What do we mean by a neighborhood?
NeighborhoodScout® uses the official government designation for neighborhoods - the census tract.
Census tracts are small, relatively permanent subdivisions of a county that are defined by the U.S. Census Bureau in conjunction with local authorities all across the country to define real neighborhoods that are bounded to contain areas with homogeneous population characteristics (including economic status, lifestyle, and living conditions). Census tracts usually have 4,000 persons, but can range between 1,500 and 8,000 persons. This is the most fine-grained area for which detailed information is made available from the government, to protect the individual privacy of each of us. Because census tracts are based on population, they vary in size depending on the density of settlement. In urban areas, they are small, and in rural areas they can cover an entire small town or even a few small towns in very rural areas.
Since census tracts are subdivisions of a county, we did a spatial overlay of the census tracts onto city and town boundaries using a geographic information system to properly assign each census tract to its appropriate city or town. Then we named each census tract to the local colloquially recognized neighborhood name for that spot (e.g., Boston, MA (Dorchester). If there was not a name available, we named the census tract by the largest street intersection in the census tract (e.g., Worcester, MA (Lincoln St/Plantation St)
Why we don't use Zip Codes as neighborhoods
Zip codes were developed by the Postal Service for the purpose of delivering mail, but were never intended to define coherent neighborhoods. In addition, Zip Codes can have as many as 10 distinctly different census tracts contained within them. When distinct census tracts are blended together in a single Zip Code, the data reflects their average conditions and often gives a false sense of the area. The result is that potentially great matching neighborhoods can be missed, and erroneous matches can also be produced and delivered to you.
Using census tracts makes great matches possible, and helps people find the areas that are best for them and their families. Because we are committed to providing the highest possible quality and finding the neighborhoods that best meet your criteria, we use census tracts. And, as always, we show you the actual street map of the neighborhood so you know exactly where your best matching neighborhood is located.
What is a Condition Alert?
A condition alert is a condition in the neighborhood that triggers an alert. NeighborhoodScout contains condition alerts to highlight conditions that are extreme, whether good or bad. This helps answer crucial questions about the state of the neighborhood being evaluated, such as:
What are the risks of violent crime here?
Is the risk of home break-ins or other property crimes increasing?
Does real estate here hold its value?
Are the trends in local vacancies or unemployment concerning?
...and dozens more.
Information at a glance that you need to know to invest, appraise or finance a property.
Martin Luther King Jr Dr / W Union St median real estate price is $276,102, which is more expensive than 49.9% of the neighborhoods in Pennsylvania and 35.6% of the neighborhoods in the U.S.
The average rental price in Martin Luther King Jr Dr / W Union St is currently $1,700, based on NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis. Rents here are currently lower in price than 51.8% of Pennsylvania neighborhoods.
Martin Luther King Jr Dr / W Union St is a densely urban neighborhood (based on population density) located in Allentown, Pennsylvania.
Martin Luther King Jr Dr / W Union St real estate is primarily made up of small (studio to two bedroom) to medium sized (three or four bedroom) apartment complexes/high-rise apartments and small apartment buildings. Most of the residential real estate is renter occupied. Many of the residences in the Martin Luther King Jr Dr / W Union St neighborhood are established but not old, having been built between 1970 and 1999. A number of residences were also built before 1940.
In Martin Luther King Jr Dr / W Union St, the current vacancy rate is 0.0%, which is a lower rate of vacancies than 100.0% of all neighborhoods in the U.S. This means that the housing supply in Martin Luther King Jr Dr / W Union St is very tight compared to the demand for property here.
Notable & Unique Neighborhood Characteristics
The way a neighborhood looks and feels when you walk or drive around it, from its setting, its buildings, and its flavor, can make all the difference. This neighborhood has some really cool things about the way it looks and feels as revealed by NeighborhoodScout's exclusive research. This might include anything from the housing stock to the types of households living here to how people get around.
Real Estate
Renter-occupied real estate is dominant in the Martin Luther King Jr Dr / W Union St neighborhood. The percentage of rental real estate here, according to exclusive NeighborhoodScout analysis, is 98.6%, which is higher than 98.9% of the neighborhoods in America. If you were to buy and live in the property you bought here, you would be almost alone in doing so. This neighborhood has the distinction of having one of the lowest real estate vacancy rates of any neighborhood in America. With just 0.0% of the real estate vacant, this indicates an exceptionally strong demand for real estate in the Martin Luther King Jr Dr / W Union St neighborhood, and/or an issue with creating enough supply for the demand. This could have the effect of increasing real estate prices, increasing supply to meet demand, or both.
In addition, the Martin Luther King Jr Dr / W Union St neighborhood is very unique in that it has one of the highest proportions of one, two, or no bedroom real estate of any neighborhood in America. Most neighborhoods have a mixture of home or apartment sizes from small to large, but here the concentration of studios and other small living spaces is at near-record heights. With 87.9% of the real estate here of this small size, this most assuredly is a notable feature that makes this neighborhood unique, along with just a handful of other neighborhoods in the U.S. that share this characteristic.
Furthermore, even if you drive or take transit to your place of employment, many people enjoy being able to walk in their neighborhood. What many people don't realize is that most of America's premier vacation locations are also very walkable. The Martin Luther King Jr Dr / W Union St neighborhood is among the top 5% of American neighborhoods in terms of walkability.
Also of note, if you love row houses and attached homes, you will probably really like the Martin Luther King Jr Dr / W Union St neighborhood. The ambiance, the charm, of row houses is something special. And in sheer abundance of row houses, this neighborhood truly stands out. The real estate here has a higher proportion of row houses and attached homes than nearly any neighborhood in America. In fact, 23.5% of the residential real estate here is classified as row houses and attached homes.
Occupations
NeighborhoodScout's exclusive research identifies the Martin Luther King Jr Dr / W Union St neighborhood as having one of the highest concentrations of people employed in manufacturing or as laborers of any neighborhood in America. In fact, despite the loss of manufacturing jobs nationally, this neighborhood has 62.9% of its working residents employed in such fields, which is a higher proportion than 99.9% of American neighborhoods.
Modes of Transportation
Our research shows that more people carpool to work here in the Martin Luther King Jr Dr / W Union St (36.9%) than in 99.6% of the neighborhoods in America.
People
An interesting characteristic about the Martin Luther King Jr Dr / W Union St neighborhood is that there are more incarcerated people living here than 99.3% of neighborhoods in the U.S. The United States has the highest rate of incarceration in the world, currently with 1 out of every 100 adults in the country are incarcerated as a punishment for crimes committed. The extremely high incarceration rate of this neighborhood could mean that a prison, juvenile detention facility or other correctional facility occupies a large proportion of the neighborhood, or contains a large portion of the neighborhood's population.
Diversity
Did you know that the Martin Luther King Jr Dr / W Union St neighborhood has more Puerto Rican and Dominican ancestry people living in it than nearly any neighborhood in America? It's true! In fact, 40.8% of this neighborhood's residents have Puerto Rican ancestry and 11.8% have Dominican ancestry.
Martin Luther King Jr Dr / W Union St is also pretty special linguistically. Significantly, 1.0% of its residents five years old and above primarily speak Urdu, which is the national language of Pakistan, at home. While this may seem like a small percentage, it is higher than 97.3% of the neighborhoods in America.
The Neighbors
How wealthy a neighborhood is, from very wealthy, to middle income, to low income is very formative with regard to the personality and character of a neighborhood. Equally important is the rate of people, particularly children, who live below the federal poverty line. In some wealthy gated communities, the areas immediately surrounding can have high rates of childhood poverty, which indicates other social issues. NeighborhoodScout's analysis reveals both aspects of income and poverty for this neighborhood.
The neighbors in the Martin Luther King Jr Dr / W Union St neighborhood in Allentown are lower-middle income, making it a below average income neighborhood. NeighborhoodScout's research shows that this neighborhood has an income lower than 83.8% of U.S. neighborhoods. With 40.4% of the children here below the federal poverty line, this neighborhood has a higher rate of childhood poverty than 89.3% of U.S. neighborhoods.
A neighborhood is far different if it is dominated by enlisted military personnel rather than people who earn their living by farming. It is also different if most of the neighbors are clerical support or managers. What is wonderful is the sheer diversity of neighborhoods, allowing you to find the type that fits your lifestyle and aspirations.
In the Martin Luther King Jr Dr / W Union St neighborhood, 62.9% of the working population is employed in manufacturing and laborer occupations. The second most important occupational group in this neighborhood is sales and service jobs, from major sales accounts, to working in fast food restaurants, with 18.7% of the residents employed. Other residents here are employed in executive, management, and professional occupations (14.1%), and 4.3% in clerical, assistant, and tech support occupations.
Languages
The most common language spoken in the Martin Luther King Jr Dr / W Union St neighborhood is Spanish, spoken by 57.2% of households. Some people also speak English (42.2%).
Ethnicity / Ancestry
Boston's Beacon Hill blue-blood streets, Brooklyn's Orthodox Jewish enclaves, Los Angeles' Persian neighborhoods. Each has its own culture derived primarily from the ancestries and culture of the residents who call these neighborhoods home. Likewise, each neighborhood in America has its own culture – some more unique than others – based on lifestyle, occupations, the types of households – and importantly – on the ethnicities and ancestries of the people who live in the neighborhood. Understanding where people came from, who their grandparents or great-grandparents were, can help you understand how a neighborhood is today.
In the Martin Luther King Jr Dr / W Union St neighborhood in Allentown, PA, residents most commonly identify their ethnicity or ancestry as Puerto Rican (40.8%). There are also a number of people of Dominican ancestry (11.8%), and residents who report South American roots (7.6%), and some of the residents are also of German ancestry (4.3%), along with some English ancestry residents (2.8%), among others. In addition, 11.7% of the residents of this neighborhood were born in another country.
Getting to Work
Even if your neighborhood is walkable, you may still have to drive to your place of work. Some neighborhoods are located where many can get to work in just a few minutes, while others are located such that most residents have a long and arduous commute. The greatest number of commuters in Martin Luther King Jr Dr / W Union St neighborhood spend between 15 and 30 minutes commuting one-way to work (48.2% of working residents), which is shorter than the time spent commuting to work for most Americans.
Here most residents (49.2%) drive alone in a private automobile to get to work. In addition, quite a number also carpool with coworkers, friends, or neighbors to get to work (36.9%) and 8.5% of residents also ride the bus for their daily commute. In a neighborhood like this, as in most of the nation, many residents find owning a car useful for getting to work.
SCOUT’s patented match algorithm identifies the most similar neighborhoods to a subject location, and quantifies the similarity to the subject location. This allows analysts to identify the most similar neighborhoods in a local market area for appraisals, investments, and research.
The algorithm uses 273 neighborhood conditions, identifies the dominant dimensions underlying the conditions and calculates the similarity. This captures the true culture and character of locations, economic conditions, and trends.
The closer to 100% means the locations are nearly identical. 80% is a very good, but not excellent match, and so forth.
