Northampton County, Pennsylvania Court Filings Intelligence
Live court-record analysis of property-related filings (foreclosure, probate, divorce, partition, guardianship). Data sourced direct from Northampton County court dockets. Updated 2026-06-20. See methodology.
- Max gross cap rate 16.5% at HUD Fair Market Rent — $19,608/year (2BR FMR × 12) on the $118,750 median estimated market value. Section-8-eligible rent ceiling; real-market rent typically exceeds FMR; excludes operating costs (taxes, insurance, maintenance, vacancy, management).
- 58.7% of filings are Equity Division Sale — the dominant lead category in Northampton County during the observed window.
About Northampton County
Northampton County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 312,951. Its county seat is Easton. The county was formed in 1752 from parts of Bucks County. Its namesake was the county of Northamptonshire in England, and the county seat of Easton was named for Easton Neston, a country house in Northamptonshire.
Source: Wikipedia
At a glance
172 verified property-related court filings tracked across 3 months (Apr 2026 to Jun 2026).
54 typical monthly filing volume.
#9 of 18 Pennsylvania counties Keystone covers, ranked by total filing volume.
5% of filings involve owners whose mailing address differs from the property address (8 of 172 filings).
$118,750 median estimated property value across the 88 filings with property-enrichment data (51% 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 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Other | 121 | 70.3% | |
| Pre-Foreclosure | 41 | 23.8% | |
| Pre-Probate | 8 | 4.7% | |
| Divorce | 2 | 1.2% |
Each row is a distinct case verified for current owner-of-record before inclusion.
Monthly filing activity
| Month | Filings | vs prior | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 2026 | 35 | ||
| May 2026 | 73 | +38 | |
| Jun 2026 | 64 | -9 |
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 Northampton County account for 40.7% of all tracked filings, showing where distressed real estate activity clusters.
| ZIP | City | Filings | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18042 | Easton | 25 | 14.5% | |
| 18017 | Bethlehem | 10 | 5.8% | |
| 18045 | Easton | 8 | 4.7% | |
| 18015 | Bethlehem | 7 | 4.1% | |
| 18040 | Easton | 6 | 3.5% | |
| 18020 | Bethlehem | 4 | 2.3% | |
| 18055 | Hellertown | 3 | 1.7% | |
| 18064 | Nazareth | 3 | 1.7% | |
| 18343 | Mount Bethel | 2 | 1.2% | |
| 18072 | Pen Argyl | 2 | 1.2% |
Based on filings with a parseable property address (47% of Northampton County filings).
Property value distribution
| Estimated value | Filings | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under $75k | 17 | 19.3% | |
| $75k - $150k | 42 | 47.7% | |
| $150k - $250k | 18 | 20.5% | |
| $250k - $400k | 7 | 8.0% | |
| $400k+ | 4 | 4.5% |
Source: third-party property enrichment (51% coverage on Northampton County filings). Median $118,750; mean $154,506.
Day-of-week filing pattern
| Day | Filings | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sun | 1 | 0.6% | |
| Mon | 29 | 16.9% | |
| Tue | 42 | 24.4% | |
| Wed | 42 | 24.4% | |
| Thu | 34 | 19.8% | |
| Fri | 20 | 11.6% | |
| Sat | 4 | 2.3% |
Filings cluster Monday through Friday, with weekend filings essentially absent (court system closed). Computed for 172 filings with a parseable date.
Housing stock + distress signals
Underlying housing stock and distress indicators across all 128612 Northampton County housing units, from US Census ACS 5-year data. National reference values shown for context.
| Indicator | Northampton County | US average |
|---|---|---|
| Vacancy rate (incl. seasonal + for-sale) | 5.5% | 10.5% |
| Share of owner-occupied units carrying a mortgage | 60.4% | 60.8% |
| Pre-1940 housing stock | 26.8% | 12.3% |
| Single-family detached share of housing stock | 58.5% | 61.2% |
| Residents age 65 or older | 19.9% | 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. Northampton County sits within the Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ. 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 | $1,130 |
| 1-bedroom | $1,341 |
| 2-bedroom | $1,634 |
| 3-bedroom | $2,087 |
| 4-bedroom | $2,195 |
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 Northampton 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) | 1,050 |
| Year-over-year change (2024 → 2025) | +92.3% |
| Single-family share of permits (2025) | 33.2% |
| Single-family units permitted | 349 |
| Multifamily units permitted (2+ units per building) | 701 |
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
Northampton 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) | $79,445 |
| Median home value | $233,528 |
| Owner-occupancy rate | 60.4% |
| Renter share of households | 39.6% |
| Median gross rent | $1,358/mo |
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-year estimates, weighted by Keystone's filing volume across 4 top ZIPs.
Most active foreclosure plaintiffs in Northampton 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 |
|---|---|
| NEWREZ LLC | 7 |
| FREEDOM MORTGAGE CORPORATION | 4 |
| PENNYMAC LOAN SERVICES LLC | 4 |
| FULTON BANK NA | 2 |
| LAKEVIEW LOAN SERVICING LLC | 2 |
| MIDFIRST BANK | 2 |
| PENNSYLVANIA HOUSING FINANCE AGENCY | 2 |
| U.S. BANK N.A | 2 |
| WELLS FARGO BANK NA | 2 |
| BANK OF AMERICA NA | 1 |
Source: plaintiff names extracted from Northampton 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Equity Division Sale | 101 | 58.7% | -- |
| High Urgency Pre Foreclosure | 33 | 19.2% | -- |
| Inherited Property | 12 | 7.0% | -- |
| Pre-Probate | 8 | 4.7% | -- |
| Pre-Foreclosure | 8 | 4.7% | -- |
| Tired Landlord | 6 | 3.5% | -- |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| NEWREZ LLC | 7 | 17.9% |
| FREEDOM MORTGAGE CORPORATION | 4 | 10.3% |
| PENNYMAC LOAN SERVICES LLC | 4 | 10.3% |
| FULTON BANK NA | 2 | 5.1% |
| LAKEVIEW LOAN SERVICING LLC | 2 | 5.1% |
HHI (Herfindahl-Hirschman Index): <1500 = competitive, 1500-2500 = moderate concentration, >2500 = highly concentrated. Based on 39 foreclosure filings with identified plaintiffs.
ZIP code distress hotspots
Distress is geographically dispersed across 18 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18042 | Easton | 25 | 14.5% | 20% | $105,000 |
| 18017 | Bethlehem | 10 | 5.8% | 0% | $119,400 |
| 18045 | Easton | 8 | 4.7% | 0% | $200,100 |
| 18015 | Bethlehem | 7 | 4.1% | 0% | $119,600 |
| 18040 | Easton | 6 | 3.5% | 0% | $152,450 |
| 18020 | Bethlehem | 4 | 2.3% | 0% | $320,350 |
| 18055 | Hellertown | 3 | 1.7% | 0% | $114,400 |
| 18064 | Nazareth | 3 | 1.7% | 0% | $146,900 |
| 18343 | Mount Bethel | 2 | 1.2% | 50% | $365,559 |
| 18072 | Pen Argyl | 2 | 1.2% | 0% | $166,700 |
Top 10 of 18 ZIP codes with filings. High equity = properties with estimated equity above 40% (from third-party enrichment).
Non-resident owner analysis
Most filings (95%) involve owner-occupied properties. The relatively low absentee rate suggests distress is primarily hitting homeowners, not institutional investors.
| Case type | Total filings | Non-resident % |
|---|---|---|
| Equity Division Sale | 101 | 0.0% |
| High Urgency Pre Foreclosure | 33 | 0.0% |
| Inherited Property | 12 | 0.0% |
| Pre-Probate | 8 | 75.0% |
| Pre-Foreclosure | 8 | 12.5% |
| Tired Landlord | 6 | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Equity Division Sale | 57.5% | 57.1% | +0.4pp |
| High Urgency Pre Foreclosure | 16.4% | 14.3% | +2.1pp |
| Inherited Property | 11.0% | 8.6% | +2.4pp |
| Pre-Probate | 8.2% | 5.7% | +2.5pp |
| Tired Landlord | 4.1% | 8.6% | -4.5pp |
| Pre-Foreclosure | 2.7% | 2.9% | -0.2pp |
| Stalled Project | 0.0% | 2.9% | -2.9pp |
Distress diversity score: 1.86 (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 $119,200. Pre-Foreclosure filings involve the highest-value properties (median $280,195), while Equity Division Sale filings trend lower (median $104,500). The largest segment (53.4%) falls in the $100K - $250K range.
| Value range | Properties | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Under $100K | 30 | 34.1% |
| $100K - $250K | 47 | 53.4% |
| $250K - $500K | 7 | 8.0% |
| $500K - $1M | 4 | 4.5% |
Value breakdown by case type
| Case type | Median value | Avg value | Properties |
|---|---|---|---|
| Equity Division Sale | $104,500 | $130,703 | 36 |
| High Urgency Pre Foreclosure | $106,600 | $127,544 | 25 |
| Inherited Property | $124,300 | $128,600 | 11 |
| Pre-Foreclosure | $280,195 | $334,129 | 8 |
Based on county assessor records for 88 properties with court filings (51.2% 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 18042 (Easton) ranks highest with an investment opportunity score of 75/100, driven by high filing volume (25 cases). 3 of 8 scored ZIPs are above the average score of 39.
| Rank | ZIP Code | Area | Score | Filings | Avg Value | Absentee % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | 18042 | Easton |
75
|
25 | — | 0% |
| #2 | 18017 | Bethlehem |
47
|
10 | — | 0% |
| #3 | 18015 | Bethlehem |
39
|
7 | — | 0% |
| #4 | 18045 | Easton |
37
|
8 | — | 0% |
| #5 | 18040 | Easton |
34
|
6 | — | 0% |
| #6 | 18020 | Bethlehem |
30
|
4 | — | 0% |
| #7 | 18055 | Hellertown |
25
|
3 | — | 0% |
| #8 | 18064 | Nazareth |
25
|
3 | — | 0% |
How the score is calculated
The Investment Opportunity Score combines four dimensions from verified court filing data:
- Filing volume (35%): More filings = more potential deals in the area
- Property value (25%): Higher assessed values = larger potential deal sizes
- Absentee owner rate (25%): Absentee owners are more likely to sell at a discount
- Case type diversity (15%): Multiple case types = broader opportunity set
Each dimension is normalized to a 0–100 scale across all scored ZIPs, then weighted and combined. A score of 100 means that ZIP ranks highest across all dimensions. Scores should be compared within the same county or state, not across different markets.
Based on 172 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
$13,596,561 in assessed property value is currently tied up in 88 court-filed properties. Equity Division Sale filings represent the largest capital pool ($4,705,300 across 36 properties). 7 high-equity distressed properties ($2,391,081 total) represent the highest-value investor targets.
Capital at Risk by Filing Type
| Filing Type | Total Value | Properties | Avg Value | High Equity % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Equity Division Sale | $4,705,300 | 36 | $130,703 | -- |
| High Urgency Pre Foreclosure | $3,188,600 | 25 | $127,544 | -- |
| Pre-Foreclosure | $2,673,032 | 8 | $334,129 | 80.0% |
| Inherited Property | $1,414,600 | 11 | $128,600 | -- |
| Tired Landlord | $483,500 | 4 | $120,875 | -- |
Based on 88 properties with assessor valuations (51.2% of 172 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 Northampton 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 (51% 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 Northampton County
Where filings concentrate inside Northampton County, by parsed property city or township.
| City / Township | Filings | Share (of city-parsed filings) |
|---|---|---|
| Easton | 39 | 48.1% |
| Bethlehem | 22 | 27.2% |
| Hellertown | 3 | 3.7% |
| Nazareth | 3 | 3.7% |
| Pen Argyl | 2 | 2.5% |
Share is computed against filings with a parsed property city (not against total Northampton 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 Northampton County filings
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Cite: Keystone Court Data, "Northampton County Pennsylvania Court Filings Intelligence," 2026-06-20, https://keystonecourtdata.com/reports/northampton-pa-court-filings-intelligence · Download data (CSV)