Hardwood Floor Refinishing in Allentown, PA
What it costs, and what Allentown's housing stock does to the job.
Floor refinishing in a 1952-median city
The median Allentown home was built in 1952 and 37.9% of the city’s housing
predates 1940. For floor refinishing specifically, that is not background color — it is the thing that
decides the job.
The refinishing candidates in the Lehigh Valley are concentrated in the city, where the median house was built in 1952 and narrow-strip oak was standard. In the post-1968 county housing you are far more likely to be looking at engineered flooring, which frequently cannot be sanded at all — check the veneer thickness before you budget for a refinish.
Allentown itself has a median build year of 1952, but Lehigh County as a whole sits at 1968 — a sixteen-year gap that is really two different jobs. Inside the city you are usually working over plank subfloor in a rowhome. Out in the township you are usually working over plywood in a split-level, and the two need different underlayment before the same plank goes down.
What it costs in Allentown
Lehigh Valley labor runs above the Pennsylvania baseline, which is why the range below sits higher than the statewide $3–$8. Installed, materials and labor together:
| Work | Allentown range | Pennsylvania range |
|---|---|---|
| Refinishing existing boards | $3 – $8 a square foot | $3 – $8 a square foot |
An estimate, not a quote. These are planning ranges for Pennsylvania, not a quote. What you actually pay depends on your rooms, your subfloor and the material you choose — final price depends on your project.
Extras are where a Allentown job most often moves away from the band: removing the old floor,
prepping a plank subfloor, and stairs. The
cost estimator prices those separately against your own
room.
Questions worth asking before you book
- What is the subfloor, and what does it need? With 37.9% of Allentown
homes predating 1940, a plank subfloor is a realistic assumption rather than an edge case.
How to identify yours. - Is the old floor coming out or being covered? Covering costs less and is
sometimes the safer answer — particularly over
9×9 tile — but it costs you height at doors and
at the bottom stair riser. - What is the cut-and-waste allowance? A century-old house is rarely square, and
cuts are labor. - What is your PA Home Improvement Contractor number? It is legally required to
be on the estimate. How to check it.