A large share of Allentown and Lehigh Valley interest comes from people in New York and New Jersey comparing what their budget achieves here against what it achieves where they currently live. Those searches are explicitly comparative, covering price, taxes, commute, schools and what the area is actually like, and they happen well before anyone contacts an agent.

Locally, the picture is different again. Allentown, Bethlehem and Easton each have their own character and buyer profile, and the surrounding townships attract families focused on districts and space. Content that separates the inbound comparison audience from the local audience performs considerably better than content that merges them.