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# Property Tax in Philadelphia, PA: How It Works and How to Lower It
- URL: https://josetijam.com/property-tax-in-philadelphia-pa/
- Published: 2026-11-11T03:11:01.000Z
- Updated: 2026-11-11T03:11:00.000Z
- Description: Philadelphia's real estate tax is figured from your property's assessed value and the city's rate. Here is how the bill is built, when it is due, and which relief programs to apply for.
- Author: Housing Ledger Editorial
- Tags: Philadelphia, property tax, real estate tax, Homestead exemption, #gce-eedd9fc7

Your property tax in Philadelphia, PA is your property's assessed value multiplied by the city's real estate tax rate. The rate, the due dates and any discounts for paying are set and published by the City of Philadelphia, so your bill depends on both your assessment and the current figures on the city's property tax page. [\[1\]](https://www.phila.gov/services/property-lots-housing/property-taxes/?ref=josetijam.com)

The bill can also come down. The city runs relief programs such as Homestead, which you apply for through the same property tax service. [\[1\]](https://www.phila.gov/services/property-lots-housing/property-taxes/?ref=josetijam.com) For a buyer, this tax is a recurring cost on top of the mortgage, so it changes what you can afford each month.

Your assessment can change over time, because Philadelphia adopted its Actual Valuation Initiative in 2013 to reassess properties at short intervals to true market value. [\[2\]](https://doi.org/10.1002/pam.22555?ref=josetijam.com)

## How is your Philadelphia tax bill calculated?

Your Philadelphia tax bill starts from the city's estimate of your property's market value, a system the city adopted in 2013 under the **Actual Value Initiative (AVI)**. [\[2\]](https://doi.org/10.1002/pam.22555?ref=josetijam.com) Before AVI, many assessments had little to do with what a home would actually sell for, so two similar houses on the same block could carry very different values. [\[3\]](https://issuelab.org/permalink/resource/14188?ref=josetijam.com)

### What AVI changed

AVI changed three things at once: the certified market value of every property in the city, the way each assessment is used to calculate the tax bill, and how owners handle large tax increases that could result from the new system. [\[3\]](https://issuelab.org/permalink/resource/14188?ref=josetijam.com) The plan called for reassessing all 579,383 properties in the city at the same time. [\[3\]](https://issuelab.org/permalink/resource/14188?ref=josetijam.com) For you as an owner, this means your assessment is meant to track your home's market value, so a rising neighborhood can raise your assessed value too.

The gap before the overhaul was large. Some properties had not been reassessed since 2004, and many others not since the 1980s. [\[3\]](https://issuelab.org/permalink/resource/14188?ref=josetijam.com) A rowhouse last valued decades ago could have been taxed on a figure far below its sale price, while a recently assessed neighbor paid on a much closer number.

### When the new system took effect

Tax bills under AVI began with the bills due early in 2014\. [\[3\]](https://issuelab.org/permalink/resource/14188?ref=josetijam.com) Assessment quality improved substantially after 2014, though the amount of improvement differed from one community to another. [\[2\]](https://doi.org/10.1002/pam.22555?ref=josetijam.com)

### Finding the rate that applies to you

The city publishes current tax rates on its property tax page, along with due dates and applicable discounts. [\[1\]](https://www.phila.gov/services/property-lots-housing/property-taxes/?ref=josetijam.com) Take the rate from that page and apply it to your current assessed value to estimate your bill.

![A homeowner sits at a kitchen table reviewing a paper property tax bill while working out figures on a calculator.](https://tse1.mm.bing.net/th?q=person%20calculating%20bills%20at%20home&w=800&h=450&rs=1&c=4)

## How does Philadelphia compare with the rest of Pennsylvania?

Philadelphia's property tax burden sits in the middle of the pack for Pennsylvania: one estimate puts the city's median effective rate at about 1.13% [\[4\]](https://www.ownwell.com/trends/pennsylvania/philadelphia-county/philadelphia?ref=josetijam.com). That figure is lower than the statewide figure in the same estimate [\[4\]](https://www.ownwell.com/trends/pennsylvania/philadelphia-county/philadelphia?ref=josetijam.com). Several suburban counties, including Delaware County next door, take a larger share of home value each year.

### What an effective rate tells you

An effective rate is the annual tax bill divided by the home's market value. It lets you compare places that use different assessment methods and official rates on one scale.

At 1.13%, a home worth $300,000 would carry roughly $3,390 a year in property tax [\[4\]](https://www.ownwell.com/trends/pennsylvania/philadelphia-county/philadelphia?ref=josetijam.com).

### Delaware County is the high point

Delaware County has the highest property tax rate in Pennsylvania, with an effective rate of 1.67% [\[5\]](https://smartasset.com/taxes/pennsylvania-property-tax-calculator?ref=josetijam.com). On the same $300,000 home, that rate works out to about $5,010 a year, roughly $1,620 more than the Philadelphia estimate [\[5\]](https://smartasset.com/taxes/pennsylvania-property-tax-calculator?ref=josetijam.com).

### Why these numbers are estimates

Effective rates come from private data firms that model typical bills against typical home values. They are not the official rate the city sets, and they are not what appears on your bill.

Your own bill depends on your property's assessment and any relief you receive, so your effective rate can land above or below the median.

![A two-story single-family home with a wide green front lawn and tall trees on a quiet suburban Pennsylvania street.](https://tse1.mm.bing.net/th?q=Pennsylvania%20suburban%20house&w=800&h=450&rs=1&c=4)

## When are property taxes due and what discounts apply?

Philadelphia publishes its property tax due dates and any discounts that apply on the City of Philadelphia's property tax page, and you pay through that same city service [\[1\]](https://www.phila.gov/services/property-lots-housing/property-taxes/?ref=josetijam.com). The city's page for property owners covers tax rates, due dates and applicable discounts in one place, so that page is where you find the deadline for your bill and any discount available to you [\[1\]](https://www.phila.gov/services/property-lots-housing/property-taxes/?ref=josetijam.com).

### Where to find the deadline and discount

Go to the City of Philadelphia site and open Services > Property, lots & housing > Property taxes [\[1\]](https://www.phila.gov/services/property-lots-housing/property-taxes/?ref=josetijam.com). The page lists the due dates for the current tax year along with the discounts that apply, so you can see whether paying by a certain date lowers what you owe [\[1\]](https://www.phila.gov/services/property-lots-housing/property-taxes/?ref=josetijam.com).

Say you close on a home in the fall and the seller's tax for the year is already settled at closing. Your first full bill will arrive for the next tax year, and the city page tells you when that bill is due and whether paying by an earlier date earns a discount. Put that date on your calendar as soon as you move in.

### How to pay

You pay real estate tax through the city's property tax service [\[1\]](https://www.phila.gov/services/property-lots-housing/property-taxes/?ref=josetijam.com). The same page is also where you start other owner tasks, such as applying for Homestead [\[1\]](https://www.phila.gov/services/property-lots-housing/property-taxes/?ref=josetijam.com).

If you have a mortgage with an escrow account, your lender usually pays the bill from that account, and you don't send a payment yourself. If you own the home outright, or your loan has no escrow account, the payment and the deadline are your responsibility.

When you pay on your own, keep the confirmation for each payment. It is your record if a payment is later missing from the city's account for your property.

## Which relief programs can lower your bill?

Two programs can lower what you owe on a Philadelphia property: the Homestead exemption for owners who live in their home, and the 10-year abatement for new construction and improvements. They work differently, and most owners will deal with Homestead first.

### Homestead exemption

You apply for Homestead through the City of Philadelphia, on the same property tax service where the city lists rates, due dates and discounts [\[1\]](https://www.phila.gov/services/property-lots-housing/property-taxes/?ref=josetijam.com). If you just bought a home you plan to live in, put this application on your move-in to-do list alongside setting up utilities.

Homestead lowers the taxable portion of your home's assessed value, which reduces the bill each year it applies. The city's property tax page is where you start the application and where eligibility rules are posted [\[1\]](https://www.phila.gov/services/property-lots-housing/property-taxes/?ref=josetijam.com).

### The 10-year property tax abatement

The abatement removes the taxable value of improvements on a structure or land for 10 years [\[6\]](https://repository.upenn.edu/hp%5Ftheses/628?ref=josetijam.com). In practice, if you build a new house or do a major renovation that raises your assessment, the added value from that work is not taxed during the abatement period, while the land and the pre-existing value still are.

This matters most to two groups. Owners planning large renovations can factor the abatement into project costs.

### Why the abatement is debated

The program was created in a very different real estate market than Philadelphia has today [\[6\]](https://repository.upenn.edu/hp%5Ftheses/628?ref=josetijam.com). Some stakeholders have heavily criticized it as a drain on municipal finances, and research has also linked it to demolition of older buildings that are replaced by larger structures [\[6\]](https://repository.upenn.edu/hp%5Ftheses/628?ref=josetijam.com).

## Why did assessments change, and are they fairer now?

Philadelphia overhauled its assessments because the old values often had little to do with what properties were actually worth. For decades the system was criticized as outdated and unfair, and two similar houses across the street from each other could carry very different assessments. [\[3\]](https://issuelab.org/permalink/resource/14188?ref=josetijam.com)

### What was wrong with the old system

Many properties simply had not been looked at in years. Some had not been reassessed since 2004, and many others not since the 1980s. [\[3\]](https://issuelab.org/permalink/resource/14188?ref=josetijam.com) If your home had last been valued in the 1980s while a newer purchase down the block reflected recent prices, the two of you could pay very different taxes on similar houses.

The overhaul revalued every parcel in the city at the same time, all 579,383 pieces of real estate. [\[3\]](https://issuelab.org/permalink/resource/14188?ref=josetijam.com) Before that, the city had never done a thorough citywide field inspection of every property and its characteristics. [\[3\]](https://issuelab.org/permalink/resource/14188?ref=josetijam.com) For an owner whose assessment had sat low for decades, that meant a jump in value. For an owner who had been over-assessed, it could mean a lower bill.

### Is the new system fairer?

Research so far points to yes. A study of parcel-level data matched with sales in Philadelphia and 15 comparable cities found positive equity results from more regular reassessments. [\[2\]](https://doi.org/10.1002/pam.22555?ref=josetijam.com) Assessment quality improved substantially after 2014, and comparisons with the other cities confirmed Philadelphia's gains in quality and equity. [\[2\]](https://doi.org/10.1002/pam.22555?ref=josetijam.com)

The gains were uneven. The size of the improvement varied across communities, and the study found different effects depending on property value and on neighborhood income, race and gentrification status. [\[2\]](https://doi.org/10.1002/pam.22555?ref=josetijam.com) The researchers stress regular reassessment in places where values rise quickly. [\[2\]](https://doi.org/10.1002/pam.22555?ref=josetijam.com) If your neighborhood is changing fast, expect your assessment to follow market prices more closely than it once did.

## What to do next as an owner or buyer

Remember that your Philadelphia bill comes from two numbers you can look up today: your property's assessed value and the city's current rate. Start on the City of Philadelphia property taxes page, which lists tax rates, due dates and applicable discounts for owners of property in the city [\[1\]](https://www.phila.gov/services/property-lots-housing/property-taxes/?ref=josetijam.com). Multiply your assessment by the current rate to get a yearly figure you can plan around.

If you own and live in the home, apply for Homestead through the same city page [\[1\]](https://www.phila.gov/services/property-lots-housing/property-taxes/?ref=josetijam.com). If you are buying, divide the yearly tax by 12 and add it to your mortgage payment before you set a price limit.

## Sources

1. [Property taxes | Services | City of Philadelphia](https://www.phila.gov/services/property-lots-housing/property-taxes/?ref=josetijam.com)
2. [Assessment frequency and equity of the property tax: Latest evidence from Philadelphia](https://doi.org/10.1002/pam.22555?ref=josetijam.com)
3. [The Actual Value Initiative: Overhauling Property Taxes in Philadelphia](https://issuelab.org/permalink/resource/14188?ref=josetijam.com)
4. [Property Taxes in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania](https://www.ownwell.com/trends/pennsylvania/philadelphia-county/philadelphia?ref=josetijam.com)
5. [Pennsylvania Property Tax Calculator](https://smartasset.com/taxes/pennsylvania-property-tax-calculator?ref=josetijam.com)
6. [Preservation Through Property Tax: The Impacts of Philadelphia's 10-Year Property tax Abatement on…](https://repository.upenn.edu/hp%5Ftheses/628?ref=josetijam.com)