Public Records
Edition
PhiladelphiaBuilt on public City of Philadelphia recordsJuly 9, 2026

Who owns your block

3900 block of Elser St

A mixed-ownership block: 46% owner-occupied, 32% investor-held, with 15 open code violations and 10 homes behind $45,325 on taxes.

The typical home here is up 65% since 2016, now about $72K. Property taxes are climbing about 0% a year though the increases have eased lately.

Every parcel on the block, colored by who owns it. Tap a parcel for the owner and its city record.

By the Numbers

Median value
$72K
$6K–$504K
ZIP median $108K
Price / sq ft
$71
typical home
city median $177
Vs. Philadelphia
0.3×
the city median
city $223K
Tax / yr
$928
typical · up to $7K
city ≈$3K/yr
Tax abatements
9 of 37
$12K/yr forgone
Owner-occupied
46%
14 of 37
city 41%
Rentals
11%
4 licensed
city 15% of homes
Open violations
15
L&I code
▲ block 11% · city 5%
Back taxes
$45K
10 of 37 behind
▲ block 27% · city 9%
Zoning appeals
3
3 homes · ZBA & boards
block 8% · city 5%

How fast it's moving

1 year
+0%
value · tax −$39
5 years
+66%
value · tax −$8
10 years
+65%
value · tax −$45

Assessed-value change for the typical home. Philadelphia taxes a flat 1.3998% of value, so the bill moves with it.

The makeup of the block

Every home, plotted by size and assessed value — press play and watch the block reprice from 2016 to 2027. One bubble per house (area = lot size), colored by who owns it; a gold ring marks tax-abated new construction. Click a bubble for its report.

2027
  • Owner-occupied
  • Investor / LLC
  • Absentee
  • Vacant
  • Tax-abated
  • Bubble = lot size
  • → bigger interior  ·  ↑ higher value

Assessed values from the city's year-by-year assessment record — a proxy for price, lumpy in reassessment years.

How the block compares

The typical home here is $72K — about 0.3× the citywide median, and below the ZIP 19140 median of $108K. The same block, read against everyone else in the ZIP 19140 and across Philadelphia.

This blockZIP 19140Philadelphia
Median home value$72K$108K$223K
Owner-occupied30%31%41%

Safety & quality of life

Within 200 metres of the block over the last 12 months: 81 reported crimes (41 violent) and 131 resident 311 requests to the city.

Crimes · 12mo
81
41 violent · within 200m
311 requests · 12mo
131
28 still open

Most reported crimes

Other Assaults24
Thefts10
Theft from Vehicle9
All Other Offenses7
Weapon Violations7
Vandalism/Criminal Mischief6

Top 311 complaints

Illegal Dumping23
Maintenance Complaint18
Abandoned Vehicle16
Rubbish/Recyclable Material Collection15
Street Defect15
Other (Streets)8

Philadelphia Police incident reports and 311 service requests within 200m, trailing 12 months. Reported location, not necessarily where an incident occurred.

Schools

The public schools this block is zoned for — its official School District of Philadelphia catchments.

Elementary & Middle
Mastery Charter School At Cleveland
High
Mastery Charter School At Gratz

Catchment assignments from the School District of Philadelphia via City of Philadelphia open data. Confirm with the District before enrollment decisions.

What it's worth, and where taxes are going

Median assessed value · 2016–2027

$0$100K$200K$72K2016: $44K2017: $44K2018: $44K2019: $42K2020: $43K2021: $43K2022: $43K2023: $66K2024: $66K2025: $72K2026: $72K2027: $72K2016202020232027

▲ +65% since 2016

Estimated property tax · per home, per year

$0$500$1,000$5522016: $5802017: $5972018: $6082019: $5422020: $5602021: $5602022: $5602023: $7972024: $6332025: $5912026: $5912027: $5522016202020232027

▼ -5% since 2016 · ~0%/yr

9
9 properties on this block carry a tax abatement or major exemption. New construction and gut rehabs get the improvement value exempted for up to 10 years, so their tax bills sit far below their real value — block-wide, exemptions keep about $12,048 a year off the tax roll. Read the tax figures with that in mind.

Who really pays

Philadelphia charges every home the same 1.40% of its assessed value. Abatements and exemptions shrink what some homes are taxed on — here's this block:

26 homes pay the full 1.40%11 pay less
$347pays now $1,747at the full rate

The starkest example: 3959 Elser St is assessed at $125K but pays $347 a year — about 20% of the $1,747 it would owe at the full rate, because its new-construction value is abated for 10 years.

The block as an asset

Read like a financial asset, this block has lagged the Philadelphia market, compounding +4.7% a year against the city's 6.5%.

Indexed performance · this block vs. the Philadelphia market

9510025020162019202220252027This block 165 Philadelphia 201

Rebased to 100 in 2016, like a stock against its index. $100 in the typical home here would be worth $165 today versus $201 across Philadelphia — this block trailed the market.

Annualized return
+4.7%/yr
price, since 2016
Total appreciation
+65%
since 2016
Net rental yield
est., after tax carry
Total return
+4.7%/yr
price + net rent
Real return
+1.7%/yr
after ~3% inflation
vs. Philadelphia
-1.8 pts
market 6.5%/yr

Return is from assessed-value history (a proxy for market price, lumpy in reassessment years); rental yield is estimated from ACS area rents. Informational only, not investment advice.

How often it changes hands

This block has recorded 33 arm's-length sales since 1999. The typical home has sold 0 times in that window, while 21 have not changed hands at all.

Every recorded sale · price & date

$0$500K$1.0M20002005201020152020
33arm's-length sales since 1999
0times the typical home has sold
5most sales for a single property
21homes never sold in the window

Who owns it

Ownership of 37 parcels

Owner-occupied: 14Investor / LLC: 6Absentee individual: 7Vacant: 10 37parcels
  • Owner-occupied 14
  • Investor / LLC 6
  • Absentee individual 7
  • Vacant 10

Value distribution today

9 parcels13 parcels6 parcels3 parcels2 parcels1 parcels3 parcels
$6K$274K+

The block's largest owner, Philadelphia Lotus 08 LLC, carries 3 open violations across 62 properties it owns around the city.

OwnerOn blockOwns citywidePortfolio valueSource
Philadelphia Lotus 08 LLC162$8.0Mphila.gov ↗ · registry ↗
Plotz LLC123$397Kphila.gov ↗ · registry ↗
2057 E Atlantic St LLC18$919Kphila.gov ↗ · registry ↗
Ben Investment Property L15$1.2Mphila.gov ↗ · registry ↗
Ortus Developments LLC15$727Kphila.gov ↗ · registry ↗
Pike Investments INC14$382Kphila.gov ↗ · registry ↗
Asher B Abou (individual)23$627Kphila.gov ↗
Elser Investment INC22$341Kphila.gov ↗ · registry ↗
John Rais Studios LLC12$439Kphila.gov ↗ · registry ↗
Thomas Magnum LLC11$15Kphila.gov ↗ · registry ↗
Vincent Vega LLC11$504Kphila.gov ↗ · registry ↗
Mazzoni Mechanicals LLC11$140Kphila.gov ↗ · registry ↗

The mailing address is where the assessor sends the tax bill — for an LLC, often the closest public record gets to the person behind it. "Registry" searches the owner's name in state incorporation records (OpenCorporates).

House by house

All 37 homes on the block — value and 12-year trajectory, ownership, and the paper trail on the ones that were bought, built, torn down, or flipped. Sorted up the street; each links to its full city record — or download the roster (CSV).

Every house's assessed value, 2016–2027 — each line is one home

$0$500K$1.0M201620182020202220242026Block median
Each houseNew build / flipBlock median

Worth a look

AddressOwnershipValue & trendBd/BaSq ftBuiltSalesFlags
3910 ELSER ST Traded 2×: $2K in 2006 → $3K in 2008 (+25%). Vacant $35K —/— 2
3912 ELSER ST Bought for $10K in 2002, built new under a 2011 permit, sold for $22K in 2008. Investor / LLC $97K 3/1 1,184 1930 2 rented
3914 ELSER ST Traded 3×: $500 in 1999 → $15K in 2017 (+2900%). Owner-occupied $70K 3/1 920 1930 3
3916 ELSER ST Bought for $2K in 1999, alteration permit in 2012, sold for $128K in 2024 (+6300%). Owner-occupied $102K 2/1 920 1930 5
3918 ELSER ST Traded 3×: $12K in 1999 → $170K in 2022 (+1317%). Owner-occupied $139K 3/1 920 1930 3
3920 ELSER ST Absentee individual $72K 3/1 920 1930 0 rented
3922 ELSER ST built new (tax-abated). Owner-occupied $72K 3/1 920 1930 0 abated
3924 ELSER ST Owner pulled a alterations permit in 2020. Vacant $15K —/— 0
3926-32 ELSER ST L&I violation (2010); 11 L&I violations (2015); 8 L&I violations (2025). Investor / LLC $306K —/— 6,000 1930 0
3934-36 ELSER ST Owner-occupied $274K 2/1 3,890 1930 1
3938 ELSER ST sold $194 (2003); 7 L&I violations (2018); 7 L&I violations (2019); L&I violation (2020); L&I violation (2023). Absentee individual $179K —/— 1,890 1930 1 1 viol
3940-48 ELSER ST L&I violation (2018); Appeal granted with conditions (2020). Vacant $171K —/— 0
3943-45 ELSER ST Owner pulled a certificate of occupancy (co) (may inclu… permit in 2023. Investor / LLC $504K —/— 4,000 1930 0 4 viol
3947 ELSER ST L&I violation (2020); 7 L&I violations (2022); 2 L&I violations incl UNSAFE STRUCTURE (2023); 3 L&I violations incl UNSAFE STRUCTURE (2026). Absentee individual $48K 3/1 1,056 1930 0 5 viol
3949 ELSER ST 3 L&I violations (2018); sold $2K (2018). Vacant $11K —/— 1 tax lien
3950 ELSER ST Owner-occupied $78K 3/1 960 1930 0 abatedtax lien
3951-53 ELSER ST Owner pulled a minor demolition permit in 2021. Vacant $15K —/— 0 tax lien
3952 ELSER ST built new under a 2026 permit (tax-abated). Owner-occupied $78K 3/1 960 1930 0 abatedtax lien
3954-56 ELSER ST Bought for $50K in 2004, major alteration permit in 2018, sold for $100K in 2018 (+100%). Investor / LLC $140K —/— 2,000 1920 3 tax lien
3955-57 ELSER ST Owner pulled a commercial make safe permit permit in 2026. Absentee individual $208K —/— 8,000 1920 0 5 viol
3958 ELSER ST Owner-occupied $68K —/— 1,050 1930 0 abated
3959 ELSER ST Bought for $10K in 2005, built new (tax-abated), sold for $3K in 2018. Owner-occupied $125K 4/1 1,750 1930 2 abatedtax lien
3960 ELSER ST Owner pulled a minor demolition permit in 2021. Vacant $13K —/— 0 tax lien
3961 ELSER ST 2 L&I violations (2015); sold $15K (2015); 2 L&I violations (2016); 8 L&I violations (2022); 3 L&I violations (2025). Absentee individual $48K 3/1 1,050 1930 1
3962 ELSER ST built new (tax-abated). Owner-occupied $54K —/— 1,002 1930 0 abatedtax lien
3963R ELSER ST sold $5K (2004); 2 L&I violations (2009). Absentee individual $6K —/— 555 1930 1
3963 ELSER ST built new under a 2024 permit (tax-abated). Owner-occupied $58K —/— 1,050 1930 0 abated
3964 ELSER ST Owner-occupied $58K —/— 750 1930 0 abatedtax lien
3965 ELSER ST Bought for $11K in 2016. Owner pulled a addition and/or alterations permit in 2025. Absentee individual $66K 4/1 2,250 1930 2
3966 ELSER ST Vacant $23K —/— 0 tax lien
3967 ELSER ST Traded 3×: $7K in 2001 → $15K in 2003 (+114%). Investor / LLC $88K 3/1 1,080 1930 3 rented
3968-70 ELSER ST Vacant $52K —/— 0
3969 ELSER ST built new under a 2007 permit (tax-abated). Owner-occupied $95K 3/1 1,104 1930 0 abatedtax lien
3971 ELSER ST Owner-occupied $85K —/— 1,240 1930 0
3973 ELSER ST Bought for $13K in 2016, alterations permit in 2017, sold for $595K in 2021 (+4477%). Investor / LLC $94K —/— 1,376 1930 2 rented
3975 ELSER ST Bought for $17K in 2015. Owner pulled a demolition permit in 2017. Vacant $34K —/— 1
3977 ELSER ST Owner pulled a demolition permit in 2017. Vacant $32K —/— 0

Neighborhood

Neighborhood income and demographics are coming soon.

Generated 2026-07-09 from public City of Philadelphia records  ·  Download this block's data (CSV)

Where this comes from

City datasets are fetched live from OpenDataPhilly (phl.carto.com) and cached briefly. AI-written passages are generated from these records only and rejected if they state a number the record doesn't hold.