Spending package funds critical housing programs
The federal government partially shut down after Congress failed to enact a fiscal year 2026 spending package funding HUD, the Department of the Treasury and other agencies by the Jan. 31 deadline — but that shutdown ended when the House approved a Senate-passed spending package and President Trump signed it into law on Feb. 3. The package represents a win for housing advocates and the millions of families who depend on federal housing programs. It delivers full funding for critical programs administered by U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD), including Housing Choice Vouchers, fair housing programs, housing counseling, and the HOME Investment Partnerships and Community Development Block Grant programs. The legislation also reauthorizes the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) through Sept. 30, restoring Americans' ability to purchase and renew flood insurance policies. Read more at the NAR website.
Source: NAR; 2/4/2026 

Shapiro housing plan faces zoning, political hurdles as PA lags in home construction
With rents climbing, homelessness rising and homeownership increasingly out of reach, Gov. Josh Shapiro is preparing to release a long-awaited statewide housing plan aimed at addressing Pennsylvania’s severe shortage. The state ranked 44th nationally in new housing construction between 2017 and 2023, adding just 3.4% to its housing stock while households grew by 5%, according to Pew Charitable Trusts. Officials estimate Pennsylvania needs 450,000 new units by 2035, but proposed solutions — including loosening local zoning rules, speeding up permitting and incentivizing denser development — face strong resistance from municipal groups and would require legislative action in a divided General Assembly. Costs have risen the most in areas with growing populations that haven’t added enough housing, including the Philadelphia suburbs, Northeastern Pennsylvania, and cities like Harrisburg, York and Lancaster. For Realtors, the issue is critical because limited housing supply continues to drive up prices, constrain inventory, push buyers and workers out of key markets, and restrict transaction volume, making state policy on zoning and development a major factor shaping future market activity and affordability. Read more in the Inquirer (gift link).
Source: Philadelphia Inquirer; 2/1/2026 

PA lawmakers look to incentivize ‘pro-housing’ communities
Pennsylvania lawmakers from both parties are rallying around a package of proposals aimed at easing the state’s housing crisis by encouraging “pro-housing” local policies, expanding housing supply, and improving affordability and fairness. At a Capitol press conference, legislators and advocates argued that restrictive zoning, rising prices and uneven local rules have priced out workers, young adults and seniors, calling for statewide solutions that still respect local character. Proposed bills would make it easier to build accessory dwelling units, require some municipalities to allow duplexes and small multi-unit buildings in single-family zones, eliminate parking minimums, legalize shared housing arrangements among unrelated adults, and incentivize transit-oriented and higher-density development to preserve farmland. Lawmakers emphasized rewarding — not penalizing — communities that cut red tape, though funding details remain tied to upcoming budget negotiations. Fair housing advocates also pressed for reforms, such as banning discrimination based on source of income, sealing eviction records, strengthening code enforcement and closing loopholes in anti-discrimination laws. Read more from the Pennsylvania Capital-Star.
Source: Pennsylvania Capital-Star; 2/2/2026

New PA law ends 100% tax on estates of people who die without family or will
A new Pennsylvania law, which took effect Jan. 23, ends a long-standing practice that sent the estates of people who died without a will or heirs entirely to the state, a system critics likened to a 100% tax on intestate estates. Act 50 of 2025 amends the state’s Intestate Succession law so that when no heirs can be identified, a decedent’s assets are placed in an endowed community fund at the community foundation serving the county where the person lived, providing permanent charitable support for local needs. The measure, passed unanimously with bipartisan support and signed by Gov. Josh Shapiro in November, makes Pennsylvania the only state to keep intestate assets local and charitable before they can pass to the commonwealth if no such fund exists.
Source: Gettysburg Times; 1/25/2026

NAR podcast: What voters are saying about housing
The National Association of Realtors unveiled new results from a national poll of voters. Among the findings: housing affordability is a top voting issue, belief in the American Dream remains strong, and voters across party lines want Congress to act. Listen to the podcast here.
Source: NAR; 1/29/2026 

Buckingham to allocate nearly $5M to address PFAS contamination
Buckingham Township will invest nearly $5 million in state funding to remove PFAS “forever chemicals” from its public water systems, including a $2.4 million PENNVEST grant to design and install a treatment system at the Furlong Water System’s F8 well. The Furlong system, which serves central Buckingham and was interconnected with the Buckingham Village Water System in 2022, includes eight wells, storage tanks and pump stations. Although prior testing fell below state limits, baseline results prompted the township to move forward with PFAS removal. The new system will also reduce taste and odor compounds, organic color, total organic carbon and certain industrial contaminants. Buckingham previously received a $2 million PENNVEST grant and a $615,089 low-interest loan for PFAS treatment at the Cold Spring Water System’s Hearthstone Facility, as part of broader efforts to address long-standing PFAS contamination across Bucks and Montgomery counties.
Source: Bucks County Courier Times; 2/4/2026

Falls Township set to reopen updated municipal complex
After nearly three years of construction delays and cost overruns, Falls Township is set to reopen its renovated municipal building to the public on Tuesday, Feb. 10. The project to update and expand the aging complex at 188 Lincoln Highway ultimately cost an estimated $41 million — about $11 million over the original budget — plus three years of rent for temporary offices. Township officials said they chose renovation over new construction as the more fiscally responsible option, but unforeseen issues like unstable soils, unreinforced walls, oil contamination and mold significantly drove up costs and pushed completion past the original December 2024 deadline. The revamped building features improved accessibility, with all public services on the first floor, expanded space and modern technology for the police department, upgraded offices for multiple departments, and new community amenities, including meeting rooms, flexible conference space and incubator space for start-up businesses.
Source: Bucks County Courier Times; 2/3/2026

Quakertown Elementary School to be replaced
Quakertown Community School District is moving forward with plans to demolish and replace its 90-year-old Quakertown Elementary School with a new building designed to better meet long-term needs. According to district officials, the old building is overcrowded and the cost of repairs is unsustainable. The replacement school, which was discussed at the Jan. 22 school board meeting, will be built on the existing site, accommodate about 600 more students than the current facility, and could pave the way for a separate sixth-grade center in the future. Construction is scheduled to begin in the summer, with temporary modular classrooms installed at the sixth-grade center to house students during the project and site abatement starting concurrently. The project, which has borough support and is budgeted at $63 million, is expected to be completed in late 2028 or early 2029 and will include related traffic changes, such as making Sixth Street one-way southbound once the new school opens.
Source: Town & Country; 1/28/2026

Intersection improvements delayed again in Middletown
A long-planned $12 million overhaul of the crash-prone “M” double intersection at the Falls-Middletown border has been delayed again, pushing construction back to 2027 due to environmental permitting holdups and ongoing negotiations to acquire private property. The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation had planned to begin the two-year project this spring but now expects work to start in 2027 while it continues right-of-way coordination, utility conflict identification and preparation of Department of Environmental Protection permits. The project requires the purchase of 19 parcels of land, mostly partial acquisitions from businesses, and is intended to realign roads at Oxford Valley and North Bristol-Oxford Valley roads, Route 1/Lincoln Highway and North Oxford Valley Road to improve safety and traffic flow at the notoriously confusing intersection.
Source: Bucks County Courier Times; 1/8/2026 

Great Valley turnpike ramp sparked billions in economic development
The opening of the Pennsylvania Turnpike’s all-electronic Exit 320 to Route 29 in East Whiteland Township in 2012 dramatically reshaped Chester County’s Great Valley, cutting travel times and helping spur billions in commercial and residential investment, including major office expansions by firms like Vanguard and pharmaceutical companies. More than a decade later, however, the real estate market is shifting as post-pandemic demand for traditional office space softens and housing takes priority. Vacant offices are being converted to apartments, large office parks are being marketed for redevelopment, and new multifamily and active-adult projects are rising to meet workforce and affordability pressures in a region where jobs grew 37%, population increased nearly 30%, and median income rose 46% since the interchange opened. Deb Abel, chair of the East Whiteland Township Planning Commission, says workforce development is key to the area's growth. More — and more affordable — housing is key both for current and future staffing needs. Workers shouldn’t have to commute from other areas with more housing options, Abel said.
Source: Philadelphia Inquirer; 1/29/2026

Developer seeks to expand proposed data center in East Whiteland
A developer wants to increase the size of its proposed data center on a remediated Superfund site in East Whiteland Township, stoking ire from nearby residents who worry about the increased scope stressing the power grid and driving up costs, along with environmental and health risks. The facility — which would exceed 1.6 million square feet in the amended plan — would sit on roughly 100 acres at 13 S. Bacton Hill Road, located along the boundary line for East and West Whiteland townships, near U.S. Route 202. The amended plan would increase the size of the two data center buildings by roughly 61% from what was previously approved. The applicants are asking the planning commission to approve the modifications because the currently approved plan is outdated, in both technology capacity and what occupants of such centers would need, said Josh Rabina, principal for Sentinel Data Centers, who is working with Green Fig Land LLC on the project. East Whiteland residents called on officials to reject the plan, but township solicitor Michael Gill warned it wasn’t that simple, as the property is zoned for data center use.
Source: Philadelphia Inquirer; 1/29/2026

NVF clean-up meeting in Kennett provides updates from developers, EPA and DEP
Kennett Square Borough officials, state and federal regulators, and the site’s owner fielded questions from about 60 residents at a Jan. 20 public meeting on the ongoing remediation of the former National Vulcanized Fiber (NVF) site. Rockhopper LLC is currently removing PCBs and other hazardous materials at the former industrial site, ahead of a proposed redevelopment that includes 246 townhomes and 48 affordable apartments. Community members voiced distrust of the cleanup process and fears of cancer risks, while regulators said independent contractors and labs are conducting the work, a final PCB cleanup plan is due Feb. 11, and borough council is considering a zoning change that could allow residential use but would not itself approve construction. Mayor Matt Fetick shared the possibility of scheduling another meeting to continue answering community concerns. He also shared that in the coming months borough council will also vote on changing the zoning ordinance of the site to permit residential dwellings. Fetick encouraged people interested in the NVF remediation and development to continue asking questions and stay up to date on the process through the designated page on the borough website.
Source: Chester County Press; 1/28/2026

Key 23-acre property in East Bradford now protected under conservation easement
Natural Lands announced the permanent preservation of a 23.4-acre property in East Bradford Township, Chester County. The land, now protected under a conservation easement held by Natural Lands, is connected to hundreds of acres of open space, offering important contiguous habitat to wildlife. An easement is a legally binding agreement that keeps land in private ownership while ensuring it is conserved from development. It applies to present and future owners of the land. Natural Lands currently holds more than 500 easements on more than 26,000 acres and monitors the properties regularly to ensure the terms of the easements are being upheld.
Source: Chester County Press; 1/28/2026

Chester County poll book error was caused by ‘simple human error,’ investigation finds
An independent investigation found “no evidence of intentional wrongdoing” behind an error that omitted more than 70,000 third-party voters in Chester County from poll books during the 2025 general election. West Chester-based law firm Fleck Eckert Klein McGarry concluded in a report released that Chester County lacked sufficient safeguards, supervision, training and verification controls. Read more at WHYY.
Source: WHYY; 1/22/2026

Parking changes in Oxford Borough
Oxford Borough Council voted to change the hours and enforcement in the parking garage. Effective Feb 1, parking will be enforced 24/7 all year. There is no more free parking after 8 p.m. and on Sundays. The garage will be gated, and users will be required to pay when they leave. Read more at Chester County Press.
Source: Chester County Press; 1/28/2026