Description
The City Controller’s Office issued an investigative report in December 2024 that found homeowners improperly receiving the City of Philadelphia’s Homestead Exemption for their Real Estate Taxes could be costing the city and School District of Philadelphia more than $11 million annually.
Forty percent of the more than 550,000 properties in the city are listed in the Office of Property Assessment’s database as receiving the Homestead Exemption. The program reduces the taxable amount of the property by $100,000, resulting in an annual savings of $1,400 per residence. While the total percentage of homes with the exemption includes the more than 23,000 that the City Controller identified as appearing to be ineligible to receive the exemption, there could also be homeowners who do not take advantage of the tax deduction.
According to Pew’s latest “State of the City”, 53% of Philadelphia’s homes were owner-occupied in 2022. Neighborhoods across the Northeast section of the city had the highest percentage of properties receiving the Homestead Exemption, including those in the 19154 (72%), 19115 (65%), 19114 (65%), and 19152 (61%) zip codes. The Cedarbrook neighborhood in the Northwest section of the city (19150) was also in the top five for the highest percentages of properties with the exemption.
Several sections of North Philadelphia have some of the lowest percentages of properties with Homestead Exemptions. This includes the 19122, 19121 and 19133 zip codes that have 20% or less of the total properties with the exemption. These three zip codes have an average median household income of about $40,000. In addition, zip codes that fall in Center City have a low percentage of properties with the exemption, which can be attributed to the high population of renters. The Homestead Exemption is only available to those who own and live in their homes. The final deadline to apply for the Homestead Exemption is December 1, of each year. Property owners with a 10-year residential tax abatement are not eligible.
Percentage of Exemption Participants by Zip Code
| ZIP CODE | # OF PROPERTIES | # W/ HOMESTEAD | % |
| 19154 | 11,541 | 8,364 | 72% |
| 19115 | 10,553 | 6,866 | 65% |
| 19114 | 10,403 | 6,734 | 65% |
| 19150 | 9,223 | 5,969 | 65% |
| 19152 | 10,410 | 6,400 | 61% |
| 19119 | 9,906 | 6,031 | 61% |
| 19116 | 10,407 | 6,227 | 60% |
| 19126 | 5,066 | 2,972 | 59% |
| 19118 | 2,984 | 1,686 | 57% |
| 19111 | 19,183 | 10,723 | 56% |
| 19128 | 13,912 | 7,550 | 54% |
| 19151 | 11,366 | 5,979 | 53% |
| 19138 | 12,754 | 6,496 | 51% |
| 19136 | 11,255 | 5,645 | 50% |
| 19141 | 10,115 | 4,689 | 46% |
| 19149 | 18,499 | 8,302 | 45% |
| 19145 | 18,675 | 8,332 | 45% |
| 19120 | 21,606 | 9,400 | 44% |
| 19131 | 14,917 | 6,343 | 43% |
| 19135 | 12,135 | 5,134 | 42% |
| 19143 | 25,487 | 10,419 | 41% |
| 19148 | 21,400 | 8,408 | 39% |
| 19144 | 13,506 | 5,074 | 38% |
| 19124 | 23,184 | 8,540 | 37% |
| 19147 | 16,844 | 5,797 | 34% |
| 19130 | 11,026 | 3,794 | 34% |
| 19142 | 11,424 | 3,700 | 32% |
| 19140 | 22,817 | 7,319 | 32% |
| 19139 | 16,471 | 5,253 | 32% |
| 19106 | 6,861 | 2,175 | 32% |
| 19125 | 13,318 | 3,834 | 29% |
| 19134 | 25,748 | 7,389 | 29% |
| 19132 | 20,691 | 5,578 | 27% |
| 19103 | 7,864 | 2,073 | 26% |
| 19146 | 20,918 | 5,240 | 25% |
| 19122 | 9,005 | 1,774 | 20% |
| 19121 | 16,340 | 3,047 | 19% |
| 19123 | 6,907 | 1,262 | 18% |
| 19133 | 14,481 | 2,638 | 18% |
| 19104 | 11,878 | 2,088 | 18% |
Each month Controller Brady looks forward to bringing transparency and accountability of our city, right to you.