Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania Court Filings Intelligence
Live court-record analysis of property-related filings (foreclosure, probate, divorce, partition, guardianship). Data sourced direct from Lackawanna County court dockets. Updated 2026-06-20. See methodology.
- Filing volume cooling (-12.8%) — last 2 complete months (68 filings) vs prior 2 complete months (78 filings). Excludes the current calendar month (in progress).
- 56.4% of filings are High Urgency Pre-Foreclosure — the dominant lead category in Lackawanna County during the observed window.
About Lackawanna County
Lackawanna County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It had a population of 215,615 in 2022. Its county seat and most populous city is Scranton. The county is part of the Northeast region of the commonwealth.
Source: Wikipedia
At a glance
188 verified property-related court filings tracked across 6 months (Jan 2026 to Jun 2026).
36 typical monthly filing volume.
#17 of 18 Pennsylvania counties Keystone covers, ranked by total filing volume.
2% of filings involve owners whose mailing address differs from the property address (4 of 188 filings).
$117,728 median estimated property value across the 7 filings with property-enrichment data (4% coverage).
3.7% Pennsylvania unemployment rate (BLS, as of 2026-04). Filings should be read against the local-economy backdrop.
Filing type breakdown
| Filing type | Filings | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-Foreclosure | 108 | 57.4% | |
| Other | 78 | 41.5% | |
| Estate | 1 | 0.5% | |
| Quiet Title | 1 | 0.5% |
Each row is a distinct case verified for current owner-of-record before inclusion.
Monthly filing activity
| Month | Filings | vs prior | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 2026 | 32 | ||
| Feb 2026 | 39 | +7 | |
| Mar 2026 | 39 | 0 | |
| Apr 2026 | 49 | +10 | |
| May 2026 | 19 | -30 | |
| Jun 2026 | 6 | -13 |
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 Lackawanna County account for 20.7% of all tracked filings, showing where distressed real estate activity clusters.
| ZIP | City | Filings | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18505 | Scranton | 22 | 11.7% | |
| 18433 | Scott Township | 3 | 1.6% | |
| 18518 | Old Forge | 2 | 1.1% | |
| 18508 | Scranton | 2 | 1.1% | |
| 18411 | Clarks Summit | 2 | 1.1% | |
| 18407 | Carbondale | 2 | 1.1% | |
| 18504 | Scranton | 2 | 1.1% | |
| 18509 | Scranton | 2 | 1.1% | |
| 18444 | Moscow | 1 | 0.5% | |
| 18519 | Scranton | 1 | 0.5% |
Based on filings with a parseable property address (23% of Lackawanna County filings).
Property value distribution
| Estimated value | Filings | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under $75k | 3 | 42.9% | |
| $75k - $150k | 1 | 14.3% | |
| $150k - $250k | 1 | 14.3% | |
| $250k - $400k | 2 | 28.6% |
Source: third-party property enrichment (4% coverage on Lackawanna County filings). Median $117,728; mean $150,873.
Day-of-week filing pattern
| Day | Filings | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sun | 0 | 0.0% | |
| Mon | 24 | 13.0% | |
| Tue | 39 | 21.2% | |
| Wed | 42 | 22.8% | |
| Thu | 44 | 23.9% | |
| Fri | 35 | 19.0% | |
| Sat | 0 | 0.0% |
Filings cluster Monday through Friday, with weekend filings essentially absent (court system closed). Computed for 184 filings with a parseable date.
Housing stock + distress signals
Underlying housing stock and distress indicators across all 100013 Lackawanna County housing units, from US Census ACS 5-year data. National reference values shown for context.
| Indicator | Lackawanna County | US average |
|---|---|---|
| Vacancy rate (incl. seasonal + for-sale) | 11.7% | 10.5% |
| Share of owner-occupied units carrying a mortgage | 53.1% | 60.8% |
| Pre-1940 housing stock | 36.2% | 12.3% |
| Single-family detached share of housing stock | 64.7% | 61.2% |
| Residents age 65 or older | 20.3% | 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. Lackawanna County sits within the Scranton--Wilkes-Barre, 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 | $863 |
| 1-bedroom | $1,028 |
| 2-bedroom | $1,252 |
| 3-bedroom | $1,631 |
| 4-bedroom | $1,766 |
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 Lackawanna 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) | 277 |
| Year-over-year change (2024 → 2025) | +10.8% |
| Single-family share of permits (2025) | 81.9% |
| Single-family units permitted | 227 |
| Multifamily units permitted (2+ units per building) | 50 |
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
Lackawanna 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.
Local-market benchmark
Demographics of the ZIPs where filings cluster, weighted by filing count and benchmarked against Census ACS 2023 5-year:
| Indicator | Filing-weighted average |
|---|---|
| Median household income (where filings cluster) | $55,508 |
| Median home value | $147,240 |
| Owner-occupancy rate | 58.1% |
| Renter share of households | 41.9% |
| Median gross rent | $951/mo |
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-year estimates, weighted by Keystone's filing volume across 2 top ZIPs.
Most active foreclosure plaintiffs in Lackawanna 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.").
| Plaintiff | Foreclosure filings |
|---|---|
| LAKEVIEW LOAN SERVICING LLC | 10 |
| ROCKET MORTGAGE LLC | 8 |
| NEWREZ LLC | 7 |
| FREEDOM MORTGAGE CORPORATION | 6 |
| PENNSYLVANIA HOUSING FINANCE AGENCY | 6 |
| MIDFIRST BANK | 5 |
| PENNYMAC LOAN SERVICES LLC | 4 |
| WILMINGTON SAVINGS FUND SOCIETY FSB | 4 |
| JPMORGAN CHASE BANK N.A | 3 |
| PNC BANK N.A | 3 |
Source: plaintiff names extracted from Lackawanna County foreclosure complaint text. Court records are public information.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| High Urgency Pre Foreclosure | 103 | 54.8% | -14.0% |
| Tired Landlord | 48 | 25.5% | -13.6% |
| Title Clearance Play | 12 | 6.4% | -50.0% |
| Distressed Heir | 6 | 3.2% | -- |
| Forced Liquidation | 6 | 3.2% | -- |
| Stalled Project | 5 | 2.7% | -- |
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.
| Lender / Plaintiff | Filings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| LAKEVIEW LOAN SERVICING LLC | 10 | 9.5% |
| ROCKET MORTGAGE LLC | 8 | 7.6% |
| NEWREZ LLC | 7 | 6.7% |
| FREEDOM MORTGAGE CORPORATION | 6 | 5.7% |
| PENNSYLVANIA HOUSING FINANCE AGENCY | 6 | 5.7% |
HHI (Herfindahl-Hirschman Index): <1500 = competitive, 1500-2500 = moderate concentration, >2500 = highly concentrated. Based on 105 foreclosure filings with identified plaintiffs.
Seasonal filing patterns
Court filings peak in Apr and are lowest in May. The 2.6x peak-to-trough ratio suggests strong seasonal patterns — investors who time their outreach around Apr can reach more distressed homeowners.
| Month | Avg filings | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 32 | 65% |
| Feb | 39 | 80% |
| Mar | 39 | 80% |
| Apr | 49 | 100% |
| May | 19 | 39% |
Average filings per calendar month across all observed years. Relative column shows each month as a percentage of the peak month (Apr), with a 2.6x peak-to-trough ratio.
ZIP code distress hotspots
Distress is geographically dispersed across 14 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.
| ZIP | Area | Filings | Share | High equity | Median value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18505 | Scranton | 22 | 11.7% | 0% | $137,292 |
| 18433 | Scott Township | 3 | 1.6% | 33% | $365,525 |
| 18518 | Old Forge | 2 | 1.1% | 0% | -- |
| 18508 | Scranton | 2 | 1.1% | 0% | -- |
| 18411 | Clarks Summit | 2 | 1.1% | 0% | -- |
| 18407 | Carbondale | 2 | 1.1% | 0% | -- |
| 18504 | Scranton | 2 | 1.1% | 0% | -- |
| 18509 | Scranton | 2 | 1.1% | 0% | -- |
| 18444 | Moscow | 1 | 0.5% | 0% | -- |
| 18519 | Scranton | 1 | 0.5% | 0% | -- |
Top 10 of 14 ZIP codes with filings. High equity = properties with estimated equity above 40% (from third-party enrichment).
Non-resident owner analysis
Most filings (98%) involve owner-occupied properties. The relatively low absentee rate suggests distress is primarily hitting homeowners, not institutional investors.
| Case type | Total filings | Non-resident % |
|---|---|---|
| High Urgency Pre Foreclosure | 106 | 0.0% |
| Tired Landlord | 49 | 0.0% |
| Title Clearance Play | 12 | 0.0% |
| Distressed Heir | 6 | 0.0% |
| Forced Liquidation | 6 | 0.0% |
| Stalled Project | 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.
Distress composition and shifts
The distress mix is stable across all case types.
| Case type | Recent share | Earlier share | Shift |
|---|---|---|---|
| High Urgency Pre Foreclosure | 54.4% | 55.5% | -1.1pp |
| Tired Landlord | 27.9% | 26.4% | +1.5pp |
| Forced Liquidation | 5.9% | 1.8% | +4.1pp |
| Title Clearance Play | 4.4% | 8.2% | -3.8pp |
| Distressed Heir | 4.4% | 2.7% | +1.7pp |
| Stalled Project | 2.9% | 1.8% | +1.1pp |
| Quiet Title | 0.0% | 0.9% | -0.9pp |
| Real Estate Dispute | 0.0% | 0.9% | -0.9pp |
| Pre-Foreclosure | 0.0% | 1.8% | -1.8pp |
Distress diversity score: 1.78 (Shannon entropy; higher = more diverse distress sources). "Recent" = last 2 complete months; "Earlier" = all prior months.
Property Value Profile
The median assessed value of properties in court filings is $12,000. Tired Landlord filings involve the highest-value properties (median $17,500), while High Urgency Pre Foreclosure filings trend lower (median $12,000). The largest segment (96.0%) falls in the Under $100K range.
| Value range | Properties | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Under $100K | 97 | 96.0% |
| $100K - $250K | 2 | 2.0% |
| $250K - $500K | 2 | 2.0% |
Value breakdown by case type
| Case type | Median value | Avg value | Properties |
|---|---|---|---|
| High Urgency Pre Foreclosure | $12,000 | $13,250 | 79 |
| Tired Landlord | $17,500 | $14,071 | 7 |
| Title Clearance Play | $12,000 | $13,000 | 5 |
Based on county assessor records for 101 properties with court filings (53.7% of total filings). Values are tax-assessed amounts, not market listing prices.
Distress Capital Analysis
$2,199,598 in assessed property value is currently tied up in 101 court-filed properties. High Urgency Pre Foreclosure filings represent the largest capital pool ($1,046,738 across 79 properties).
Capital at Risk by Filing Type
| Filing Type | Total Value | Properties | Avg Value | High Equity % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| High Urgency Pre Foreclosure | $1,046,738 | 79 | $13,250 | -- |
| Tired Landlord | $98,500 | 7 | $14,071 | -- |
| Forced Liquidation | $74,050 | 4 | $18,512 | -- |
| Title Clearance Play | $65,000 | 5 | $13,000 | -- |
Based on 101 properties with assessor valuations (53.7% of 188 total filings). Values are county assessor estimates. Equity calculated from estimated value vs outstanding mortgage balance where available.
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 Lackawanna 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 (4% 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 2026-06-20 from the live database. Numbers reflect the dataset at that moment.
Top cities for filings within Lackawanna County
Where filings concentrate inside Lackawanna County, by parsed property city or township.
| City / Township | Filings | Share (of city-parsed filings) |
|---|---|---|
| Scranton | 30 | 69.8% |
| Scott Township | 2 | 4.7% |
| Old Forge | 2 | 4.7% |
| Clarks Summit | 2 | 4.7% |
| Carbondale | 2 | 4.7% |
Share is computed against filings with a parsed property city (not against total Lackawanna County filings — addresses missing the city portion are excluded from the denominator). Top 5 shown; smaller cities aggregate into the long tail.
Get the underlying Lackawanna County filings
Subscribe to Lackawanna County on Keystone Court Data and get day-of-filing access to every new property-related case as it hits the docket. One subscriber per county. 7-day free trial.
View Lackawanna County availabilityWant updates when new reports publish? Subscribe to the research RSS feed or follow keystonecourtdata.com.
Cite: Keystone Court Data, "Lackawanna County Pennsylvania Court Filings Intelligence," 2026-06-20, https://keystonecourtdata.com/reports/lackawanna-pa-court-filings-intelligence · Download data (CSV)