For generations, Narberth’s compact streets, walkable downtown, and rail access have made the borough an appealing entry point for families seeking life in the Lower Merion School District.
The district’s reputation for academic excellence has long commanded a premium.
Today, that premium has priced out many of the families it once attracted, writes Denali Sagner for The Philadelphia Inquirer.
By the Numbers
Narberth recorded the highest median home sale price of any municipality in Montgomery County in 2024. At $751,000, it saw a 70 percent increase from 2014.
The average rent for a one-bedroom apartment has reached roughly $2,050 per month. Those figures reflect a countywide problem that Montgomery County has now formally acknowledged.
A Housing Blueprint published in 2024 found that 46 percent of renters and 19 percent of homeowners were spending more than 30 percent of their income on housing. This is the federal threshold for being cost-burdened.
What’s on the Table
Narberth is now at the center of a local debate over what a small borough should do about it.
Last August, the borough council directed its planning commission to study how zoning could be used to increase affordable housing and support the local economy.
In February, the commission returned with recommendations. It targeted the higher-density residential zone surrounding Haverford Avenue downtown and the commercial corridor along Montgomery Avenue.
Specific proposals have included allowing apartments, cottages, and rowhouses in those districts, offering height incentives for buildings that include affordable units, and reducing parking minimums.
The Case for Change
Supporters argue that adding homes could expand Narberth’s tax base, support downtown businesses, and preserve some of the economic diversity that once made the borough accessible to young families and renters.
The Montgomery County Planning Commission has noted that walkable, transit-connected boroughs like Narberth, Conshohocken, and Ambler have become increasingly expensive precisely because of the qualities that once made them entry-level communities.
The Case Against
Opponents question whether greater density would produce meaningful affordability or primarily attract luxury development.
Many also raise concerns about parking, traffic, and infrastructure capacity, and worry that taller buildings would alter the small-town character that draws people to Narberth.
A Countywide Test Case
The debate plays out against a broader county effort.
Montgomery County’s Housing Blueprint identifies Narberth, Lower Merion Township, and Lower Gwynedd Township as the municipalities with the highest median housing sale prices in the county. It set out goals for expanding affordable housing stock across the region.
Narberth’s zoning deliberations are being watched as an early test of whether individual boroughs will act on those goals or leave the pressure to build to larger municipalities.
New market-rate apartments alone will not meet the needs of lower-income households. Restricting construction tends to make existing homes even more expensive.
For Narberth, the question is no longer simply how to preserve its character. It is whether the people who built that character will still be able to afford a place there.
To learn more about Narberth and the future of its residents in The Philadelphia Inquirer.
