places in Pennsylvania. I know the least about Easton, but I have been there a few times. My dad's side of the family moved from the Williamsport area to the Lancaster area, so I am very familiar with the two.
Williamsport: The city which will feel more isolated, less economically developed, and the most conservative. Home prices are moderate and your 350K will go much further in this area compared to either Lancaster or Easton. The natural beauty there is fantastic, and the access to places like the PA Grand Canyon for hiking is wonderful. The Williamsport area is what some may describe as peak Pennsyltucky; it is very Appalachian in culture and character. The city proper has more mixed/moderate politics, but the Williamsport area at large is very, very conservative
Lancaster: Lancaster is in an interesting spot right now. The area is thriving economically and growing in population. The area exhibits peak Pennsylvania Dutch culture, and there are huge Amish and Mennonite communities to match. The natural scenery is fantastic, with abundant bucolic rolling hills and farmland. It is the kind of area where you can't go more than 10 (5? 3?) miles without passing by some kind of farm stand or shop with homemade goods. The area does have nice access to Philadelphia (easy by car or train), and Baltimore is not too far either. But beware, traffic in the area is getting progressively worse. The politics of the area remains center-right, but it is becoming more moderate by the year with the influx of outsiders and Gen Zers having an increasing influence in the area's politics.
Easton: Right on the border of New Jersey, and within the "Lehigh Valley" region, it will feel the most truly East Coast of the bunch. The natural scenery is actually pretty nice, with moderately sized hills, mountains, and rivers, plus good access to places like the Delaware Water Gap. An added bonus is the relatively easy access to both Philadelphia and New York City. I think a lot of people in Easton commute to work in Allentown, Bethlehem, or Northern NJ. Overall, traffic in this area will be the worse of the bunch. The city itself is Democratic, and the area is moderate/"purple."
This is such great info, thank you so much! It makes me uneasy about picking the wrong one since they are apparently quite different from one another. I wish I understood more about the meaning of some of the terms in your post. They're terms I've heard before but don't necessarily have a full understanding of - Pennsyltucky, Appalachian culture, Pennsylvania Dutch culture, East Coast feel. I don't want to go off of my own stereotypes and assumptions about those terms, I want to learn more about how the different cultures might impact one's experience living in each of these places.
One slight modification about Lancaster, made without having read what Jessie Mitchell has told you about the city, so forgive me if I repeat her:
Lancaster County politics are center-right. Lancaster City is pretty liberal. (It passed an ordinance banning discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation back in 1985, whereupon the county withdrew from the joint city-county Human Relations Commission formed in 1961.) It also has a rather cosmopolitan vibe and a strong arts and culture scene. The city also has a very large Hispanic population; Hispanics make up more than 40 percent of the city's population but only 11.6 percent of the county's.
Also: having visited both Easton and Lancaster, I can say that the two cities aren't all that different from each other, and both are probably a good bit different from Williamsport.
Easton is about half Lancaster's size population-wise but just about as lively (and the Lehigh Valley MSA, which includes the neighboring cities of Bethlehem and Allentown, is bigger than the Lancaster MSA). It has an unusually strong dining scene for a city its size, with restaurants serving a wide range of cuisines spread mainly along a three-block stretch of the main downtown street, Northampton Street (Easton is the Northampton County seat). It has an excellent small museum (Lancaster has several, as well as the home of Pennsylvania's only President, James Buchanan) and a top-notch liberal-arts college (again, Lancaster ditto).
Blacks make up about the same share of both cities' populations (16-18 percent), but Hispanics are only half as prevalent in Easton as in Lancaster.
I think housing in the Lehigh Valley is pricier than housing in Lancaster County, but it's still less expensive than in Greater Philadelphia.
"Williamsport: Home prices are much lower and your 350K will go much further in this area compared to either Lancaster or Easton. The natural beauty there is fantastic, and the access to places like the PA Grand Canyon for hiking is wonderful. The Williamsport area is what some may describe as peak Pennsyltucky since lycoming is more or less synonymous with rural. The city itself has shrunk dramatically but has great housing stock and is a regional center for nightlife. the built environment looks a lot like west chester PA but quieter since Lycoming college is much smaller.
Lancaster: The area is thriving economically and growing in population. The area exhibits peak Pennsylvania Dutch culture, and there are huge Amish and Mennonite communities to match. The natural scenery is fantastic, with abundant bucolic rolling hills and farmland (versus the more rugged natural environment of lycoming). It is the kind of area where you can't go more than 10 (5? 3?) miles without passing by some kind of farm stand or shop with homemade goods. The area does have nice access to Philadelphia (easy by car or train), and Baltimore is not too far either. But beware, traffic is bad, prices are rising, and farms are being converted to housing developments quickly. Lancaster is also quite close to York and Harrisburg.
I tried to make the descriptions less overtly political. For nature access I'd rate it Williamsport, Easton, then Lancaster.
Can you tell me about the age mix of people you typically see when out in the city?
Any comments / opinions about the Amish presence / impact on the area?
Interesting questions. So Lancaster keeps being included on these "best places to retire" lists in various publications, and outside the city in the county areas there are some very developed senior communities of various kinds, retirement homes, assisted living, etc. The Old People business (no offense meant, I am one myself) is a meaningful concern as well as enterprise in Lancaster county.
That said, I live in the city and the vibe there is young and entrepreneurial. In fact I think there's a pretty cool symbiosis between this blossoming millennial energy (lots of independent businesses, services, and architectural restoration, environmental improvements) combined with older folks with money to spend to support those efforts. Also a fair amount of colorful Gen Z street buzz.
It is very LGBTQ welcoming, artsy, and politically liberal. The mix of people is about as mixed as you can possibly imagine. If I was going to round up/down and generalize about the ethnic makeup, I'd say it's about 40% hispanic, 40% white, 20% black overall. That said this varies widely by neighborhood. I live in what has been for sometime a largely hispanic neighborhood, but in the few years we've lived there it has gotten appreciably more white with gentrification.
The Amish are not a big cultural factor inside the city. You'll see them around, the occasional horse and buggy, some merchant farmers or crafters at the Central Market, at medical offices, etc, but it's not a big presence except to the extent featuring Amish culture and products is part of the tourist draw of the area. Out in the small towns and farmlands the presence is much more pronounced. When driving you need to be alert and accommodating to the buggies. That said, the Amish pretty much keep to themselves except where their businesses are concerned that sell to everyone. They are generally friendly and warm when you do have contact, but won't engage beyond the immediate transaction. On a superficial level, the horse drawn buggies, the clothing, the farming culture, it's all very picturesque and adds a quaint, simple, pretty effect to the countryside.
One slight modification about Lancaster, made without having read what Jessie Mitchell has told you about the city, so forgive me if I repeat her:
Lancaster County politics are center-right. Lancaster City is pretty liberal. (It passed an ordinance banning discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation back in 1985, whereupon the county withdrew from the joint city-county Human Relations Commission formed in 1961.) It also has a rather cosmopolitan vibe and a strong arts and culture scene. The city also has a very large Hispanic population; Hispanics make up more than 40 percent of the city's population but only 11.6 percent of the county's.
That's a good point about the city's politics. However, no hate to Lancaster, but I would not personally say it has "a rather cosmopolitan vibe." Maybe that 'vibe' is more prevalent than an outsider may assume, but during my visit it felt pretty Pennsylvanian through and through. I actually commented to my friends that it's like the Pennsylvanian version of Ithaca, NY. Or perhaps Ithaca is the Upstate NY version of Lancaster. But Lancaster, and the area as a whole, is way less liberal.
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Originally Posted by pman
[My cut]
I tried to make the descriptions less overtly political. For nature access I'd rate it Williamsport, Easton, then Lancaster.
I appreciate you using my post as a skeleton for yours, but for some people the politics of an area is more than just culture war BS. As a gay man in an interracial relationship, it truly impacts my quality of life. There are plenty of others who feel similarly. There's nothing wrong with talking about an area's political leanings if you're not doing it in an inflammatory way.
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