Public Records
Edition
Philadelphia200 block of E Durham StJuly 9, 2026

House report

217 E Durham St

5 bd · 2 ba · 3 stories · 2,355 sqft · RSA3 · built 1915

Owner-occupied · assessed $475K · sold 4×. On the 200 block of E Durham St.

Street view of 217 E Durham St
From the street — imagery © Google
From above — imagery © Esri, Maxar
The story of this houseAI · written from the public record

Reading this house's deeds, permits and assessments…

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 1915: 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 RSA3: one household by right

Single-family attached. 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 this house's public records and the city's rules as of 2026 (abatement ordinance, Homestead, rental licensing, lead certification, L&I process, excavation protections). 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 analyst below to dig into any number.

Assessed value
$475K
built 1915
Price / sq ft
$202
block $170 · above block
Appreciation
+141%
+8%/yr, city 6.5%
In 5 years (~2031)
~$477K
+8%/yr own pace held 5 yrs — extrapolation, not a forecast
Est. tax / yr
$5K
1.1% effective
Gross yield
Times sold
4

Value vs. the block, over time — sales, permits & L&I events marked on the line

$0$250K$500KBefore this chart — 2013: L&I violation 2013: Sold $115K 2013: Alteration 2013: Electrical 2013: Mechanical 2014: Plumbing 2015: Sold $305K2018: 3 L&I violations 2018: Sold $355K2019: Sold $385K$475K201620222027
This houseBlock median & rangeSalePermit
The paper trail

Bought for $115K in 2013, alteration permit in 2013, sold for $385K in 2019 (+235%).

  1. 2013 L&I violationL&I$115KSoldAlterationPermitElectricalPermitMechanicalPermit
  2. 2014 PlumbingPermit
  3. 2015 $305KSold
  4. 2018 3 L&I violationsL&I$355KSold
  5. 2019 $385KSold

Informational only — not investment advice or a consumer report (FCRA).

The house, on paper

The city assessor's field record — the physical spec sheet behind the assessed number.

Bedrooms
5
Bathrooms
2
Stories
3
Interior
2,355 sqft
livable area
Lot
1,720 sqft
Basement
Full, finished
city code A
Heat
Hot water / radiators
city code B
Central air
Yes
Exterior condition
Above average
city code 3
Interior condition
Above average
city code 3
Quality grade
B
assessor's grade
Zoning
RSA3
city zoning code

OPA field-assessment attributes. Condition and grade are the assessor's codes, not an inspection.

Run the numbers

What owning 217 E Durham St takes, at your price and your rate. Taxes are this house's actual bill from the city record; rent starts at the area median. Assessed value is not an asking price — set the price slider to the real one.

$475K
20%
6.875%
$3K/mo

When this house last sold (2019) a 30-year mortgage ran about 3.94% — 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 from this parcel's record.

Next door: 215 E Durham St  ·  219 E Durham St

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.

Official city record ↗  ·  L&I history ↗  ·  See the whole block  ·  Download this record (JSON)