Introduction

A large artificial intelligence data center has been proposed for the former Titus Generating Station in Cumru Township. The announcement has raised questions about home values, electricity costs, water use, employment, tax revenue, and quality of life.

Those are reasonable concerns. However, the early research suggests the relationship between data centers and real estate is more complicated than either supporters or opponents sometimes claim.

Could a Data Center Affect Home Values?

Yes, a data center could affect individual properties, but current research does not show that data centers consistently reduce home values.

A George Mason University study examined 13,348 residential sales near data centers in Northern Virginia. After accounting for property and location characteristics, researchers did not find evidence that being closer to a data center reduced sale prices on average. [NAR Data C…026_Clower | PDF]

However, the study did not prove that data centers increase home values or make nearby homes more desirable. It also cannot predict what may happen to an individual property in Berks County.

Local factors still matter, including:

Distance from the facility
Visibility from the property
Noise
Transmission lines and substations
Landscaping and buffering
Surrounding land uses
Construction traffic
Water and utility infrastructure
Buyer perceptions

The most accurate answer is that there is no single data-center effect that applies to every home or community.

Is a Data Center Coming to Berks County?

A large AI data center campus has been proposed in Berks County, but it is not yet a completed or operating facility.

In May 2026, Titus Development Company and Go Energy Group announced an agreement to develop the TRON USA AI Campus at the former Titus Generating Station on Poplar Neck Road in Cumru Township. [titusdatacenter.com], [titusdatacenter.com]

The approximately 196-acre property previously operated as a coal-fired power plant before being decommissioned in 2014.

The proposed first phase would include a 200-megawatt AI data center campus intended to support artificial intelligence, cloud computing, and other high-performance computing operations. Developers have identified the property’s existing electrical infrastructure, transmission access, fiber connectivity, water availability, industrial location, and proximity to Philadelphia and New York as reasons for selecting the site. [titusdatacenter.com], [berksweekly.com], [pv-magazine-usa.com]

The announcement is significant, but it is not the same as final approval or completed construction.

Detailed development plans, engineering, environmental review, utility agreements, financing, permits, and other approvals may still be necessary before the proposed campus can be built and operated.

What Did the Northern Virginia Housing Study Find?

Northern Virginia has the largest concentration of data centers in the United States, making it an important place to study how the facilities may relate to housing.

The Center for Regional Analysis at George Mason University examined residential sales that closed during 2023 in Loudoun, Prince William, and Fairfax counties.

The study included:

Single-family homes
Townhouses
Condominiums
Properties within seven miles of a data center
13,348 completed sales
146 homes sold within one-quarter mile of a data center

For-sale-by-owner transactions were excluded. [NAR Data C…026_Clower | PDF]

Researchers used Bright MLS transaction data and data-center locations supplied by the Northern Virginia Regional Commission. They applied a statistical model designed to separate the possible effect of data-center proximity from other factors that influence sale prices.

Those factors included:

Age of the home
Number of bedrooms
Living area
Lot size
Type of housing
Distance from major roads
Distance from Metro stations
Distance from Washington Dulles International Airport
Proximity to office and industrial zoning
Distance from downtown areas

The researchers expected to find that homes closer to data centers sold for less.

Instead, after accounting for the characteristics included in the model, they did not find evidence that proximity to a data center reduced sale prices on average. The model explained approximately 87% of the variation in sale prices within the sample, although other factors, such as property condition, could still affect individual transactions. [NAR Data C…026_Clower | PDF]

What Did the Study Not Prove?

The Northern Virginia results require careful interpretation.

The study did not prove that:

Buyers prefer homes near data centers
Data centers raise property values
Every nearby home is protected from a negative effect
Noise and visibility never affect buyers
The results apply automatically to Berks County
Every type or size of data center has the same impact

Northern Virginia has strong housing demand and years of underbuilding. Those market conditions may help explain why researchers did not find the negative effect they expected. [NAR Data C…026_Clower | PDF]

A 200-megawatt AI campus on a former Berks County power-plant property may differ considerably from facilities in Northern Virginia.

The study provides helpful context, but it should not be used to guarantee the future value of a specific Berks County home.

What Does the National Data Show?

The National Association of REALTORS® identified 1,474 mapped data centers across 47 states and 251 counties.

Despite rapid industry growth, data centers remain highly concentrated:

92% of U.S. counties had no mapped data centers
5% had one or two
2% had three to nine
Only 1% had ten or more [Data Cente…9_15_Nadia | PDF]

NAR divided counties into four categories based on data-center concentration. Counties with more facilities generally had higher incomes, younger populations, greater educational attainment, higher home values, and stronger long-term employment growth.

For example:

The median home value in counties without mapped data centers was approximately $174,500
The median in counties with ten or more was approximately $431,750
Ten-year home-value growth was 64.2% in counties without data centers
Ten-year growth was 95% in counties with ten or more [Data Cente…9_15_Nadia | PDF]

That does not mean data centers caused those differences.

Large data centers frequently locate in places that already have strong economies, reliable electricity, transmission capacity, fiber networks, available industrial land, educated workers, and proximity to major population centers.

The research shows that counties with many data centers have not consistently experienced weaker housing markets. It does not establish data centers as the cause of stronger housing markets.

What About Jobs and Commercial Real Estate?

The NAR research found that counties with higher concentrations of data centers experienced stronger employment growth between 2014 and 2024.

Counties without mapped data centers had approximately 1.9% employment growth during that period. Counties with ten or more facilities experienced approximately 15.6% growth.

More recent employment growth was much flatter across every group. From 2024 through 2026, only the highest-concentration counties remained slightly positive at approximately 0.6%. [Data Cente…9_15_Nadia | PDF]

Once again, this is an association. It does not prove that data centers created all of that employment growth.

Data-center construction can temporarily create considerable demand for:

Construction trades
Engineering
Electrical work
Utility infrastructure
Site preparation
Security
Equipment installation

Once operational, data centers generally require fewer permanent employees than a traditional manufacturing facility of comparable size. Ongoing employment may include technicians, engineers, maintenance workers, security personnel, and operations staff.

NAR’s survey found that REALTORS® generally perceived a stronger positive effect on commercial real estate than residential real estate. Industrial property received the greatest reported interest, followed by land, multifamily property, and storefronts. [MC_DataCen…nar_091526 | PDF]

Could a Data Center Raise Electricity Costs?

The national data does not provide a simple yes-or-no answer.

NAR reported the following average residential electricity rates for 2024:

No data centers: 14.1 cents per kilowatt-hour
One or two: 15.3 cents
Three to nine: 14.4 cents
Ten or more: 13.9 cents

The counties with the highest data-center concentration had slightly lower average residential rates than counties without data centers. However, residential rates increased faster between 2020 and 2024 in counties with data centers. [Data Cente…9_15_Nadia | PDF]

National averages can hide significant local differences. Electricity prices are also affected by state regulations, regional power markets, generation, fuel prices, transmission capacity, utility infrastructure, and existing demand.

The proposed 200-megawatt Titus campus would represent substantial electrical demand. Berks County residents should therefore ask:

Will new generation be required?
Will substations or transmission lines be constructed?
Who will pay for utility upgrades?
Could those costs be passed to existing customers?
Will the developer purchase, build, or provide new power capacity?
What protections will exist if the project is delayed or never completed?

In August 2026, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro issued an executive order addressing potential effects of data-center development on utility customers. The order raised concerns about large new electricity demands and infrastructure costs being shifted to existing ratepayers. [pa.gov]

The national findings do not automatically answer how one 200-megawatt project could affect Berks County’s utility system.

What Other Concerns Do Residents Have?

NAR conducted an online survey of 2,357 REALTORS® in May 2026. Thirty-eight percent reported working in an area where a data center had been developed or was under development. [MC_DataCen…nar_091526 | PDF]

The most frequently reported client and resident concerns were:

Energy costs: 61%
Water use: 56%
Environmental contamination: 43%
Effects on the surrounding landscape: 32%

Respondents also reported concerns about noise, property values, and quality of life. [MC_DataCen…nar_091526 | PDF]

These concerns are not proof that every data center causes every problem. They do identify the issues developers and local governments should address publicly.

For the proposed Titus project, residents should receive clear information about cooling, water consumption, generator testing, mechanical noise, transmission infrastructure, environmental safeguards, emergency response, and long-term monitoring.

How Is Cumru Township Regulating Data Centers?

Cumru Township adopted Ordinance 798 in April 2026, establishing a Data Center Overlay District.

The ordinance restricts data centers to the designated overlay area surrounding the former Titus Station property. It does not allow them throughout the entire township. [cumrutownship.org], [yahoo.com]

The regulations address:

Noise
Water use
Energy demand
Screening and buffering
Environmental review
Backup power
Emergency access
Utility capacity
Hazardous materials
Monitoring and enforcement
Decommissioning

The ordinance recognizes that data centers can require significant land, electricity, water, cooling equipment, and backup-power systems. It also requires developers to address utility consumption beyond what existing infrastructure can support. [cumrutownship.org], [wgal.com]

Creating the overlay district does not represent final approval of the proposed TRON USA AI Campus. It creates rules that a data-center application must follow.

Other Berks County municipalities have also been evaluating zoning amendments, conditional-use standards, and temporary pauses while determining how these facilities should be regulated. The Berks County Planning Commission has published planning guidance for municipalities considering data-center land uses. [berkspa.gov], [berksconnect.com]

Why Should Berks County Residents Care?

The Titus proposal could become one of the region’s largest technology and infrastructure developments.

Potential benefits could include:

Reuse of a former industrial property
Private investment
Construction employment
Permanent technical positions
Commercial tax revenue
Electrical and fiber improvements
Demand for supporting businesses
Growth in industrial real estate

Potential concerns could include:

Electricity demand
Water consumption
Utility costs
Generator and mechanical noise
Visual effects
New substations or transmission lines
Environmental impacts
Emergency-response needs
Tax incentives
Limited permanent employment compared with the project’s size
Future decommissioning costs

The former Titus Generating Station may offer advantages over a rural or residential location because the property was previously used for industrial power generation and already has important infrastructure. That history does not eliminate the need for review, but it is relevant when evaluating the site. [titusdatacenter.com], [berksweekly.com], [cumrutownship.org]

What Questions Should Residents Ask?

As plans develop, Berks County residents should ask:

How much electricity will the full campus require?
Who will pay for new utility infrastructure?
What cooling system will be used?
How much water will the facility consume?
How will noise be measured and controlled?
Where will transmission lines and substations be located?
How many construction jobs are expected?
How many permanent jobs will remain after completion?
What local taxes will the project pay?
What tax incentives or exemptions will it receive?
What environmental review will be completed?
What happens if the facility closes or becomes obsolete?

The answers will be more useful than relying on broad claims that all data centers are either economic opportunities or community threats.

What Should Nearby Buyers and Homeowners Consider?

Anyone evaluating a property near an existing or proposed data center should look closely at the specific location.

Important considerations include:

Distance from the proposed buildings
Visibility from the home
Expected noise levels
Location of backup generators
Transmission lines and substations
Landscaping and buffers
Truck and construction routes
Zoning of surrounding properties
Recent comparable sales
Days on market
Local buyer response

National research provides context, but local sales data matters more when evaluating an individual property.

NAR specifically recommends examining recent neighborhood prices, sales activity, days on market, buyer demand, distance, visibility, proposed infrastructure, and surrounding land use. [Data Cente…9_15_Nadia | PDF]

My Takeaway

NAR’s research does not support a blanket claim that a data center will automatically destroy nearby home values.

It also does not prove that a data center will increase property values, create lasting prosperity, or avoid local infrastructure costs.

Both conclusions go beyond the evidence.

The proposed Titus campus should be evaluated based on its actual development plans, electricity arrangements, water use, environmental protections, tax structure, noise controls, infrastructure costs, job creation, and proximity to homes.

Berks County residents deserve clear information before forming conclusions.

Data centers may be increasingly important to the digital economy, but responsible development still requires transparency, careful planning, local oversight, and protection of neighboring communities.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is a data center coming to Berks County?

A 200-megawatt AI data center campus has been proposed at the former Titus Generating Station in Cumru Township. The project was publicly announced in May 2026, but it remains subject to planning, engineering, financing, utility arrangements, permits, and approvals. [titusdatacenter.com], [titusdatacenter.com]

Where would the Berks County data center be located?

The proposed TRON USA AI Campus would occupy the former Titus Generating Station property on Poplar Neck Road in Cumru Township, adjacent to Reading. The property covers approximately 196 acres. [titusdatacenter.com], [berksweekly.com]

Do data centers lower home values?

Not consistently, according to current research. A Northern Virginia study did not find evidence that proximity to data centers reduced sale prices on average. That finding does not guarantee the effect on an individual home or predict what will happen in Berks County. [NAR Data C…026_Clower | PDF]

Could the Titus project raise electric bills?

That cannot be determined from the available project information. The important questions are how much new power and infrastructure will be required and whether the developer, utility, or existing customers will pay for those changes.

Has the Titus data center received final approval?

The project has been announced, and Cumru Township has created a zoning framework for data centers at the former Titus site. However, an announcement and zoning overlay are not the same as final development approval or completed construction. [titusdatacenter.com], [cumrutownship.org], [yahoo.com]

Following Development in Berks County

The data-center discussion will continue as more detailed information becomes available about the proposed Titus campus and other municipalities update their land-use regulations.

I will continue following the project and explaining what new developments could mean for homeowners, buyers, sellers, businesses, and property investors throughout Berks County.

If you are considering buying, selling, or investing in Berks County, I would be happy to help you understand the local real estate market and identify public information relevant to a specific property.

Contact Ben Perfetto, REALTOR® with Coldwell Banker Realty, to discuss your real estate goals.

Could a Data Center Affect Home Values in Berks County?