Every so often a listing comes along that checks the boxes so many Ephrata buyers keep asking me about: brick construction, a real primary suite, updated mechanicals, and a neighborhood people rarely leave. This week that listing is 1015 Martin Avenue in the Sycamore Acres neighborhood of Ephrata Borough. With inventory in the Ephrata Area School District still tight, homes like this one deserve a closer look.

About This Property

1015 Martin Avenue, Ephrata, PA 17522 is a four-bedroom, two-and-a-half-bath brick two-story listed at $545,000 (MLS# PALA2090708, listed by RE/MAX Pinnacle). Built in 1996, the home offers 2,865 finished square feet on a 0.23-acre landscaped corner lot, plus a full unfinished basement and a two-car side-entry garage with pull-down attic storage.

Inside, hardwood flooring runs through the main living spaces, and the first-floor family room centers on a gas fireplace set into a stone wall with a wood mantle. The kitchen has been updated with granite countertops, a center island with gas cooktop, built-in refrigerator, wall oven and convection oven, a new backsplash, and a breakfast area — with a formal dining room and box window nearby for holidays. A first-floor study makes working from home easy, and the bright sunroom off the main level leads to a large entertaining deck. Upstairs, the primary suite includes a walk-in closet and a bathroom with separate shower and soaking tub, plus three more comfortably sized bedrooms.

Curb appeal is a real strength here. The corner lot has been extensively landscaped and hardscaped, with a classic brick-front sidewalk leading to the entry — the kind of first impression that photographs well and shows even better in person. Stainless appliances, ceiling fans, recessed lighting, a walk-in pantry area, and a dedicated main-floor laundry room round out the interior.

The practical stuff is covered too: the roof is about seven years old, and the gas furnace and central air are about eight years old, so the big-ticket mechanicals shouldn't be on your worry list for years. The home is served by public water and sewer with 200+ amp electric service, and annual property taxes are listed at $7,700.

Who is this home for? The first-floor office suits anyone working remotely, the family-room-off-kitchen layout works for busy households, and the sunroom-plus-deck combination is built for entertaining. Four true bedrooms upstairs means nobody has to compromise.

Living in Ephrata

Sycamore Acres sits in Ephrata Borough, which means you're minutes from the things that make this town work so well. Downtown Ephrata's Main Street has locally owned restaurants and shops, and the Warwick-to-Ephrata Rail Trail gives you miles of walking and biking right from town. History buffs have the Ephrata Cloister, one of Pennsylvania's most significant historic sites, and bargain hunters know Ephrata as home of the Green Dragon farmers market, a Friday tradition for generations of Lancaster County families. WellSpan Ephrata Community Hospital keeps healthcare close by.

Commuters are well positioned here: Route 222 and Route 322 put Lancaster city roughly half an hour away, with Reading reachable in a similar drive northeast. Students attend Ephrata Area School District schools, and this address feeds Ephrata High School.

If this home isn't quite the fit, you can explore more Ephrata Area homes for sale — Ephrata Borough, Akron, Clay Township, and the surrounding townships all feed the same district.

The Ephrata Area Market Right Now

As of this writing, my property search shows 38 active or coming-soon listings across the entire Ephrata Area School District — everything from entry-level manufactured homes to a multi-million-dollar farm property. Most single-family resales are clustered between roughly $290,000 and $550,000, and well-kept homes with updated kitchens and newer mechanicals in that band have been drawing steady showing activity. If a move-in-ready colonial is on your list, waiting for "more inventory" hasn't been a winning strategy in this district.

Let's Take a Look

If you'd like a private showing of 1015 Martin Avenue, or you want a no-pressure conversation about what your current home would bring in this market, reach out to Mike Gordon Jr. at 717-475-5824 or visit https://www.thegordon.group. I live and work right here in Ephrata, and I'm glad to help you compare this one against everything else the district has to offer.

Listing information from Bright MLS via thegordon.group, deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Property listed by RE/MAX Pinnacle.