2026 taxable assessment $0 × 1.3998%. Estimate—not a bill or account balance.
OPA also publishes a 2027 assessment of $77,900; it is not the 2026 billed-year value.
House report
1955 Medary Ave
3 bd · 1 ba · 2 stories · 1,302 sqft · RSA5 · built 1905
Owner-occupied · assessed $59K (2026) · 2027 OPA assessment $78K · sold 3×. On the 1900 block of Medary Ave.
Property summary
Assessment$58,7002026 OPA assessment · 2027: $77,900
Last sale$285KRecorded 2025
Est. tax bill$0/year2026 OPA · Homestead-adjusted
Tax delinquency—Snapshot unavailable
Permits0Dated events in report
Violations0 openNo historical match in fetched records
“Open” reflects records available then historical records keep their source dates estimates are labeled
BlockReport AI · cited public records
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Property tax
The estimate, live balance, and back-tax record are different.
BlockReport can calculate the annual tax from the City’s taxable assessment. Payments, credits, interest, and a current amount due live separately in Philadelphia Tax Center.
A Tax Center balance is net of bills, payments, credits, interest, and adjustments. A credit—or an amount due—is not automatically “back taxes.”
OPA 1713191002026 OPA removes $58,700 from the taxable assessment through the owner-occupant exemption. The exclusion reduces this assessment-based estimate to $0.
Historical delinquency sources No current conclusion
The June 2022 delinquency snapshot was not verifiably available in this cached report. No conclusion about a match—or today’s balance—can be drawn from that absence.
For a purchase, refinance, or closing, request the City’s official Property Payoff statement in Tax Center under “More options.”
What stands out
From the public recordNew construction
Why it mattersBought for $52K in 2017, built new (reduced taxable assessment shown), sold for $285K in 2025.
View supporting records →Marked sealed, but it just sold
Why it mattersThe assessor's condition code says sealed, yet a $285,000 sale was recorded in 2025. One side of the record is stale — condition codes come from drive-by field visits that can lag years behind.
View supporting records →Assessment and sale price disagree hard
Why it mattersAssessed at $78K, but it traded for $285,000 in 2025 — a 3.7× gap. Could be a non-market deed the record doesn't label, or an assessment that hasn't caught up.
View supporting records →Legal due diligence
What this record proves—and what it does not.
These checks are triggered by this property’s actual City rows. They identify the controlling document to verify; they do not declare a use legal, a building safe, or title clear.
1 verify
VerifyHomestead is tied to owner occupancy and the deedOPA shows the Homestead Exemption.
Why it mattersPhiladelphia limits Homestead to an owner’s primary residence. The City says a deed change can require a new application or update.
Verify nextA buyer should apply in their own name and not assume the seller’s benefit continues.
Open the controlling City guidance ↗Closing file: checks no public-record summary can replace5 documents/searches to assign before settlement
Property Sales Certification
The seller must obtain Philadelphia’s certificate showing the base zoning, last use in the zoning record, and open violations. The City warns that it does not prove Building Code occupancy or show zoning overlays.
Next: Obtain the fresh certificate and compare it with the CO, permits, and Atlas overlays.
Official guidance ↗Date-effective City Property Payoff
The Tax Center Property Payoff covers Real Estate Tax, Commercial Trash, and L&I abatement-work invoices. Philadelphia says it does not include business-tax debts or liens, water and sewer charges, or fines for code violations.
Next: Request the City statement effective through settlement; read every period and invoice.
Official guidance ↗Professional title and water-lien searches
OPA ownership, deed summaries, and a zero tax balance are not clear title. Mortgages, judgments, municipal claims, water liens, easements, heirs, and other encumbrances require separate searches.
Next: Use a Pennsylvania lawyer/title company and obtain owner’s title insurance; order the separate water search/payoff.
Official guidance ↗Separate water-lien guidance ↗Seller-specific tax relief is not the buyer’s bill
LOOP and low-income or senior Real Estate Tax freezes depend on the qualifying owner and continued program eligibility; a buyer cannot assume the seller’s capped or frozen bill continues. A separately verified property abatement often remains with the property for its remaining term, but program-specific new-owner filing, use, and tax-compliance conditions still must be confirmed—not inferred from the reduced assessment alone.
Next: Have Revenue or OPA identify every current benefit, model the buyer’s bill without seller-specific relief, and confirm any verified abatement in writing.
Official guidance ↗Separate water-lien guidance ↗Seller disclosure and independent inspections
For a covered Pennsylvania residential transfer, obtain the statutory seller disclosure. It reports the seller’s knowledge; it is not a warranty, title search, code review, or substitute for inspections. Because OPA dates this building before 1978, separately obtain the required federal/City lead disclosures and any test results.
Next: Have the agreement and disclosure reviewed for this transaction’s coverage and exceptions.
Official guidance ↗Informational only—not a legal opinion, title report, code inspection, tax payoff, or substitute for a Pennsylvania lawyer, title company, inspector, or tax professional.
What to do with this
The record, translated into moves — what a buyer, the owner, and a landlord would each want to check next under Philadelphia's actual rules.
If you’re buying
Built 1905: lead rules apply
Federal law requires a lead-paint disclosure at sale for any pre-1978 home. If it will be rented, Philadelphia also requires a lead-safe or lead-free certificate before a rental license can issue.
Zoned RSA5: one household by right
Single-family rowhouse (the classic Philly row). Converting to a duplex or apartments needs a use variance the zoning board rarely grants — Pennsylvania courts require a physical hardship of the lot itself, and economics alone do not qualify.
Derived from the fetched property records and linked City guidance as of 2026. Assessment treatment is not a substitute for an exemption approval, live balance, title report, license, occupancy certificate, or inspection. Informational only — not legal, tax, or investment advice.
The investment read
How this house has moved and where it's pointed: the city's assessed value (not a listing price) over 12 years, charted against its block; appreciation is that history's pace, and the 5-year figure simply extends it. Yield estimates rent-vs-price from area rents. Ask the record to dig into any number.
Assessed value
$58,700
2026 billed-year assessment · 2027: $77,900 · built 1905
Price / sq ft
$60
block $134 · below block
Appreciation
-12%
-1%/yr, city 6.5%
In 5 years (~2031)
~$78K
-1%/yr own pace held 5 yrs — extrapolation, not a forecast
Est. tax bill / yr
$0
0% effective, reduced taxable assessment
Jun 2022 tax snapshot
—
Gross yield
-10269576.4%
≈$-667M/mo rent
Times sold
3
latest deed has shared-name parties
Value vs. the block, over time — sales, permits & L&I events marked on the line
This houseBlock median & rangeSaleL&I violation
The paper trail
New constructionBought for $52K in 2017, built new (reduced taxable assessment shown), sold for $285K in 2025.
- 2017 $52KSold
- 2021 L&I violationL&IL&I: 2 failed, 1 passedL&I visit
- 2022 7 L&I violationsL&IL&I: 2 failed, 1 passedL&I visit
- 2023 L&I violationL&IInspection failed ×2L&I visit
- 2024 L&I violationL&IL&I: 2 failed, 2 passedL&I visit
- 2025 $100KSold$285KSold
Flags: material assessment exemption — legal basis and term unverified · latest deed has shared-name parties — relationship unverified. Informational only — not investment advice or a consumer report (FCRA).
The property, on paper
The city assessor's field record — the physical spec sheet behind the assessed number.
Bedrooms
3
Bathrooms
1
Stories
2
Interior
1,302 sqft
livable area
Lot
1,207 sqft
Basement
Full
city code D
Heat
Hot water / radiators
city code B
Central air
No
Exterior condition
Sealed / compromised
city code 7
Sealed / compromised
Interior condition
Sealed / compromised
city code 7
Sealed / compromised
Quality grade
C
assessor's grade
ABCDE
Zoning
RSA5
city zoning code
OPA field-assessment attributes. Condition and grade are the assessor's codes, not an inspection.
Where the record looks off
Places where the city's own paperwork disagrees with itself. These are flags on the data — not problems with the property.
Marked sealed, but it just sold
The assessor's condition code says sealed, yet a $285,000 sale was recorded in 2025. One side of the record is stale — condition codes come from drive-by field visits that can lag years behind.
Assessment and sale price disagree hard
Assessed at $78K, but it traded for $285,000 in 2025 — a 3.7× gap. Could be a non-market deed the record doesn't label, or an assessment that hasn't caught up.
Run the numbers
What owning 1955 Medary Ave takes, at your price and your rate. Taxes start with an annual estimate from the City’s taxable assessment, not a current bill or balance; rent starts at the area median. Assessed value is not an asking price — set the price slider to the real one.
When this house last sold (2025) a 30-year mortgage ran about 6.6% — Freddie Mac's average that year.
Mortgage
—
P&I · 30-yr fixed
All-in monthly
—
+ taxes & insurance
Cash to close
—
down + ~4% costs
Cash flow
—
rent − all costs · /mo
Cap rate
—
NOI ÷ price
Cash-on-cash
—
year-1 return on cash in
Estimates for orientation, not advice. Assumes a 30-year fixed loan, $1,400/yr insurance, 1% of price/yr maintenance; taxes use this parcel's taxable assessment, not a live Tax Center balance.
Block context
1955 Medary Ave sits on the 1900 block of Medary Ave. Open the block report to compare its parcels, ownership and public-record history.
See the whole block →Next door: 1953 Medary Ave · 1957 Medary Ave
Where this comes from
- Assessment, spec sheet & owner — OPA Property Assessments, Office of Property Assessment
- Sales & deed history — Realty Transfer Tax records, Recorder of Deeds
- Permits, violations & inspections — L&I Property History · Atlas
- Tax delinquency snapshot · June 2022 — Real Estate Tax Delinquencies, Dept. of Revenue
- Historical tax ledger & liens · through 2016 — Real Estate Tax Balances, Dept. of Revenue
- Current property-tax balance — Verify with Philadelphia Revenue
- Zoning appeals — L&I & Zoning Board appeals
- Neighborhood income & rents — US Census ACS 5-year estimates
- Historical mortgage rates — Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey, annual averages
- Imagery — Street photo © Google · Aerial © Esri, Maxar
Methodology & freshness
This report was assembled Jul 9, 2026, 10:21 PM ET. Available City datasets are queried from OpenDataPhilly (phl.carto.com) and the cited City ArcGIS feeds; record queries paginate rather than silently taking a first page. “Unavailable” means the source query failed or was not supplied, not “no record.” Reports re-pull on view after seven days and on an overnight rolling schedule; citywide benchmarks recompute weekly. Source dates still govern: the parcel-level tax-delinquency snapshot is June 2022 and the separate detailed tax ledger ends in 2016, so neither establishes today’s balance. The live balance and date-effective payoff must be verified in Tax Center. AI-written passages are grounded in the assembled record and rejected if they state a number the record does not hold.
Official city record ↗ · L&I history ↗ · See the whole block · Download this record (JSON)