In Philadelphia, a property tax bill belongs to the person who owns the house more than to the house. The 2027 revaluation made that matter more than it used to. Every major relief program the City runs is tied to the owner's residency, income, age or length of ownership, and it comes off the account once the ownership change is recorded. A buyer who budgets from the seller's last bill may be budgeting from a discount that won't carry over. Measured as a share of the bill, that gap is widest on lower-assessed homes, and that includes several of the neighborhoods whose values climbed fastest this year.
The same house, two very different bills
The City's tax rate is 1.3998% of assessed value. It has not changed since 2016, and it is split into a 0.6159% City share and a 0.7839% School District share. The Homestead Exemption lowers the taxable assessment of an owner-occupied primary residence by $100,000, which the City says saves most homeowners $1,399 a year.
The exemption is a fixed dollar amount, so for most enrolled homes the savings land near that same $1,399. On a lower-assessed home, that amount is most of the bill. Here is what that looks like at the 2027 median assessments the Philadelphia Inquirer reported and the City cited:
| 2027 assessment | Bill with no relief | Bill with Homestead | Share of bill removed |
|---|---|---|---|
| $123,600, the City's median for the highest-increase neighborhoods | about $1,730 | about $330 | roughly 81% |
| $133,400, Kensington's median | about $1,867 | about $468 | roughly 75% |
These figures are straight arithmetic on the published rate and exemption. Your actual bill depends on your property's own assessment. In the City's words, for many homeowners in the neighborhoods with the largest increases, "the median taxable assessed value is just $23,600." When a seller's bill reflects that, and the buyer is not yet enrolled, the buyer's bill on the same house can come out to roughly five times as much. On a home assessed at several times these figures, losing the same exemption raises the bill by a much smaller multiple.
Why the 2027 revaluation sharpened the effect
The City released its Tax Year 2027 values in late June 2026. Notices covered more than 580,000 properties, and the City estimated the median-valued residential bill would rise about $97. Citywide, the Inquirer's analysis of single-family homes found a 3% median increase from Tax Year 2025 to 2027. That is a far smaller jump than the one in the previous reassessment.
The increases were uneven. Kensington's median residential assessment rose 15.3% between Tax Year 2025 and 2027, from $115,700 to $133,400. Mantua rose 15% and Kingsessing 12%, and Grays Ferry rounded out the four largest percentage increases. All four border Fishtown, University City, and Point Breeze. In a later Inquirer analysis, the biggest clusters of homes assessed at least 50% higher than two years earlier were in southern Strawberry Mansion and Hartranft. Citywide, nearly 6,000 homeowners saw increases above 50%, and more than 2,200 saw their assessments more than double.
A higher assessment raises the full, unrelieved bill, while the exemption stays fixed at $100,000. In these neighborhoods, the 2027 increases pushed more of each assessment past that $100,000 line, so the unrelieved bill grew while the dollar amount the exemption removes stayed about the same. These are also the neighborhoods where a long-time seller is most likely to be using LOOP, the program built for sharp increases.
Every program leaves with the seller
Philadelphia lists four main property tax assistance programs. Each one is tied to the owner.
- Homestead Exemption. This is the only one of the four that is not income-based. It requires that the home be the owner's primary residence. Once approved, the owner does not reapply "unless your deed changes."
- Longtime Owner Occupants Program, or LOOP. This program caps the assessment for owners who have lived in the home at least 10 years, meet income limits, and had an increase of at least 50% in one year or 75% over five years. For 2026, the income limit for a household of four is $147,250. A new buyer starts at zero years.
- Senior Citizen Tax Freeze. This freezes the bill at the amount from the first year the owner qualified.
- Low-Income Tax Freeze. This keeps the bill at the previous year's amount for an eligible owner.
The City's Department of Revenue says that once you no longer own a property, "you'll be automatically removed from all programs when the new ownership records are updated." The same page lists inheriting a benefit "from a relative or previous owner" as one way an owner ends up with relief they don't qualify for. It says the best way to avoid repaying benefits you weren't eligible for is to contact Revenue promptly. So a discount that stays on the account for a while after settlement may not hold up. If records catch up later, the corrected amount can show up after the buyer has already budgeted around the lower one.
LOOP has one more detail that matters when reading a seller's bill. An owner cannot be enrolled in LOOP and Homestead at the same time. A seller's bill may reflect a LOOP cap with no Homestead on it at all, and neither one carries over to the next owner.
The fall closing calendar
This is why October and November contracts deserve a closer look at dates. The 2027 cycle runs in this order, according to the City:
- June 29, 2026. 2027 assessment notices mailed and posted online.
- September 1 and October 5, 2026. The First Level Review and formal Board of Revision of Taxes appeal deadlines. Both have passed.
- December 1, 2026. The Homestead application deadline for the 2027 bill. Tax bills start mailing the same day.
- January 1, 2027. The new assessments take effect.
- March 31, 2027. The 2027 Real Estate Tax payment is due.
The appeal window has closed, so a buyer this fall is taking on the 2027 value as assessed. The step still open is the Homestead application. The City says to apply by December 1, 2026 to get the benefit on the 2027 bill, and it carves out an exception for buyers whose settlement sheet shows a closing date between December 2 and 31. Its published guidance does not describe a similar rule for an ordinary application filed after the deadline outside that December window.
Getting the paperwork in can take a phone call. Applications go online through the Philadelphia Tax Center, by phone to the Homestead hotline at (215) 686-9200, or by mail. On its Homestead Exemption page, the City says that if the previous owner is still listed, applicants should call the hotline or send a paper application. It also says an approval that comes after bills are created shows up as a credit on the account, and the owner can file a refund petition. The City also offers a combined application covering five relief programs.
How the settlement math handles the year
Philadelphia's tax year runs from January 1 to December 31, and payment is due March 31. A Philadelphia real estate law firm's guide to agreements of sale, updated June 2026, explains that local property taxes are commonly paid in advance. It says the agreement of sale should provide for the buyer to reimburse the seller for their share on a pro-rata basis. The specific adjustment depends on what the agreement says.
For a closing late in 2026, proration covers the 2026 bill the seller has already paid, at the seller's relieved amount. The 2027 bill is the first one calculated for the new owner, on the new assessment, with whatever relief the new owner has applied for and been approved for by then.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I take over the seller's LOOP cap or tax freeze? The City's guidance ties LOOP to the owner's own 10 years of residency and income, and the freezes to the current owner's eligibility. All programs are removed when ownership records update.
Is the City raising the tax rate for 2027? The published 2027 rate is 1.3998%, the same as every year since 2016. Changes in individual bills come from the new assessments and from who is enrolled in relief.
Where can I see a property's 2027 assessment? Values are posted at property.phila.gov, and the City's LOOP explainer points to a Real Estate Tax Estimator there that shows bills with Homestead or LOOP applied.
If you're under contract in Philadelphia this fall, or about to write an offer, we can look at the property's 2027 assessment and what relief is on the account now, and line up your closing date against the December 1 deadline before you sign. Gavin LaRocca is glad to go through those numbers with you. Let's Connect.
This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.
