Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton → Lancaster
Relocation analysis based on 7 federal data sources
Should you move?
Moving from Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton to Lancaster is neutral, depends on priorities: BEA regional price parity goes from 100.0 to 98.3 (US = 100), and HUD 2-bedroom rent falls by $369/mo.
- -$7,048
- BLS median salary lower in Lancaster
- 250 to 250
- violent crimes per 100K (FBI UCR, state-level)
- 13.6:1 to 13.6:1
- NCES student-teacher ratio
BEA Regional Price Parity, HUD Fair Market Rent, BLS OEWS, FBI UCR, NCES, and DOL. The table below lets you override the composite with your own priorities.
Pros of Moving
- + $369/mo cheaper rent (2BR)
Cons of Moving
- - $7K lower median salary
Purchasing power stays near-even: BEA RPP moves only from 100.0 to 98.3 (ratio 0.98), inside a ±5% band. HUD 2BR Fair Market Rent drops $369/mo ($4,428/yr) from $1,895 in Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton to $1,526 in Lancaster.
The seven-dimension ledger splits (2 destination wins · 1 origin wins); priorities decide this move. Lancaster sits #288 of 387 metros on PlainRelocate livability (bottom third of the corpus). Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton is #244/387 on the same ranking. Composite verdict: Neutral, depends on priorities. Override it with the dimension table below.
BLS OEWS median salary moves $7,048 lower ($70,782 → $63,734). Labor-market size: 370,630 tracked jobs at origin vs 241,090 at destination.
Both metros sit in Pennsylvania: state retirement score 65 (C, #18/51) - tax posture does not change with this move. Full state tax and healthcare sub-scores sit in the retirement desk below.
State retirement friendliness
Primary-state scores from PlainRelocate's retirement registry (tax + healthcare + climate composite). Metro pairs use each metro's primary state abbreviation.
- Income tax
- 95
- Property tax
- 58
- Estate tax
- 100
- Healthcare
- 72
Full retirement ranking · Source composite documented on methodology (Tax Foundation + AARP tax guides + federal healthcare/climate inputs).
Salary Adjustment Calculator
Enter your current salary in Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton to see what you'd need to earn in Lancaster to maintain the same purchasing power.
Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, HUD Fair Market Rents, BLS OES, FBI UCR, NCES, DOL, EPA; retirement desk: Tax Foundation + AARP tax guides June 2026