New construction
Why it mattersbuilt new under a 2011 permit (tax-abated).
View supporting records →House report
640 E Chelten Ave
3 stories · 2,974 sqft · RSA3 · built 1925
Owner-occupied · assessed $259K. On the 600 block of E Chelten Ave.
Property summary
Assessment$259KCity assessed value
Last sale—No sale value available
Est. annual tax$496/yearAssessment × 1.3998%
Tax delinquency—Snapshot unavailable
Permits1Shown in this report
Violations2Open L&I cases
What stands out
From the public recordWhat the record is signaling
Early patterns mined across this property's dated public records. Each flag shows what triggered it and where the inference stops.
Public-record pressure
More than one public record deserves a current-status check.
Evidence: 2 open L&I violations · failed L&I inspection activity in 2025, 2026
Limit: A screening signal, not a foreclosure prediction. Tax entries are historical and must be verified with Philadelphia Revenue.
Transparent record rules, not a machine-learning forecast. A signal is a prompt to verify the cited record, not a prediction or allegation.
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
The current tax estimate is temporary
The taxable assessment implies about $496/yr under a 10-year abatement. It jumps to about $3,628/yr by 2026 — $3,132/yr more. Underwrite the post-abatement estimate and verify the actual bill with Revenue.
Built 1925: 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.
The last transfer was not a sale
The most recent recorded deed moved for nominal consideration. That is where tangled-title problems live — budget a real title search. (Occupants untangling an inherited deed can get help from the city's Tangled Title Fund.)
If you own it
When the abatement ends, file for Homestead
An abated home cannot also take the Homestead Exemption. From 2026 it can — knocking about $1,400/yr off the full bill.
2 open violations: the clock matters
L&I appeals must be filed within 30 days — just 6 days if a property is designated UNSAFE or IMMINENTLY DANGEROUS. Left unresolved, the city can do the work itself, bill the owner (routinely $50,000+ on a rowhouse), lien the property, and add court fines of $300+/day.
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 record to dig into any number.
Assessed value
$259K
built 1925
Price / sq ft
$87
block $90 · in line w/ block
Appreciation
+205%
+11%/yr, city 6.5%
In 5 years (~2031)
~$261K
+11%/yr own pace held 5 yrs — extrapolation, not a forecast
Est. tax / yr
$496
0.19% effective, abated
Jun 2022 tax snapshot
—
Gross yield
4.3%
≈$935/mo rent
Times sold
0
Value vs. the block, over time — sales, permits & L&I events marked on the line
This houseBlock median & rangeL&I violationPermitInspection
The paper trail
New constructionbuilt new under a 2011 permit (tax-abated).
- 2011 PlumbingPermit
- 2025 2 L&I violations incl UNSAFE STRUCTUREL&IInspection failed ×2L&I visit
- 2026 Inspection failedL&I visit
Flags: tax-abated — the bill lags real value · 2 open L&I violations. Informational only — not investment advice or a consumer report (FCRA).
The abatement clock
This house’s taxable assessment implies about $496/yr under a 10-year tax abatement. By 2026 the assessment-based estimate reaches ~$3,628/yr — a step up of $3,132/yr. Drag the slider.
now: ($259,200 assessed − $223,766 abated) × 1.3998% ≈ $496/yr
2026: $259,200 assessed × 1.3998% ≈ $3,628/yr
Flat 100% exemption (pre-2022 program, started 2016), then the cliff — reassessments move both lines. After expiry an owner-occupant can claim the Homestead Exemption (~$1,400/yr off); an abated home can't hold both.
The house, on paper
The city assessor's field record — the physical spec sheet behind the assessed number.
Stories
3
Interior
2,974 sqft
livable area
Lot
3,695 sqft
Exterior condition
Average
city code 4
Above averageBelow average
Interior condition
Average
city code 4
Above averageBelow average
Quality grade
C
assessor's grade
ABCDE
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 640 E Chelten 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.
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 (with the abatement toggle above).
Block context
640 E Chelten Ave sits on the 600 block of E Chelten Ave. Open the block report to compare its parcels, ownership and public-record history.
See the whole block →Next door: 642 E Chelten Ave · 644 E Chelten 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
Available City datasets are queried from OpenDataPhilly (phl.carto.com), then reports are cached and refreshed on a rolling schedule. Source dates vary: the parcel-level tax-delinquency snapshot is June 2022 and the separate detailed tax ledger ends in 2016, so neither establishes today’s balance. Other dossiers re-pull on view once stale, and citywide benchmarks recompute weekly. AI-written passages are generated from these records only and rejected if they state a number the record doesn't hold.
First time here?
This is 640 E Chelten Ave,
on paper.
Built 1925. Every deed, permit, L&I visit, tax bill and sale for this house — plus its whole block.
No signup, no teaser
The whole record is free.
Permits, violations, taxes, deeds, ownership, and block context are all here. The public record is free to read; membership is for deeper research.
Three taps, you're oriented
What to catch on the way down.
On the way down: the story of the house, its paper trail drawn on the value chart, and run-the-numbers, a calculator seeded with an assessment-based annual tax estimate.
Official city record ↗ · L&I history ↗ · See the whole block · Download this record (JSON)