The Block Report

House report

2659 Emerald St

2 bd · 1 ba · 2 stories · 973 sqft · RSA5 · built 1875

Absentee individual · assessed $216K (2026) · 2027 OPA assessment $190K · sold 4×. On the 2600 block of Emerald St.

Property summary

Assessment$216,4002026 OPA assessment · 2027: $189,500 Last sale$130KRecorded 2020 Est. tax bill$3,029/year2026 taxable assessment × 1.3998% Tax delinquencyNo 2022 matchNot proof account is current Permits5Every fetched City permit Violations0 open15 historical across 2 cases

“Open” reflects records available then historical records keep their source dates estimates are labeled

BlockReport AI · cited public records

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BlockReport can explain a discrepancy, but it cannot rewrite an official City record. Use the agency that owns the underlying fact:

Street view of 2659 Emerald St
From the street — imagery © Google
From above — imagery © Esri, Maxar

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.

Estimated annual Real Estate Tax$3,029/year

2026 taxable assessment $216,400 × 1.3998%. Estimate—not a bill or account balance.

OPA also publishes a 2027 assessment of $189,500; it is not the 2026 billed-year value.

Official current account balanceCheck live

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 311087300
Open Philadelphia Tax Center →Choose “View period balance” to see the tax year and any credit, interest, or delinquency.
Exemption classificationNo exemption shown

2026 taxable assessment equals the full assessed value.

Historical delinquency sources No current conclusion

This parcel did not match the June 2022 delinquency snapshot. That absence does not confirm the account is current today.

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 record

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 1875: 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.

If you own it

Construction next door (2660 Emerald St, 2024)

Excavation deeper than 5 feet, or within 10 feet of an adjacent structure, legally requires the developer to survey neighboring homes first and give owners 10 days' written notice. Insist on the pre-construction survey — it is your evidence if cracks appear.

If you’re the landlord

If it is rented, verify the Rental License

The fetched license records do not show an active Rental License. Ownership type or a tax mailing address does not prove that tenants occupy the property; if it is rented, verify the current license and legal occupancy in eCLIPSE.

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
$216,400
2026 billed-year assessment · 2027: $189,500 · built 1875
Price / sq ft
$195
block $198 · in line w/ block
Appreciation
+187%
+11%/yr, city 6.5%
In 5 years (~2031)
~$191K
+11%/yr own pace held 5 yrs — extrapolation, not a forecast
Est. tax bill / yr
$3,029
1.6% effective
Jun 2022 tax snapshot
No match
not proof the account is current
Gross yield
-4221635.9%
≈$-667M/mo rent
Times sold
4

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

$0$250K$500K2020: L&I violation 2020: Sold $130K 2020: Inspection failed ×22021: New construction, addition, GFA change 2021: Inspection failed ×32022: 14 L&I violations 2022: L&I: 4 failed, 1 passed 2022: Addition and/or Alteration 2022: Addition and/or Alteration 2022: Alterations 2022: Addition and/or Alterations2025: Inspection passed$216K201620182020202220242026
This houseBlock median & rangeSaleL&I violationPermitInspection
Highlight

The paper trail

New construction

built new under a 2021 permit, sold for $130K in 2020.

  1. 2020 L&I violationL&I$130KSoldInspection failed ×2L&I visit
  2. 2021 New construction, addition, GFA changePermitInspection failed ×3L&I visit
  3. 2022 14 L&I violationsL&IL&I: 4 failed, 1 passedL&I visitAddition and/or AlterationPermitAddition and/or AlterationPermitAlterationsPermitAddition and/or AlterationsPermit
  4. 2025 Inspection passedL&I visit

Every dated deed, permit, inspection, license, violation, certification, and appeal—together.

The timeline combines the report’s transfer history with every successfully fetched L&I and zoning row. A date or status is the City’s filed record, not a statement that the condition remains current; use the official file for live detail.

Open the City record ↗
Recorded owner
Individual owner on record
L&I district
CENTRAL EAST
OPA account
311087300

What this record suggests

The City file documents 5 permits touching kitchen work, electrical work, plumbing, roof work. 4 carries a completed, issued, or approved status; that documents the filing, not the present quality of the work.

  1. InvestigationL&I investigation

    Case CF-2020-072782 · PASSED

  2. InvestigationL&I investigation

    Case CF-2022-063822 · PASSED

  3. PermitAddition and/or Alterations

    Permit MP-2022-005403 · Completed

    EZ PERMIT DUCTWORK & WARM-AIR APPLIANCES - For the installation of New Ductwork, Registers/Grilles/Diffusers, and Warm-Air Appliances as per attached standards. Deviations from these standards require submission of construction and site plans. EACH HVAC UNIT TO BE SELF-CONTAINED WITHIN EACH DWELLING UNIT. NO PENETRATIONS OF RATED ASSEMBLIES. (Install new 92% 45,000 btu concord furnace, 2 ton A-coil, 2 Ton 13 seer condenser 800cfm, and new duct work through house).

  4. PermitAlterations

    Permit PP-2022-014976 · Completed

    INSTALL NEW PLUMBING FOR 2 TOILETS 2 LAVS 1 SHOWER 1 KITCHEN 1 LAUNDRY

  5. PermitAddition and/or Alteration

    Permit EP-2022-010278 · Completed

    Rough in outlets light switches, existing service and panel as per 2014 nec

  6. InvestigationL&I investigation

    Case CF-2022-063822 · FAILED

  7. PermitAddition and/or Alteration

    Permit RP-2022-008313 · Completed

    interior renovations only , details as shown in the plan. work included installation of fence (front - shall be no more than 4 feet high and no more than 50 % opaque) and side and rear no more than 6 feet high).

  8. ViolationNEW ELECTRICAL WIRING

    Case CF-2022-063822 · Violation VI-2022-046056 · COMPLIED

  9. ViolationHVAC SYSTEM

    Case CF-2022-063822 · Violation VI-2022-046057 · COMPLIED

  10. ViolationALTER EXISTING PLUMBING

    Case CF-2022-063822 · Violation VI-2022-046058 · COMPLIED

  11. ViolationCOMPL CONCEAL- BLDG PERM WORK

    Case CF-2022-063822 · Violation VI-2022-046059 · COMPLIED

  12. ViolationCOMPL CONCEAL- ELEC PERM WORK

    Case CF-2022-063822 · Violation VI-2022-046060 · COMPLIED

  13. ViolationCOMPL CONCEAL- PLUMB PERM WORK

    Case CF-2022-063822 · Violation VI-2022-046061 · COMPLIED

  14. ViolationALTER INTERIOR PORTION

    Case CF-2022-063822 · Violation VI-2022-046055 · COMPLIED

  15. ViolationCOMPL CONCEAL- BLDG PERM WORK

    Case CF-2022-063822 · Violation VI-2022-046066 · COMPLIED

  16. ViolationCOMPL CONCEAL- ELEC PERM WORK

    Case CF-2022-063822 · Violation VI-2022-046067 · COMPLIED

  17. ViolationCOMPL CONCEAL- PLUMB PERM WORK

    Case CF-2022-063822 · Violation VI-2022-046068 · COMPLIED

  18. ViolationALTER INTERIOR PORTION

    Case CF-2022-063822 · Violation VI-2022-046069 · COMPLIED

  19. ViolationNEW ELECTRICAL WIRING

    Case CF-2022-063822 · Violation VI-2022-046070 · COMPLIED

  20. ViolationHVAC SYSTEM

    Case CF-2022-063822 · Violation VI-2022-046071 · COMPLIED

  21. ViolationNEW PLUMBING

    Case CF-2022-063822 · Violation VI-2022-046072 · COMPLIED

  22. PermitNew construction, addition, GFA change

    Permit ZP-2020-010053 · Expired

    FOR THE DEMOLITION OF THE EXISTING FLAT ROOF, ERECTION OF A NEW SLOPED ROOF AND AN ADDITION AT THE REAR OF AN EXISTING SEMI-DETACHED STRUCTURE. SIZE AND LOCATION AS SHOWN IN THE APPLICATION/PLANS.

  23. InvestigationL&I investigation

    Case CF-2020-072782 · FAILED

  24. ViolationALTER EXTERIOR PORTION

    Case CF-2020-072782 · Violation VI-2020-042334 · COMPLIED

  25. Recorded transfer$130K transfer

    2020

  26. LicenseRental

    License 587927 · Inactive

    EVELYN ALVAREZ · Expires 2014-02-28

  27. LicenseRental

    License 369518 · Inactive

    SOTHEAVUN MICHAEL TAUCH · Expires 2007-02-28 · Inactive 2007-08-20

How Philadelphia’s property system works

These explainers are free because the record only helps if you know what it can—and cannot—prove. Use the linked City guidance for the controlling rule.

Permits and inspections 5 on this property

This property’s file includes Zoning, Residential Building, Electrical, Plumbing permit records. A permit documents authorized scope and a City process; it is not by itself proof that every described improvement was completed, remains in place, or meets today’s condition expectations.

L&I inspections are scheduled at defined stages; final inspection and required certifications are separate steps in closing out applicable work.

How construction and repair permits work ↗See City inspection stages by permit type ↗
Assessments and taxes

The OPA assessment is the City’s value on the tax roll—not an asking price, appraisal, or live account balance. The taxable assessment can differ from the full assessment because the City roll records exemptions or other treatment; the report keeps those fields separate.

Your annual estimate uses the taxable assessment. Payments, credits, interest, and the amount due are maintained separately in Tax Center.

How the Office of Property Assessment works ↗Philadelphia property-tax guidance ↗
Violations, cases, and status check current status

An open row is a dated City status, not a diagnosis of current condition or a conclusion about the property. Read the case, notice, and any subsequent inspection together, then verify the live file.

How L&I code enforcement works ↗City violation and order types ↗

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
2
Bathrooms
1
Stories
2
Interior
973 sqft
livable area
Lot
1,272 sqft
Basement
Full, unfinished
city code C
Heat
Forced hot air
city code A
Central air
No
Exterior condition
Average
city code 4
Interior condition
Average
city code 4
Quality grade
C
assessor's grade
Zoning
RSA5
city zoning code

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

Run the numbers

What owning 2659 Emerald St 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.

$190K
20%
6.875%
$700/mo

When this house last sold (2020) a 30-year mortgage ran about 3.1% — 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

2659 Emerald St sits on the 2600 block of Emerald St. Open the block report to compare its parcels, ownership and public-record history.

See the whole block →

Next door: 2657 Emerald St  ·  2661 Emerald St

Where this comes from
Methodology & freshness

This report was assembled Jul 10, 2026, 3:55 AM 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. For this property: Permits: queried · Violations: queried · Investigations: queried · Appeals: queried · Licenses: queried · Building certifications: queried. “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)