Elk County, Pennsylvania Court Filings Intelligence
Live court-record analysis of property-related filings (foreclosure, probate, divorce, partition, guardianship). Data sourced direct from Elk County court dockets. Updated 2026-07-31. See methodology.
- Filing volume accelerating (+10.3%) — last 2 complete months (172 filings) vs prior 2 complete months (156 filings). Excludes the current calendar month (in progress).
- 33.4% of filings are Judgment: Filed (General W/ Costs Prepaid) — the dominant lead category in Elk County during the observed window.
About Elk County
Elk County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 30,990. Its county seat is Ridgway. The county was created on April 18, 1843, from parts of Jefferson, Clearfield, and McKean Counties. Elk County is named for the now-extinct eastern elk that historically inhabited the region. The county is part of the North Central region of the commonwealth.
Source: Wikipedia
At a glance
359 verified property-related court filings tracked across 5 months (Mar 2026 to Jul 2026).
82 typical monthly filing volume.
0% of filings involve owners whose mailing address differs from the property address (0 of 359 filings).
$n/a median estimated property value across the 0 filings with property-enrichment data (0% coverage).
3.9% Pennsylvania unemployment rate (BLS, as of 2026-05). Filings should be read against the local-economy backdrop.
Filing type breakdown
| Filing type | Filings | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Other | 315 | 87.7% | |
| Divorce | 33 | 9.2% | |
| Foreclosure (Post-Filing) | 10 | 2.8% | |
| Real Estate Dispute | 1 | 0.3% |
Each row is a distinct case verified for current owner-of-record before inclusion.
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Monthly filing activity
| Month | Filings | vs prior | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 2026 | 63 | ||
| Apr 2026 | 93 | +30 | |
| May 2026 | 91 | -2 | |
| Jun 2026 | 81 | -10 | |
| Jul 2026 | 31 | -50 |
Each row reflects new filings entering the dataset that month, after ownership verification. Most recent month may be partial.
Geographic concentration by ZIP
Top 0 ZIPs in Elk County account for 0.0% of all tracked filings, showing where distressed real estate activity clusters.
| ZIP | City | Filings | Share |
|---|
Based on filings with a parseable property address (0% of Elk County filings).
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Property value distribution
| Estimated value | Filings | Share |
|---|
Source: third-party property enrichment (0% coverage on Elk County filings). Median $n/a; mean $n/a.
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Day-of-week filing pattern
| Day | Filings | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sun | 0 | 0.0% | |
| Mon | 116 | 32.3% | |
| Tue | 94 | 26.2% | |
| Wed | 55 | 15.3% | |
| Thu | 52 | 14.5% | |
| Fri | 42 | 11.7% | |
| Sat | 0 | 0.0% |
Filings cluster Monday through Friday, with weekend filings essentially absent (court system closed). Computed for 359 filings with a parseable date.
Housing stock + distress signals
Underlying housing stock and distress indicators across all 16876 Elk County housing units, from US Census ACS 5-year data. National reference values shown for context.
| Indicator | Elk County | US average |
|---|---|---|
| Vacancy rate (incl. seasonal + for-sale) | 20.1% | 10.5% |
| Share of owner-occupied units carrying a mortgage | 39.3% | 60.8% |
| Pre-1940 housing stock | 24.1% | 12.3% |
| Single-family detached share of housing stock | 81.1% | 61.2% |
| Residents age 65 or older | 23.4% | 17.3% |
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. Elk County sits within the Elk County, PA. Used to set Section 8 voucher amounts; investors use it as a defensible rent-estimate floor for buy-to-rent underwriting.
| Unit size | Fair market rent / month |
|---|---|
| Efficiency / studio | $708 |
| 1-bedroom | $825 |
| 2-bedroom | $973 |
| 3-bedroom | $1,283 |
| 4-bedroom | $1,288 |
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 Elk County from the US Census Building Permits Survey. Trend signal on whether new housing demand is accelerating or contracting in this market.
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Total housing units permitted (2025) | 23 |
| Year-over-year change (2024 → 2025) | -52.1% |
| Single-family share of permits (2025) | 91.3% |
| Single-family units permitted | 21 |
| Multifamily units permitted (2+ units per building) | 2 |
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
Elk 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.
| Indicator | Value | Period |
|---|---|---|
| Pennsylvania home price index (year-over-year) | +5.3% | 2026-01-01 |
| Pennsylvania home price index (cumulative since 2020) | +59.3% | 2026-01-01 |
| National mortgage delinquency rate (30+ day, single-family) | 1.89% | 2026-01-01 |
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.
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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.
| Case type | Total | Share | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|
| Judgment: Filed (General W/ Costs Prepaid) | 120 | 33.4% | -6.5% |
| Civil: Contractdebt Collection: Other | 35 | 9.7% | +20.0% |
| Divorce (Without Custody) | 26 | 7.2% | -35.7% |
| Civil: Miscellaneous | 26 | 7.2% | -- |
| Commonwealth Certified Copy Of Lien (W/ Costs Prepaid) | 22 | 6.1% | +0.0% |
| Judgment: District Justice (Transcript) | 21 | 5.8% | +0.0% |
| Civil: Contractdebt Collection: Credit Card | 19 | 5.3% | +0.0% |
| Civil: Custody | 16 | 4.5% | -44.4% |
| Financial Statement | 11 | 3.1% | -- |
| Petition: Commencing An Action | 10 | 2.8% | -- |
| Civil: Real Propertymortgage Foreclosure: Residential | 9 | 2.5% | -- |
| Divorce (With Custody) | 7 | 1.9% | -- |
| Civil: Appeals | 5 | 1.4% | -- |
Trend = recent 2-3 month volume vs prior 2-3 months (current partial month excluded). Positive = accelerating; negative = cooling.
Seasonal filing patterns
Court filings peak in Apr and are lowest in Mar. Filing volume is relatively steady year-round.
| Month | Avg filings | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| Mar | 63 | 68% |
| Apr | 93 | 100% |
| May | 91 | 98% |
| Jun | 81 | 87% |
Average filings per calendar month across all observed years. Relative column shows each month as a percentage of the peak month (Apr), with a 1.5x peak-to-trough ratio.
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.
| Case type | Total filings | Non-resident % |
|---|---|---|
| Judgment: Filed (General W/ Costs Prepaid) | 120 | 0.0% |
| Civil: Contractdebt Collection: Other | 35 | 0.0% |
| Divorce (Without Custody) | 26 | 0.0% |
| Civil: Miscellaneous | 26 | 0.0% |
| Commonwealth Certified Copy Of Lien (W/ Costs Prepaid) | 22 | 0.0% |
| Judgment: District Justice (Transcript) | 21 | 0.0% |
| Civil: Contractdebt Collection: Credit Card | 19 | 0.0% |
| Civil: Custody | 16 | 0.0% |
| Financial Statement | 11 | 0.0% |
| Petition: Commencing An Action | 10 | 0.0% |
| Civil: Real Propertymortgage Foreclosure: Residential | 9 | 0.0% |
| Divorce (With Custody) | 7 | 0.0% |
| Civil: Appeals | 5 | 0.0% |
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.
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Distress composition and shifts
Civil: Miscellaneous share is rising. Judgment: Filed (General W/ Costs Prepaid), Financial Statement share is declining. High diversity in distress types suggests multiple independent factors driving court filings, not a single economic shock.
| Case type | Recent share | Earlier share | Shift |
|---|---|---|---|
| Judgment: Filed (General W/ Costs Prepaid) | 33.7% | 39.7% | -6.0pp (falling) |
| Civil: Miscellaneous | 15.1% | 0.0% | +15.1pp (rising) |
| Civil: Contractdebt Collection: Other | 10.5% | 9.6% | +0.9pp |
| Civil: Contractdebt Collection: Credit Card | 5.2% | 5.8% | -0.6pp |
| Divorce (Without Custody) | 5.2% | 9.0% | -3.8pp |
| Commonwealth Certified Copy Of Lien (W/ Costs Prepaid) | 4.7% | 5.1% | -0.4pp |
| Judgment: District Justice (Transcript) | 4.7% | 5.1% | -0.4pp |
| Petition: Commencing An Action | 4.1% | 0.6% | +3.5pp |
| Civil: Real Propertymortgage Foreclosure: Residential | 3.5% | 1.9% | +1.6pp |
| Civil: Custody | 2.9% | 5.8% | -2.9pp |
| Municipal Lien Claim | 1.7% | 0.6% | +1.1pp |
| Civil: Appeals | 1.7% | 0.6% | +1.1pp |
| Stipulation Against | 1.7% | 0.0% | +1.7pp |
| Commonwealth Certified Copy Of Lien | 1.2% | 0.6% | +0.6pp |
| Petition: Name Change | 1.2% | 0.6% | +0.6pp |
| Civil: Tortnuisance | 0.6% | 0.0% | +0.6pp |
| No Lien Agreement | 0.6% | 0.0% | +0.6pp |
| Financial Statement | 0.6% | 6.4% | -5.8pp (falling) |
| Judgment: Remove/ Transfer | 0.6% | 0.0% | +0.6pp |
| Transfer Civil Case | 0.6% | 0.0% | +0.6pp |
| Civil: Tortpremises Liability | 0.0% | 0.6% | -0.6pp |
| Mechanics Lien Claim | 0.0% | 1.9% | -1.9pp |
| Divorce (With Custody) | 0.0% | 3.2% | -3.2pp |
| Civil: Appealsagencies: Department Of Transportation | 0.0% | 0.6% | -0.6pp |
| Civil: Tortmotor Vehicle | 0.0% | 0.6% | -0.6pp |
| Civil: Real Propertymortgage Foreclosure: Commercial | 0.0% | 0.6% | -0.6pp |
| Civil: Contractother | 0.0% | 0.6% | -0.6pp |
Distress diversity score: 3.32 (Shannon entropy; higher = more diverse distress sources). "Recent" = last 2 complete months; "Earlier" = all prior months.
Case Aging & Stall Analysis
0 cases (0.0%) have been active for over a year without resolution. 30 filings in the last <30 days represent fresh opportunities.
| Age | Total | Resolved | Still active | Resolution rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| <30 days | 30 | 0 | 30 | 0.0% |
| 30-90 days | 171 | 0 | 171 | 0.0% |
| 3-6 months | 158 | 0 | 158 | 0.0% |
Resolution speed by case type
| Case type | Total | Resolved | Rate | Median days |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Judgment: Filed (General W/ Costs Prepaid) | 120 | 0 | 0.0% | — |
| Civil: Contractdebt Collection: Other | 35 | 0 | 0.0% | — |
| Divorce (Without Custody) | 26 | 0 | 0.0% | — |
| Civil: Miscellaneous | 26 | 0 | 0.0% | — |
| Commonwealth Certified Copy Of Lien (W/ Costs Prepaid) | 22 | 0 | 0.0% | — |
| Judgment: District Justice (Transcript) | 21 | 0 | 0.0% | — |
| Civil: Contractdebt Collection: Credit Card | 19 | 0 | 0.0% | — |
| Civil: Custody | 16 | 0 | 0.0% | — |
| Financial Statement | 11 | 0 | 0.0% | — |
| Petition: Commencing An Action | 10 | 0 | 0.0% | — |
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.
Repeat litigation patterns in Elk County
Of 290 unique property owners in court filings, 26 (9.0%) appear in multiple cases, including 7 with 3 or more filings. The most active repeat filer has 9 cases. Commonwealth Certified Copy Of Lien (W/ Costs Prepaid) cases have the highest repeat rate at 22.2%.
Repeat rate by case type
| Case type | Repeat owners | Total owners | Repeat rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Judgment: Filed (General W/ Costs Prepaid) | 13 | 105 | 12.4% |
| Civil: Contractdebt Collection: Other | 3 | 32 | 9.4% |
| Civil: Contractdebt Collection: Credit Card | 2 | 18 | 11.1% |
| Commonwealth Certified Copy Of Lien (W/ Costs Prepaid) | 4 | 18 | 22.2% |
Analysis based on 290 unique owner names across court filings. Repeat filers are property owners appearing in 2 or more distinct cases.
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 Elk 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 (0% 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 2026-07-31 from the live database. Numbers reflect the dataset at that moment.
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Cite: Keystone Court Data, "Elk County Pennsylvania Court Filings Intelligence," 2026-07-31, https://keystonecourtdata.com/reports/elk-pa-court-filings-intelligence · Download data (CSV)