New Hope at a glance
New Hope is a historic river borough of about 2,600 people, according to the 2020 Census, surrounded by Solebury Township, home to about 8,700 more. The borough is the busy center: galleries, restaurants, the Bucks County Playhouse, and the free bridge to Lambertville, New Jersey. Solebury is the quiet setting, where nearly 40 percent of the township is preserved land. Both share the New Hope-Solebury School District. In ZIP 18938, Zillow’s typical single-family home value was about $1.01 million in September 2026.
Schools
The New Hope-Solebury School District is small, with about 1,250 students in four schools in 2024-25.
| School | Grades |
|---|---|
| New Hope-Solebury Lower Elementary, Solebury | K to 2 |
| New Hope-Solebury Upper Elementary | 3 to 5 |
| New Hope-Solebury Middle School | 6 to 8 |
| New Hope-Solebury High School | 9 to 12 |
According to the district, U.S. News ranked New Hope-Solebury High School 4th in Pennsylvania in its 2026-27 Best High Schools, for the second year in a row. The upper grades share a campus on West Bridge Street in New Hope. More about the district is on the New Hope-Solebury School District page.
Daily life
- Arts and theater: New Hope was home to the New Hope School of Pennsylvania Impressionists, led by painters such as Edward Redfield and Daniel Garber. The Bucks County Playhouse opened in 1939 in a converted grist mill; the mill’s 1790 name, the New Hope Mills, gave the town its name. (The Michener Art Museum, with its Pennsylvania Impressionist collection, is in Doylestown.)
- The river: the free New Hope-Lambertville Bridge, opened in 1904, carries a walkway that is the busiest pedestrian crossing on the Delaware. The Delaware Canal towpath runs through town on the Pennsylvania side and the Delaware & Raritan Canal path on the New Jersey side.
- Countryside: Solebury has preserved more than 4,000 acres through conservation easements, plus about 2,900 acres of parks and partner easements. The upper section of Washington Crossing Historic Park, with Bowman’s Hill Tower, is just south of town.
- The New Hope Railroad runs excursion trips from the 1891 station; it is a scenic ride, not a commuter train.
Homes and prices
New Hope’s housing runs from homes in the borough’s historic district to large properties on Solebury’s back roads, where the Census puts the median owner-occupied home value at about $789,000. In ZIP 18938, Zillow’s typical single-family home value was about $1.01 million in September 2026, up about 8 percent over the year. Across all home types, the least expensive third of homes was valued at about $585,000 and the most expensive third at about $1.71 million.
Getting around
- To New York: drive to NJ Transit’s Trenton station, about 28 minutes without traffic, or Princeton Junction, about 39 minutes. Express trains reach New York Penn Station in about 1 hour 10 minutes from Trenton and about 55 minutes from Princeton Junction. Trans-Bridge Lines runs two buses each way between New Hope and the Port Authority Bus Terminal on its 2026 schedule.
- By car, Princeton is about 38 minutes, Center City Philadelphia about an hour, and Midtown Manhattan about 1 hour 40 minutes away without traffic.
Things to know before you buy
- Borough or township: a New Hope mailing address may be in Solebury Township. The school district is the same, but municipal taxes and rules differ.
- Taxes: the New Hope-Solebury School District rate is 127.97 mills for 2026-27, up about 6 percent. Bucks County’s 2026 rate is 29.65 mills and Solebury Township’s is 25.9102 mills. The local earned income tax is 1 percent.
- Resale requirements in the borough: New Hope requires a zoning certification delivered to the buyer at settlement and a use registration permit before a sale, with a re-occupancy inspection. Solebury’s fee schedule lists use and occupancy permits for new construction only; confirm with the township for any resale.
- Historic district: exterior work visible from the street in the New Hope Borough Historic District needs a Certificate of Appropriateness.
- Flood history: riverfront and low-lying properties flooded in 2004, 2005, and 2006. Check the FEMA flood zone and the seller’s disclosure for each home.
- Weekend crowds: the borough draws visitors, and parking in town is paid and in demand.
Working with Karen in New Hope
Karen Langsfeld is licensed in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, so buyers can compare New Hope with Lambertville across the bridge, or with Washington Crossing and Yardley downriver, with one agent. She helps buyers sort out borough versus township, flood history, and historic district rules for each home, and helps sellers price against the sales that truly compare.
Reach Karen directly at (215) 495-2914 or through the contact page.