Philadelphia appreciation rates and housing market information

Philadelphia housing market information

With a population of 1,517,550, 661,958 total housing units (homes and apartments), and a median house value of $135,698, house prices in Philadelphia are solidly below the national average.

row houses and other attached homes are the single most common housing type in Philadelphia, accounting for 60.14% of the city's housing units. Other types of housing that are prevalent in Philadelphia include large apartment complexes or high rise apartments (16.66%), duplexes, homes converted to apartments, or other small apartment buildings (14.99%), and a few single-family detached homes (8.06%). Cities with mostly row houses, apartments, and other high density housing types are relatively uncommon, and characteristic of compact cities that frequently have a downtown or other neighborhoods where amenities are within walking distance and a lot of street life can be seen.

The most prevalent building size and type in Philadelphia are three and four bedroom row houses and other attached homes. The city has a mixture of owners and renters, with 52.82% owning, and 36.32% renting.

At the end of World War II, American soldiers returned home triumphant and, with the help of the GI Bill, built homes by the millions on the edges of America's cities. These homes were predominantly capes and ranches, modest in size, but built to house a growing middle-class as the 20th century became the American century. Philadelphia's housing was primarily built during this period, from the '40s through the '60s. A full 45.93% of the city's housing hails from this era. Other housing ages represented in Philadelphia include homes built between 1939 and earlier (41.72%), and housing constructed from 1970-1994 (11.25%). There's also some housing in Philadelphia built between 1995 and later (1.10%).

Vacant housing appears to be an issue in Philadelphia. Fully 10.86% of the housing stock is classified as vacant. Left unchecked, vacant Philadelphia homes and apartments can be a drag on the real estate market, holding Philadelphia real estate prices below levels they could achieve if vacant housing was absorbed into the market and became occupied. Housing vacancy rates are a useful measure to consider, along with other things, if you are a home buyer or a real estate investor.

Philadelphia home appreciation rates

In the last 10 years, Philadelphia has experienced some of the highest home appreciation rates of any community in the nation. Philadelphia real estate appreciated 110.37% over the last ten years, which is an average annual home appreciation rate of 11.03%, putting Philadelphia in the top 10% nationally for real estate appreciation. If you are a home buyer or real estate investor, Philadelphia definitely has a track record of being one of the best long term real estate investments in America through the last ten years.

Over the last year, Philadelphia appreciation rates have trailed the rest of the nation. In the last twelve months, Philadelphia's appreciation rate has been -1.32%, which is lower than appreciation rates in most communities in America. In the latest quarter, NeighborhoodScout's data show that house appreciation rates in Philadelphia were at -0.01%, which equates to an annual appreciation rate of -0.04%.

Relative to Pennsylvania, our data show that Philadelphia's latest annual appreciation rate is higher than 22% of the other cities and towns in Pennsylvania.

One very important thing to keep in mind is that these are average appreciation rates for the city. Individual neighborhoods within Philadelphia differ in their investment potential, sometimes by a great deal. Fortunately, you can use NeighborhoodScout to pinpoint the exact neighborhoods in Philadelphia - or in any city or town - that have the best track record of real estate appreciation, by the latest quarter, the last year, 2 years, 5 years, 10 years, or even since 1990, to assist you in making the best Philadelphia real estate investment or home purchase decisions.