Center City median real estate price is $137,794, which is less expensive than 86.2% of Pennsylvania neighborhoods and 89.6% of all U.S. neighborhoods.
The average rental price in Center City is currently $1,618, based on NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis. Rents here are currently lower in price than 61.2% of Pennsylvania neighborhoods.
Center City is a densely urban neighborhood (based on population density) located in Reading, Pennsylvania.
Center City real estate is primarily made up of small (studio to two bedroom) to medium sized (three or four bedroom) small apartment buildings and townhomes. Most of the residential real estate is renter occupied. Many of the residences in the Center City neighborhood are relatively historic, built no later than 1939, and in some cases, quite a bit earlier. A number of residences were also built between 1940 and 1969.
Home and apartment vacancy rates are 8.7% in Center City. NeighborhoodScout analysis shows that this rate is lower than 42.1% of the neighborhoods in the nation, approximately near the middle range for vacancies.
Many things matter about a neighborhood, but the first thing most people notice is the way a neighborhood looks and its particular character. For example, one might notice whether the buildings all date from a certain time period or whether shop signs are in multiple languages. This particular neighborhood in Reading, the Center City neighborhood, has some outstanding things about the way it looks and its way of life that are worth highlighting.
In the Center City neighborhood, carpooling is still a popular way to get to and from work. NeighborhoodScout's analysis reveals that 31.1% of commuters carpool here, which is more than in 98.9% of all U.S. neighborhoods.
Also, more people in Center City choose to walk to work each day (17.1%) than almost any neighborhood in America. If you are attracted to the idea of being able to walk to work, this neighborhood could be a good choice.
Whether by choice, divorce, or unplanned pregnancy, single moms may have the toughest job in the book. NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis reveals that the Center City neighborhood has more single mother households than 98.5% of the neighborhoods in the U.S. Often high concentrations of single mother homes can be a strong indicator of family and social issues such as poverty, high rates of school dropouts, crime, and other societal problems.
Corner bodegas, stores on the first floor and apartments above, former grand Victorian residences converted into apartments, three-deckers built shoulder-to-shoulder, duplexes. Such building types define the real estate of neighborhoods dominated by small 2, 3, and 4 unit apartment buildings. Many are in older core neighborhoods of Eastern and Midwestern cities, or historic town centers in their hinterlands. If you wax romantic about the look and feel of such neighborhoods, with fresh pizza, falafel and an independent florist at the corner, then you might find the Center City neighborhood worth a close look. This neighborhood is an absolutely outstanding example of the dominance of small 2, 3, and 4 unit apartment buildings compared to neighborhoods across the nation, as they make up a substantial portion of this neighborhood's real estate stock. In fact, no less than 48.1% of the real estate here is made up of such dwellings, which is higher than 98.3% of all U.S. neighborhoods.
In addition, 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 Center City neighborhood is among the top 5% of American neighborhoods in terms of walkability.
Furthermore, do you watch 'This Old House' on Public Television? Do you love the idea of fixing up a Colonial or Victorian era home, complete with the charm of yesteryear? Do you like to stroll or drive streets lined with gracious older residences? If you found yourself nodding yes to any of these questions, you are going to be interested in this unique neighborhood. The Center City neighborhood stands out on a national scale for the sheer concentration of historic residences it contains: 55.3% of the residential real estate here was built from 1939 or earlier, some much earlier. This is a greater concentration of historic homes than 95.4% of the neighborhoods in the United States.
More people work in manufacturing and as laborers here in the Center City neighborhood than in 98.2% of the neighborhoods in America. Despite the loss of manufacturing jobs across the nation, this neighborhood remains a place where, compared to other parts of the country, you will find many laborers and manufacturers.
We Americans love our cars. Not only are they a necessity for most Americans due to the shape of our neighborhoods and the distances between where we live, work, shop, and go to school, but we also fancy them. As a result, most households in America have one, two, or three cars. But NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis shows that the Center City neighborhood has a highly unusual pattern of car ownership. 24.0% of the households in this neighborhood don't own a car at all. This is more carless households than NeighborhoodScout found in 96.1% of U.S. neighborhoods.
Did you know that the Center City neighborhood has more Dominican and Puerto Rican ancestry people living in it than nearly any neighborhood in America? It's true! In fact, 36.2% of this neighborhood's residents have Dominican ancestry and 37.2% have Puerto Rican ancestry.
Center City is also pretty special linguistically. Significantly, 1.0% of its residents five years old and above primarily speak Native American languages at home. While this may seem like a small percentage, it is higher than 97.6% of the neighborhoods in America.
Some neighborhoods have more internal cohesiveness than others. While other neighborhoods feel like a collection of strangers who just happen to live near each other. Sometimes this comes down to not only the personalities of the people in a place, but how long people have been together in that neighborhood. NeighborhoodScout's research has revealed some interesting things about the rootedness of people in the Center City neighborhood. In the Center City neighborhood, a greater proportion of the residents living here today did not live here five years ago than is found in 96.8% of U.S. Neighborhoods. This neighborhood, more than almost any other in America, has new residents from other areas.
There are two complementary measures for understanding the income of a neighborhood's residents: the average and the extremes. While a neighborhood may be relatively wealthy overall, it is equally important to understand the rate of people - particularly children - who are living at or below the federal poverty line, which is extremely low income. Some neighborhoods with a lower average income may actually have a lower childhood poverty rate than another with a higher average income, and this helps us understand the conditions and character of a neighborhood.
The neighbors in the Center City neighborhood in Reading are low income, making it among the lowest income neighborhoods in America. NeighborhoodScout's research shows that this neighborhood has an income lower than 86.3% of U.S. neighborhoods. With 31.9% of the children here below the federal poverty line, this neighborhood has a higher rate of childhood poverty than 83.7% of U.S. neighborhoods.
What we choose to do for a living reflects who we are. Each neighborhood has a different mix of occupations represented, and together these tell you about the neighborhood and help you understand if this neighborhood may fit your lifestyle.
In the Center City neighborhood, 46.7% of the working population is employed in manufacturing and laborer occupations. The second most important occupational group in this neighborhood is executive, management, and professional occupations, with 20.7% of the residents employed. Other residents here are employed in sales and service jobs, from major sales accounts, to working in fast food restaurants (19.7%), and 11.7% in clerical, assistant, and tech support occupations.
Languages
The most common language spoken in the Center City neighborhood is Spanish, spoken by 62.1% of households. Some people also speak English (37.2%).
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 Center City neighborhood in Reading, PA, residents most commonly identify their ethnicity or ancestry as Puerto Rican (37.2%). There are also a number of people of Dominican ancestry (36.2%), and residents who report German roots (4.1%), and some of the residents are also of Italian ancestry (3.0%), along with some Irish ancestry residents (1.7%), among others. In addition, 28.3% of the residents of this neighborhood were born in another country.
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 Center City neighborhood spend between 15 and 30 minutes commuting one-way to work (39.8% of working residents), which is shorter than the time spent commuting to work for most Americans.
Here most residents (39.4%) 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 (31.1%) and 17.1% of residents also hop out the door and walk to work 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.
