In Graduate Hospital, two newer rowhomes at similar prices can come with very different tax bills. The cause is usually an abatement application someone filed years before you saw the listing. Philadelphia's 10-year residential abatement stays with the property when it sells, so the buyer takes over whatever is left of it. The city's regulations also split abatements into two schedules based on the filing date. Graduate Hospital has a lot of modern rowhomes and an active permit pipeline, which makes that filing date one of the most important figures in the purchase. It doesn't appear anywhere in the listing.
The Number the City Shows First
Look up 1906 Bainbridge Street in the city's Property App. The city's record lists it as a "ROW MODERN" house in ZIP 19146, built in 2021. Near the top, the Real Estate Tax Estimator shows "Estimated 2027 Tax $23,990."
Further down, the valuation history shows how the assessment is split.
| Tax year | Market value | Taxable land | Taxable improvement | Exempt improvement |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2027 | $1,713,800 | $342,760 | $0 | $1,371,040 |
| 2026 | $1,475,500 | $295,100 | $0 | $1,180,400 |
| 2024 | $1,476,200 | $295,240 | $0 | $1,180,960 |
| 2023 | $1,476,200 | $295,240 | $0 | $1,180,960 |
| 2022 | $333,500 | $100,050 | $233,450 | $0 |
For 2027, the taxable improvement is zero. All of the building's assessed value sits in the Exempt Improvement column. Only the land, $342,760, is taxable. Philadelphia's total real estate tax rate stays at 1.3998% for 2027, according to the city's July 2026 notice. At that rate, the land alone comes to roughly $4,798.
The $23,990 figure is the full $1,713,800 market value multiplied by 1.3998%. In other words, the estimate at the top of the page is what the bill would be with no abatement at all. At this address, that number and the land-only figure are about $19,000 apart.
For comparison, a property at OPA account 302234800 has nothing in its exempt columns. Its estimator shows $5,402. That one is accurate, because there's nothing abated for the estimate to leave out. The estimate only overstates the bill on homes that carry an abatement, and Graduate Hospital has plenty of those.
The Abatement Belongs to the House
Under the city's Real Estate Tax regulations, the new-construction exemption "shall be upon the property and shall not terminate upon the sale or exchange of the property, so long as the dwelling units retain their eligibility." The exemption covers only the assessed construction value. The land is always taxed.
So a buyer doesn't apply for anything or start a new clock. The years that are left keep running. They started at settlement and issuance of the certificate of use and occupancy, which may have been well before your settlement. The city's abatement guide puts it this way: the new-construction abatement "starts the first month after the title date."
Two Schedules, Split at One Date
The regulations set the line at December 31, 2021. If the exemption application was filed on or before that date, 100% of the assessed construction value is exempt for all ten years. If it was filed after that date, the exemption drops ten percentage points a year.
| Abatement year | Filed on or before Dec. 31, 2021 | Filed after Dec. 31, 2021 |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 100% | 100% |
| 2 | 100% | 90% |
| 3 | 100% | 80% |
| 4 | 100% | 70% |
| 5 | 100% | 60% |
| 6 | 100% | 50% |
| 7 | 100% | 40% |
| 8 | 100% | 30% |
| 9 | 100% | 20% |
| 10 | 100% | 10% |
After year ten, both schedules end. 1906 Bainbridge shows the full exemption every year from 2023 through 2027. Only the older schedule produces that pattern, because under the newer one the exempt share would have fallen in year two.
To see what that means in dollars, apply the newer schedule to the same 2027 assessment and keep the assessment fixed. In year two, with 90% exempt, the taxable base would be the land plus $137,104 of improvement, about $6,717 in tax. In year five, with 60% exempt, it rises to about $12,475. In year ten, with 10% exempt, it reaches about $22,071. These figures are illustrations, not bills, because real assessments change. Still, they show that under the post-2021 schedule the tax goes up every year, starting early in ownership.
There is one exception. According to The Pew Charitable Trusts' 2022 analysis, the phase-down did not change the abatement for residential rehabilitation. The regulations give improvements to existing homes a ten-year exemption on the added assessment. That exemption also survives a sale. In Graduate Hospital, a gut rehab and a new build on the same block can be on different schedules even if both were finished the same year.
The 2027 Reassessment Reaches Abated Homes Through Their Land
Tax Year 2027 assessments take effect January 1, 2027. Bills start going out December 1, 2026, and payment is due March 31, 2027, according to the city. The city estimated the median-valued home's bill would rise by about $97. The Philadelphia Inquirer reported a 3% citywide median increase in assessments between Tax Years 2025 and 2027.
On a fully abated house, the new assessment only changes the taxable land for now. At 1906 Bainbridge, taxable land went from $295,100 in 2026 to $342,760 in 2027. At 1.3998%, the land-only tax goes from about $4,131 to about $4,798. At the same time, the exempt improvement grew by close to $191,000. That part isn't taxed today. It becomes taxable when the abatement ends. A rising assessment on an abated home therefore shows up as a larger tax increase later, when the exemption expires.
The land figure is significant in its own right. For September 2026, Bright MLS reported Philadelphia County's median sold price at $265,000, based on 1,001 closed sales. The taxable land under this one Graduate Hospital rowhome is assessed above that countywide median. So even a fully abated home here pays a substantial bill on its land.
The Next Wave on the Neighborhood's Side Streets
The permit pipeline suggests the newer, declining schedule will cover more of Graduate Hospital each year. The regulations tie the schedule to when the application was filed, and the city's guide says a new-construction application is due within 60 days of the building permit being issued. Any abatement filed for a recently permitted project would therefore fall on the declining schedule. Recent projects include:
- 2127 Kimball Street. A three-story single-family rowhouse, with HDG Developers listed as owner and a reported construction cost of $216,600, per Philadelphia YIMBY in July 2026.
- 1810 Bainbridge Street. A 2,315-square-foot single-family home, with 3M Investments Holding Co. listed as owner and a $350,000 construction cost, per Philadelphia YIMBY in September 2025.
- 923 South 20th Street. A three-story, three-unit building, with Walnut Street Development LLC listed as owner and contractor and a $400,000 construction cost, per Philadelphia YIMBY in February 2026.
- 2101 Washington Avenue. Next to the 247-unit building, the project has a townhouse component of 40 two-family dwellings, reported by Philadelphia YIMBY as under construction in April 2025.
Homes like these, finished and resold, will make up a growing share of Graduate Hospital's newer stock. On those homes, the tax bill climbs every year the exemption phases down.
Reading a Record Before You Write an Offer
- Search the address in the city's Property App and scroll past the tax estimator to the Valuation History table.
- Check the Exempt Improvement column. A zero means the building is fully taxed. A positive figure means part of the building is abated.
- Compare the exempt improvement with the full improvement value year by year. If the share stays at 100%, the home matches the older schedule. If it falls each year, it matches the newer one.
- Note the year the exempt value first appears, and look at the year built and the sales history to estimate when the clock began.
- The record doesn't list start or end years. For a definite answer, OPA directs owners to the "Abatement/Exemptions" line on the Notice of Valuation, and the Property App takes official inquiries.
This is general information about how Philadelphia's abatement works, not legal, tax or financial advice. Confirm the terms on any specific property with the city and with your attorney or tax professional.
Quick Answers
Does a buyer need to reapply for an abatement? No. Under the regulations, the exemption is attached to the property and doesn't end at sale as long as the dwelling stays eligible.
Why does the tax estimate on the property page look so high? On an abated home, the estimator's figure is the full market value multiplied by the tax rate. At 1906 Bainbridge, that produces $23,990, while the taxable land is assessed at $342,760.
Who answers questions about a specific property's assessment? The Office of Property Assessment, at (215) 686-9200 or through phila.gov/opa.
If you're comparing newer Graduate Hospital rowhomes and want help reading the abatement history on each one before you set an offer price, Lindsay Good can go through the city records with you, address by address. Let's Connect.
