Brookhaven, Pennsylvania

Population

Steady. Within 1% of 2020, every year since.

8,362

people, the 98th-largest of Pennsylvania's cities and towns.

Census Population Estimates, 2025. Rank among Pennsylvania's cities and towns computed by the Almanac. Sources: Census Population Estimates

The workday

9 in 10 jobs here go to people who live somewhere else.

94.2%

of 2,133 jobs located in Brookhaven are filled by in-commuters.

Census LEHD LODES, 2023. Sources: Census LEHD LODES

Rent

Median rent is up 69% since the 2005–2009 survey, before inflation.

$1,487

a month. Pennsylvania's median is $1,209.

Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024 (latest), with earlier 5-year windows. Sources: Census ACS 5-year

The seam

Cross one tract line and median rent doubles.

A $2,204 gap between neighbors, the sharpest rent edge between adjacent tracts in Delaware County.

• $1,297 Tract 4086
• $3,501 Tract 4084

Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024, adjacent tracts compared by the Almanac. Tract estimates carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year

Room to build

The median rent is above what local wages can carry.

$712–$1,067

is the monthly rent range local workforce wages support.

• $1,487 median

Supportable rent computed by the Almanac from 2023 source wage data. Median rent: Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Computed by the Almanac, Census ACS 5-year

Building

Most of the housing here is older than 2000.

• 56 homes permitted in ten years, 2016–2025
• 39% of those were in multifamily buildings
• 91% of all homes were built before 2000

Census Building Permits Survey, 2016–2025; Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Census Building Permits Survey, Census ACS 5-year

Units needed

Closing the gap would add 0.1–0.5% to the 3,956 homes here.

5–21

is the estimated number of missing housing units, from the lowest to the highest of three estimates.

Range computed by the Almanac from 2023 jobs and household data, using three demand models: 1% of jobs located here, 1% of renter households, and a rate by town size applied to renters. The low end is the lowest of the three and the high end the highest. It is an estimate, not a count. Sources: Computed by the Almanac

Home value

A median home costs 12% more than Pennsylvania's.

$284,700

median home value in Brookhaven.

• $284,700 Brookhaven
• $254,500 Pennsylvania
• $332,700 U.S.

Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Census ACS 5-year