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

Who owns your block

500 block of S 42nd St

An investor-heavy block: 68% of the parcels are held by LLCs or companies, with 14 open code violations.

The typical home here is up 90% since 2016, now about $825K. Property taxes are climbing about 6% 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
$825K
$456K–$7.3M
ZIP median $211K
Price / sq ft
$209
typical home
city median $177
Vs. Philadelphia
3.7×
the city median
city $223K
Recent sale
$1.4M
1 sold in 2yr
assessed $825K
Tax / yr
$11K
typical · up to $79K
city ≈$3K/yr
Tax abatements
6 of 19
$109K/yr forgone
Owner-occupied
11%
2 of 19
city 41%
Rentals
68%
13 licensed
city 15% of homes
Open violations
14
L&I code
▲ block 5% · city 5%
Back taxes
$0
all current
▼ block 0% · city 9%
Zoning appeals
7
7 homes · ZBA & boards
block 37% · city 5%

How fast it's moving

1 year
+5%
value · tax +$101
5 years
+19%
value · tax +$2K
10 years
+90%
value · tax +$5K

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 $825K — about 3.7× the citywide median, and above the ZIP 19104 median of $211K. The same block, read against everyone else in the ZIP 19104 and across Philadelphia.

This blockZIP 19104Philadelphia
Median home value$825K$211K$223K
Owner-occupied5%18%41%

Safety & quality of life

Within 200 metres of the block over the last 12 months: 70 reported crimes (17 violent) and 240 resident 311 requests to the city.

Crimes · 12mo
70
17 violent · within 200m
311 requests · 12mo
240
26 still open

Most reported crimes

Thefts23
Other Assaults13
Vandalism/Criminal Mischief10
Motor Vehicle Theft8
Theft from Vehicle5
All Other Offenses3

Top 311 complaints

Graffiti Removal43
Maintenance Complaint36
Rubbish/Recyclable Material Collection32
Salting25
Sanitation Violation13
Shoveling13

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 · K-8
Penn Alexander
4209 Spruce St · 601 students
High · 9-12
West Philadelphia HS
4901 Chestnut St · 729 students

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$1.0M$2.0M$825K2016: $434K2017: $434K2018: $525K2019: $690K2020: $696K2021: $696K2022: $696K2023: $805K2024: $805K2025: $782K2026: $782K2027: $825K2016202020232027

▲ +90% since 2016

Estimated property tax · per home, per year

$0$10,000$20,000$10,4512016: $5,6642017: $5,6642018: $6,9212019: $7,8642020: $8,1622021: $8,1622022: $8,1622023: $10,6302024: $10,6302025: $10,3502026: $10,3502027: $10,4512016202020232027

▲ +85% since 2016 · ~+6%/yr

6
6 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 $108,533 a year off the tax roll. Read the tax figures with that in mind.

Who really pays — effective tax rate, one dot per home

1.40% — the statutory rate0%0.4%0.8%1.2%
$78,575pays now $102,117at the full rate

516-26 S 42nd St is assessed at $7.3M but pays $78,575 a year — about 77% of the $102,117 it would owe at the statutory rate, because its new-construction value is abated.

The block as an asset

Read like a financial asset, this block has tracked the Philadelphia market, compounding +6% a year against the city's 6.5%.

Indexed performance · this block vs. the Philadelphia market

9510025020162019202220252027This block 190 Philadelphia 201

Rebased to 100 in 2016, like a stock against its index. $100 in the typical home here would be worth $190 today versus $201 across Philadelphia — this block trailed the market.

Annualized return
+6%/yr
price, since 2016
Total appreciation
+90%
since 2016
Net rental yield
est., after tax carry
Total return
+6%/yr
price + net rent
Real return
+3%/yr
after ~3% inflation
vs. Philadelphia
-0.5 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 30 arm's-length sales since 2000. The typical home has sold 1 time in that window, while 4 have not changed hands at all.

Every recorded sale · price & date

$0$1.0M$2.0M2004201020162022
30arm's-length sales since 2000
1times the typical home has sold
5most sales for a single property
4homes never sold in the window

Who owns it

Ownership of 19 parcels

Owner-occupied: 2Investor / LLC: 13Absentee individual: 4 19parcels
  • Owner-occupied 2
  • Investor / LLC 13
  • Absentee individual 4

Value distribution today

13 parcels4 parcels0 parcels0 parcels0 parcels0 parcels2 parcels
$456K$4.1M+

The block's largest owner, Powelton Properties Llc, carries 2 open violations across 19 properties it owns around the city.

OwnerOn blockOwns citywidePortfolio valueSource
Powelton Properties Llc119$11Mphila.gov ↗
Horizon House Inc119$13Mphila.gov ↗
D&R Global Investment Llc15$3.0Mphila.gov ↗
Kkchen Management Llc14$2.5Mphila.gov ↗
Fulwider Corp14$2.2Mphila.gov ↗
Drexel Property Associate23$2.7Mphila.gov ↗
Grk Properties Llc11$747Kphila.gov ↗
Grk Llc11$659Kphila.gov ↗
Sokoloff Lawrie Llc11$456Kphila.gov ↗
Alexandria Gardens Llc11$7.3Mphila.gov ↗
Greenzang Properties V Llc11$1.2Mphila.gov ↗
Greenzang Properties V Ll11$1.2Mphila.gov ↗

House by house

All 19 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$5.0M$10M201620182020202220242026Block median
Each houseNew build / flipBlock median

Worth a look

AddressOwnershipValue & trendBd/BaSq ftBuiltSalesFlags
500 S 42ND ST Bought for $250K in 2000. Owner pulled a change of use permit in 2023. Investor / LLC $1.3M —/— 8,126 1920 2
501 S 42ND ST Bought for $200K in 2003, plumbing permit in 2010, sold for $900K in 2020 (+350%). Investor / LLC $861K —/— 3,425 1889 4 rented
502 S 42ND ST Bought for $266K in 2004. Owner pulled a plumbing permit in 2013. Owner-occupied $732K 7/2 3,505 1910 1
503 S 42ND ST Owner-occupied $686K —/— 2,805 1930 0 rentedtax lien
504-06 S 42ND ST built new under a 2014 permit (tax-abated). Investor / LLC $825K —/— 9,360 1930 0 abated
505 S 42ND ST Bought for $285K in 2002. Owner pulled a electrical permit in 2008. Investor / LLC $910K —/— 2,805 1920 1 rented
507 S 42ND ST Bought for $285K in 2002. Owner pulled a electrical permit in 2008. Investor / LLC $596K —/— 2,805 1920 1 rented
508-14 S 42ND ST built new under a 2025 permit (tax-abated). Absentee individual $4.1M —/— 41,000 1950 0 abated
509 S 42ND ST Bought for $190K in 2002. Owner pulled a electrical permit in 2017. Investor / LLC $747K —/— 3,600 1890 3 rented
511 S 42ND ST Traded 2×: $510K in 2015 → $850K in 2018 (+67%). Investor / LLC $798K —/— 3,750 1890 2 rented
513 S 42ND ST Bought for $277K in 2000. Owner pulled a alterations permit in 2025. Investor / LLC $659K —/— 3,300 1900 3 rented
515 S 42ND ST Bought for $525K in 2016. Owner pulled a roof covering replacement permit in 2024. Investor / LLC $456K —/— 3,600 1900 1 rentedtax lien
516-26 S 42ND ST built new under a 2019 permit (tax-abated). Investor / LLC $7.3M —/— 32,620 1915 1 abated14 viol
517 S 42ND ST Bought for $750K in 2018, built new under a 2018 permit (tax-abated), sold for $1.4M in 2026. Absentee individual $1.1M —/— 4,625 1870 5 rentedabated
519 S 42ND ST Bought for $300K in 2004, built new under a 2016 permit (tax-abated), sold for $565K in 2016. Absentee individual $839K —/— 4,362 1870 2 rentedabated
521 S 42ND ST Investor / LLC $809K —/— 4,254 1925 0 rented
523 S 42ND ST Bought for $145K in 2000. Owner pulled a make safe permit for rp permit in 2025. Absentee individual $765K —/— 3,300 1875 1
525 S 42ND ST Bought for $550K in 2021, built new under a 2022 permit (tax-abated), sold for $784K in 2021. Investor / LLC $1.2M —/— 4,750 1930 2 rentedabated
527 S 42ND ST Bought for $650K in 2014. Owner pulled a administrative permit in 2016. Investor / LLC $1.2M —/— 6,300 1940 1 rented

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.