Cambria County, Pennsylvania Court Filings Intelligence

• Filing volume accelerating (+17.9%) — last 2 complete months (1105 filings) vs prior 2 complete months (937 filings). Excludes the current calendar month (in progress).
• Max gross cap rate 18.1% at HUD Fair Market Rent — $12,420/year (2BR FMR × 12) on the $68,493 median estimated market value. Section-8-eligible rent ceiling; real-market rent typically exceeds FMR; excludes operating costs (taxes, insurance, maintenance, vacancy, management).
• 18.1% of filings are Clerk Of Courts Judgment — the dominant lead category in Cambria County during the observed window.

About Cambria County

Cambria County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 133,472. Its county seat is Ebensburg. The county was created on March 26, 1804, from parts of Bedford, Huntingdon, and Somerset counties and later organized in 1807. It was named for the nation of Wales, which in Latin is known as "Cambria". The county is part of the Southwest region of the commonwealth.

Source: Wikipedia

At a glance

Filing type breakdown

Each row is a distinct case verified for current owner-of-record before inclusion.

Monthly filing activity

Each row reflects new filings entering the dataset that month, after ownership verification. Most recent month may be partial.

Geographic concentration by ZIP

Top 10 ZIPs in Cambria County account for 0.4% of all tracked filings, showing where distressed real estate activity clusters.

Based on filings with a parseable property address (0% of Cambria County filings).

Property value distribution

Source: third-party property enrichment (1% coverage on Cambria County filings). Median $68,492; mean $133,982.

Day-of-week filing pattern

Filings cluster Monday through Friday, with weekend filings essentially absent (court system closed). Computed for 20764 filings with a parseable date.

Building characteristics

Per-property details from third-party property enrichment, aggregated across the 76 filings with characteristic data:

Property characteristics

Parcel-level detail for the 13 Cambria County filings that match county GIS records:

Source: Cambria County public parcel data via the county's GIS REST API. Court records are public information.

Housing stock + distress signals

Underlying housing stock and distress indicators across all 64494 Cambria County housing units, from US Census ACS 5-year data. National reference values shown for context.

Source: US Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS 2023 5-year). National reference values are ACS 2022 5-year US totals. Why these matter: vacancy rate is the strongest single proxy for distressed inventory; mortgage-carrying share defines the risk pool exposed to rate environment; pre-1940 stock signals deferred maintenance and renovation opportunity; senior population correlates with probate pipeline depth.

Rent benchmark (HUD Fair Market Rent)

HUD sets Fair Market Rents at the metro area level — the same FMRs apply to every county within the metro. Cambria County sits within the Johnstown, PA. Used to set Section 8 voucher amounts; investors use it as a defensible rent-estimate floor for buy-to-rent underwriting.

Source: US Department of Housing and Urban Development, Fair Market Rents (None). 40th-percentile gross rent including utilities. Why this matters: Section-8-eligible tenants are a baseline demand floor for rental inventory at these price points; FMR is the official ceiling for voucher-eligible rents.

New construction (market momentum)

Annual building permits filed in Cambria County from the US Census Building Permits Survey. Trend signal on whether new housing demand is accelerating or contracting in this market.

Source: US Census Bureau Building Permits Survey, annual cumulative data. Why this matters: permits trending up signals strong demand for new inventory; permits contracting at the same time foreclosure activity rises indicates broader market softening (deals price differently). Multifamily share shows whether the market is densifying or holding to single-family stock.

Macro context: state home prices and national delinquency

Cambria County filings should be read against the broader housing-market backdrop. Pennsylvania state home-price trend and the national mortgage-delinquency rate are the two macro signals most directly relevant to foreclosure exposure.

Sources: Federal Housing Finance Agency state house price indices (FRED series PASTHPI); Federal Reserve Board, Mortgage Delinquency 30+Day Rate on Single-Family Residential Mortgages (FRED series DRSFRMACBS). Updated quarterly. Free public data.

Local-market benchmark

Demographics of the ZIPs where filings cluster, weighted by filing count and benchmarked against Census ACS 2023 5-year:

Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-year estimates, weighted by Keystone's filing volume across 3 top ZIPs.

Most active foreclosure plaintiffs in Cambria County

Top mortgage holders and servicers named in foreclosure complaints filed in this county. Lender names are normalized to collapse common legal-suffix variants (e.g. "as Trustee for X Trust", "N.A.").

Source: plaintiff names extracted from Cambria County foreclosure complaint text. Court records are public information.

FEMA flood zone exposure

Are distressed properties concentrated in flood-prone areas? By checking each property's coordinates against FEMA's National Flood Hazard Layer, we identify which filings fall in Special Flood Hazard Areas (mandatory flood insurance zones). This analysis covers 89 properties with geocoded locations.

Source: FEMA National Flood Hazard Layer (NFHL), queried by property coordinates. Zones A/AE/AH/AO/V/VE are Special Flood Hazard Areas (1% annual flood chance, mandatory flood insurance). Zone X is minimal risk. 89 properties checked.

Filing velocity by case type

How each distress category is trending — are foreclosures accelerating while divorces cool, or vice versa? This breakdown is only possible with direct court-record data.

Trend = recent 2-3 month volume vs prior 2-3 months (current partial month excluded). Positive = accelerating; negative = cooling.

Lender concentration analysis

Foreclosure activity is spread across many lenders, suggesting diverse distress sources rather than a single institutional wave.

HHI (Herfindahl-Hirschman Index): <1500 = competitive, 1500-2500 = moderate concentration, >2500 = highly concentrated. Based on 39 foreclosure filings with identified plaintiffs.

Seasonal filing patterns

Court filings peak in Jul and are lowest in Apr. The 1.7x peak-to-trough ratio suggests strong seasonal patterns — investors who time their outreach around Jul can reach more distressed homeowners.

Average filings per calendar month across all observed years. Relative column shows each month as a percentage of the peak month (Jul), with a 1.7x peak-to-trough ratio.

ZIP code distress hotspots

Distress is geographically dispersed across 22 ZIP codes, with no single area dominating. 1 of the top hotspots have high-equity properties (>40% equity), signaling potential value-add or wholesale opportunities.

Top 10 of 22 ZIP codes with filings. High equity = properties with estimated equity above 40% (from third-party enrichment).

Non-resident owner analysis

Most filings (100%) involve owner-occupied properties. The relatively low absentee rate suggests distress is primarily hitting homeowners, not institutional investors.

Non-resident = owner's mailing address differs from the property address. Could indicate out-of-state landlords, inherited estates, second homes, or in-transition properties.

Distress composition and shifts

Certified Lien, Municipal Lien share is rising. Transcript: District Magistrate, Complaint: Civil Action: share is declining. High diversity in distress types suggests multiple independent factors driving court filings, not a single economic shock.

Distress diversity score: 4.02 (Shannon entropy; higher = more diverse distress sources). "Recent" = last 2 complete months; "Earlier" = all prior months.

Case Outcomes & Resolution Timeline

0.0% of tracked cases have reached a resolution. The most common resolution is judgment entered (1 cases, 100% of resolved).

Outcomes by Case Type

Based on 2003 court filings with docket event tracking. Based on a robust sample; percentages are reliable. Outcomes derived from docket entries (judgments, dismissals, sheriff sales, and settlement agreements). 2002 cases are still active or pending resolution.

Property Value Profile

The median assessed value of properties in court filings is $15,930. Inherited Property filings involve the highest-value properties (median $197,532), while Abuse filings trend lower (median $7,700). The largest segment (90.6%) falls in the Under $100K range.

Based on county assessor records for 556 properties with court filings (2.7% of total filings). Values are tax-assessed amounts, not market listing prices.

Investment Opportunity Score by ZIP Code

Across 8 ZIP codes with sufficient court filing data, ZIP 15901 (Johnstown) ranks highest with an investment opportunity score of 75/100, driven by high filing volume (17 cases). 4 of 8 scored ZIPs are above the average score of 45.

Based on 20764 court filings across 8 ZIP codes. ZIPs with fewer than 3 filings are excluded. Property values from county assessor records. Absentee status from property ownership verification.

Distress Capital Analysis

$26,472,599 in assessed property value is currently tied up in 556 court-filed properties. Equity Division Sale filings represent the largest capital pool ($6,036,263 across 49 properties).

Capital at Risk by Filing Type

Based on 556 properties with assessor valuations (2.7% of 20764 total filings). Values are county assessor estimates. Equity calculated from estimated value vs outstanding mortgage balance where available.

Property Type Distribution

93.1% of distressed properties are classified as Residential, followed by Agricultural (6.9%).

Property classifications from county assessor records for 87 properties (4.3% of total filings). Categories normalized from assessor codes.

Case Aging & Stall Analysis

0 cases (0.0%) have been active for over a year without resolution. 478 filings in the last <30 days represent fresh opportunities.

Case aging computed from filing date to present for unresolved cases. Resolution classified from court docket entries (judgments, settlements, dismissals, sheriff sales). Cases with a resolution event are removed from the stall count.

Municipality filing concentration in Cambria County

Court filings in Cambria County span 18 municipalities. Johnstown leads with 42 filings (68.9% of total), predominantly Pre-Foreclosure (35.7%). Filing activity is geographically concentrated — the top 3 municipalities account for 75% of all filings.

Top 15 of 18 municipalities with court filings. Data from 61 filings (3% of total). Municipality names from county assessor records.

Property Value Distribution

The median property value in distressed filings is $11,300, with the largest concentration (99.0%) in the Under $50K range. Equity Division Sale filings have the highest median value ($12,780) while Pre-Foreclosure filings are lowest ($11,350).

Assessed property values from county assessor records for 103 properties (5.1% of total filings). Values reflect tax-assessed amounts, not market price.

Ownership Duration Before Filing

The median ownership duration before a court filing is 7.7 years, with 43.2% of owners holding the property 10+ years (a strong equity signal for investors). Pre-Foreclosure cases show the longest tenure (9.9 yr median) vs. Equity Division Sale (5.0 yr).

Duration calculated from last recorded property sale to court filing date for 95 properties (4.7% of total filings). Longer ownership often correlates with higher equity.

Repeat litigation patterns in Cambria County

Of 1,852 unique property owners in court filings, 104 (5.6%) appear in multiple cases, including 24 with 3 or more filings. The most active repeat filer has 10 cases spanning 3 months. Civil: Miscellaneousother cases have the highest repeat rate at 29.4%.

Repeat rate by case type

Analysis based on 1,852 unique owner names across court filings. Repeat filers are property owners appearing in 2 or more distinct cases.

Serial distressed properties in Cambria County

Of 342 unique properties in court filings, 15 (4.4%) have multiple filings (averaging 2.4 filings per property). Average time between repeat filings: 1 months. Clerk Of Courts Judgment properties have the highest repeat rate at 18.2%.

Serial distress rate by case type

Analysis based on 342 unique property addresses across court filings. Serial distressed properties have 2 or more distinct case filings at the same address.

Land vs improvement value composition

Across 86 properties with assessed value breakdowns, the median land share is 11.3% (median land value $1,330, median improvement value $11,170). 3 properties (3.5%) are land-dominant (50%+ land value) — potential teardown or vacant-lot targets. Pre-Foreclosure cases skew most land-heavy (median 12.6%) while Equity Division Sale skews most improvement-heavy (10.3%).

Land share distribution

Land share by case type

Analysis of 86 properties (4.3% of filings) with assessed land and improvement value breakdowns.

Prior sale value trajectory

Across 96 properties with purchase and assessed value data, the median value change since purchase is -73.0%. 66 properties (68.8%) are underwater (current assessed value below purchase price). Short-hold owners (<5 yr) show a median -78.7% value change vs -65.2% for long-hold (10+ yr). Pre-Foreclosure cases have the highest underwater rate (70.4%) while Equity Division Sale has the lowest (67.4%).

Value change distribution

Holding period vs value change

Value trajectory by case type

Analysis of 96 properties (4.8% of filings) with both prior sale price and current assessed value data.

Why these filings are invisible on most public foreclosure sites

The largest public foreclosure-aggregator interfaces surface only post-auction bank-owned properties in Pennsylvania. Pre-foreclosure court filings are not visible to their non-paying users. Keystone tracks the court filing the day it hits the docket, weeks or months before any property reaches the auction stage those aggregators surface.

Methodology and full audit: Court-vs-aggregator coverage gap report.

Methodology and data sources

• Court filings are collected directly from Cambria County court records, which are public information.
• Every filing in this dataset has been verified for current owner-of-record. Entity-owned filings (LLCs, trusts, banks) and properties where the named party is not the current owner are excluded.
• Property value figures come from third-party enrichment (1% coverage on this dataset).
• Individual case data, defendant names, and property addresses are not published. Reports show aggregated statistics only.
• The methodology page at /reports/methodology documents data sources, sample sizes, and known limitations in detail.
• This report was generated 2026-08-03 from the live database. Numbers reflect the dataset at that moment.

Top cities for filings within Cambria County

Where filings concentrate inside Cambria County, by parsed property city or township.

Share is computed against filings with a parsed property city (not against total Cambria County filings — addresses missing the city portion are excluded from the denominator). Top 5 shown; smaller cities aggregate into the long tail.

Related Pennsylvania guides

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