Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia County commercial property tax appeals
Appeals start with the City of Philadelphia Office of Property Assessment (OPA) and go to the Board of Revision of Taxes (BRT). Here is how commercial evidence is built, filed and heard in Philadelphia County.
- Assessor
- City of Philadelphia Office of Property Assessment (OPA)
- First-level board
- Board of Revision of Taxes (BRT)
- Filing deadline
- BRT market value appeal for the coming tax year due by the first Monday in October (October 5, 2026 for Tax Year 2027). The optional OPA First Level Review is due earlier (September 1, 2026 for Tax Year 2027) and is not a prerequisite to the BRT appeal
- Commercial assessment level
- 100% of market value; the tax is the certified market value times the combined City and School District rate
- Value standard
- Market value (actual value); BRT appraisals must carry an effective date of January 1 of the tax year under appeal
- Valuation date
- January 1 of the tax year under appeal (the effective date the BRT requires for appraisals)
- Assessment cycle
- Annual certification of market values by OPA, with citywide revaluations in recent cycles; the Tax Year 2027 revaluation used sales through June 2025 and was mailed beginning in late June 2026
- Notices mailed
- Notices of Proposed Market Valuation are mailed in the spring or summer before the tax year (late June 2026 for Tax Year 2027) to owners whose total market value or its components changed
How Philadelphia County assesses commercial property
Philadelphia assesses real estate at 100% of market value, so the number on the Notice of Proposed Market Valuation is the number the tax rate is applied to. The Office of Property Assessment certifies values each year and ran a citywide revaluation for Tax Year 2027, mailing notices beginning in late June 2026 and using arm's length sales from January 2020 through June 2025. Commercial and large multifamily property is valued from sales, operating income and expenses, and cost, which means a model that cuts off a year and a half before the tax year can miss a softening office or retail market.
Owners have two administrative routes. OPA's First Level Review is an informal reconsideration with an early deadline (September 1, 2026 for Tax Year 2027). The formal appeal is to the Board of Revision of Taxes, due by the first Monday in October, and owners do not need to go through First Level Review first. The BRT form asks for the owner's opinion of value and the ground (overvaluation, non-uniformity or an incorrect abatement or exemption), and representatives must attach the agent authorization at filing.
For commercial property the BRT's evidence rules decide most cases. At $1,500,000 or more of value the Board requires a Pennsylvania certified appraisal effective January 1 of the tax year, filed 45 days before the hearing, and the School District of Philadelphia often brings its own appraisal. A BRT decision can be appealed to the Court of Common Pleas within 30 days.
Major commercial submarkets
- Center City office (Market Street West and East)
- University City and the Schuylkill Yards district
- The Navy Yard
- Northeast Philadelphia industrial and flex
- I-95 corridor and Port Richmond logistics
- Fishtown, Northern Liberties and Graduate Hospital multifamily
Uniformity authority
Pa. Const. art. VIII, §1 (taxes shall be uniform upon the same class of subjects); non-uniformity is a listed ground on the BRT appeal form
Appeal statute
First Class County Assessment Law (Act of June 27, 1939, P.L. 1199, 72 P.S. §5341.1 et seq.) and the BRT's regulations
After the board
Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas within 30 days of the BRT decision (a request for rehearing does not extend the period), then Commonwealth Court
Official forms ATALI ELECTRIC fills for Philadelphia County
| Form | Filed with | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Real Estate Market Value Appeal (one form per OPA account) | Board of Revision of Taxes | States the owner's opinion of market value and the grounds (overvaluation, non-uniformity, or incorrect abatement or exemption) and elects an oral hearing or a non-oral appeal on the documents. |
| BRT Agent Authorization Form (or a signed power of attorney) | Board of Revision of Taxes, with the appeal | Required at filing whenever a representative files for the owner. It must be signed, dated and name the tax year being appealed. |
| BRT Value Summary Cover Sheet | Board of Revision of Taxes, with the appraisal report | Summarizes the appraisal's value conclusions; required with the appraisal for all non-residential parcels. |
| OPA First Level Review application | Office of Property Assessment | Informal request for OPA to reconsider market value, property characteristics, uniformity or an exemption. Optional, with an earlier deadline; the rate of value change or the tax impact alone is not a ground. |
Filing system: BRT appeals are filed on the Real Estate Market Value Appeal form by email to appealinquiry@phila.gov, by mail, or in person at 601 Walnut Street, Suite 325 East; no fax filing
Hearings and evidence
Owners elect an oral hearing or a non-oral appeal. Oral hearings are public hearings before the Board, in person or remotely, scheduled with written notice about 45 to 90 days in advance; the owner, OPA and the School District of Philadelphia may present evidence, photos, documents and witnesses. An appellant who requested an oral hearing and does not appear abandons the appeal.
- 01Properties with a certified market value of $1,500,000 or more (or where any party asserts a value of $1,500,000 or more) require a current appraisal by a Pennsylvania Certified General Appraiser or Certified Pennsylvania Evaluator, effective January 1 of the tax year: three hard copies and one electronic copy, filed at least 45 days before the hearing.
- 02Income-producing property valued under $1,500,000 must submit income and expense statements for the last two years and one copy of all current leases at least 45 days before the hearing.
- 03OPA and the School District must serve their appraisal or completed Value Summary Cover Sheet on the owner at least four business days before the hearing.
- 04Appraisal reports must be paginated, and restricted use appraisals receive only the weight the Board decides to give them.
Income evidence
OPA values commercial and large multifamily property with income, sales and cost models built from mass appraisal data, and the TY2027 model used sales through June 2025, so it can lag a falling office market. Above $1,500,000 the BRT case is an appraisal case: a Pennsylvania certified appraisal with a full income approach (market rent, vacancy, expenses and a supported cap rate) effective January 1 of the tax year. Below that threshold, two years of income and expense statements and the leases carry the argument. Because Philadelphia assesses at 100% of market value, the indicated value is compared directly to the certified value on the notice.
Practitioner notes
- The School District of Philadelphia actively participates in commercial appeals and serves its own appraisal evidence, so expect a second opposing value beyond OPA's.
- The appraisal filing deadline (45 days before the hearing) arrives long before the hearing itself; calendar it from the hearing notice the day it arrives.
- The BRT appeal is for the coming tax year and is filed months before the first bill, so recent leasing or vacancy should be documented as of January 1 of that tax year.
- First Level Review and the BRT run on separate tracks. Filing the FLR does not extend the BRT deadline, and skipping it does not bar a BRT appeal.
Philadelphia County appeal questions
Last verified October 2026 against the assessor, board and statute.
Do I need to file First Level Review before appealing to the BRT?
No. First Level Review is an optional OPA process with its own earlier deadline. The BRT appeal can be filed directly by the first Monday in October.
When is an appraisal required at the BRT?
When the certified market value is $1,500,000 or more, or any party asserts a value of $1,500,000 or more. The appraisal must be prepared by a Pennsylvania Certified General Appraiser or Certified Pennsylvania Evaluator, effective January 1 of the tax year, and filed 45 days before the hearing.
What does a non-oral appeal mean?
The Board decides the appeal on the documents without a public hearing. Attach all supporting evidence to the application, because there is no hearing at which to add it.
How long do I have to appeal a BRT decision?
30 days to the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas. Asking the BRT for a rehearing does not extend that period.
Nearby jurisdictions
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