Williamstown, Pennsylvania

Population

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

1,298

people, the 538th-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.

85.0%

of 107 jobs located in Williamstown are filled by in-commuters.

Census LEHD LODES, 2023. Sources: Census LEHD LODES

Rent

Median rent is up 79% since the 2005–2009 survey, before inflation.

$888

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

Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024 (latest), with earlier 5-year windows. Survey estimates for a place this size carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year

The seam

Cross one tract line and median rent doubles.

A $990 gap between neighbors, the sharpest rent edge between adjacent tracts in Dauphin County.

• $786 Tract 211
• $1,776 Tract 219.04

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.

$546–$820

is the monthly rent range local workforce wages support.

• $888 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.

• 0 homes permitted in ten years, 2016–2025
• 100% of all homes were built before 2000

Census Building Permits Survey, 2016–2025; Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Survey estimates for a place this size carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census Building Permits Survey, Census ACS 5-year

Units needed

Closing the gap would add 0.2–0.3% to the 638 homes here.

1–2

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 60% less than Pennsylvania's.

$100,700

median home value in Williamstown.

• $100,700 Williamstown
• $254,500 Pennsylvania
• $332,700 U.S.

Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Survey estimates for a place this size carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year