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Property tax reassessments are back in Philly this year and, for many, that means higher bills — just don't call it a tax hike.

Why it matters: Even without raising the property tax rate, the city can collect more revenue as reassessments reflect rising property values.

Catch up quick: Mayor Cherelle Parker and City Council did not increase the city's property tax rate in the recent city budget.

The caveat: This new assessment round — based on current real estate market conditions and returning after a one-year hiatus — raised the average residential property value by 3.8%, per the administration. 

What they're saying: "Politicians don't like raising taxes," says Brett Mandel, a former director of the financial and policy analysis unit in the city controller's office. 

"By setting the tax rate before the assessments are finalized, politicians get to avoid changing the tax rate but enjoy the increased revenue."

Flashback: Philly hasn't seen a true property tax rate hike since the Michael Nutter administration more than a decade ago. 

However, the city's uneven property assessments in more recent years have blindsided some property owners with big-time tax increases.

The other side: "Changes in assessed value are not the same as increases in property taxes," Parker spokesperson Joe Grace tells Axios.

"Revaluations are performed to accurately assess the value of homes and ensure assessments are fair and up to date."

⬆️ Higher assessments: The Kensington neighborhood saw the largest jump in average property values — 15.3%, per the Inquirer's analysis.

Other big average jumps were in Mantua (15%), Grays Ferry (13%), Kingsessing (12%) and Manayunk (11%), per the outlet.

⬇️ Lower assessments: Neighborhoods that saw their values dip include Oak Lane/East Oak Lane (-4%), Mayfair (-3%) and University City (-0.6%), according to the Inquirer.

📈 1 notable stat: $277,100 is the average assessed value of a single-family home in Philly, up 4.6% since tax year 2025, per the Parker administration. 

📬 You've got mail: The city began mailing out assessment notices at the end of June.

You can also look up your new assessment on the city's website. 

Between the lines: Philly's office sector continued to slide, with taxable values falling 0.9% since tax year 2026.

The sector has struggled in recent years, with weak demand, steep discounts on building sales and a wave of office-to-apartment conversions.

Yes, but: There have been positive signs of late, like Chubb's new Center City office building.

The city is moving ahead with reductions to its business and wage taxes.

What's next: Don't expect another round of reassessments next year.

Grace says they'll likely be performed every other year.

New Philly property assessments bring big tax hikes for some

The Kensington neighborhood saw the largest jump in its average property values — 15.3%.

Illustration of a repeating pattern of houses with the center house radiating a blue gradient.

<a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Property tax reassessments" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/philadelphia/2026/03/25/real-estate-reassessments-property-taxes" data-vars-content-id="0814d8de-9ee0-4464-94f0-6fb4cbcf2398" data-vars-headline="New Philly property assessments bring big tax hikes for some" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/philadelphia/2026/03/25/real-estate-reassessments-property-taxes" target="_self">Property tax reassessments</a> are back in Philly this year and, for many, that means higher bills — just don&#x27;t call it a tax hike.Why it matters: Even without raising the property tax rate, the city can collect more revenue as reassessments reflect rising property values.

Real Estate

News

🍽️ Philly's African Restaurant Week continues with discounts and reduced-price menu options. More than two dozen restaurants are taking part this year. 

😂 Enjoy a good laugh at the Variety Pack comedy festival, running through Monday at theaters inside Center City's Drake building. You can choose from around a dozen remaining comedy shows, including a show for kids.  

🎞️ Get out of the city this weekend for Blobfest in Phoenixville. Celebrating the 1958 classic "The Blob," which was filmed in borough, this annual festival runs Friday-Sunday. 

On the agenda: Screenings, a ball, street fair, costume contest and a half marathon. Tickets are pay-as-you-go. 

🎪 Otherworld Philadelphia is putting on a carnival! The Northeast Philly interactive playground is adding carnival games, room updates and special activities through July 20. 

🫐 It's blueberry time at Linvilla Orchards! Let the kiddos run around the farm or bring a date to this Blueberry Festival in Delco on Saturday, featuring pick-your-own blueberries, face painting, pony rides, an old-fashioned pie-eating contest and petting zoo. 

Free to enter but pay-as-you go. Runs 8am-6pm. (Rain date is Sunday.)

⚾ This Saturday's Firstival celebrates the first organized baseball team.

Running from 11am-1pm at Citizens Bank Park, it includes family friendly games, live music, storytelling and giveaways. 

🏀 The Hoopbus tour has arrived in Philly. Saturday's agenda includes a block party at Dock Street Brewery South from noon-1:30, then an event in West Philly at 60th and Market Streets from 4-7pm. 

Both events will feature basketball contests, music, family friendly activities and interactive games. 

🚣 Watch the Philly Phlotilla this Saturday. More than 100 kayakers and boats will float down the Schuylkill River for the nation's 250th anniversary. 

The flotilla pushes off at around 1pm at the Walnut Street dock. Some of the best places to watch the fleet: South Street Bridge or the Schuylkill River Trail.

🎉 The Barnes is throwing a block party on Sunday from 10am-5pm near its museum on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway. 

Barnes on the Block will feature art activities, crafting, performances, and food and drink.

around its museum on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway

Philadelphia weekender: Barnes on the Block, Blobfest and comedy

Fill up your weekend social calendar with these popular events.

Illustration of lit marquee letters spelling "WEEKEND" sitting in a row of theater seats.

🍽️ Philly&#x27;s African Restaurant Week continues with discounts and reduced-price menu options. More than two dozen <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="restaurants" data-vars-click-url="https://africanrestaurantweek.com/philadelphia/" data-vars-content-id="a3dcdcab-d56c-476e-a493-3a4892ca9eb7" data-vars-headline="Philadelphia weekender: Barnes on the Block, Blobfest and comedy" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://africanrestaurantweek.com/philadelphia/" target="_blank">restaurants</a> are taking part this year. 😂 Enjoy a good laugh at the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Variety Pack" data-vars-click-url="https://www.tickettailor.com/events/varietypack" data-vars-content-id="a3dcdcab-d56c-476e-a493-3a4892ca9eb7" data-vars-headline="Philadelphia weekender: Barnes on the Block, Blobfest and comedy" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.tickettailor.com/events/varietypack" target="_blank">Variety Pack</a> comedy festival, running through Monday at theaters inside Center City&#x27;s <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Drake" data-vars-click-url="https://thedrake.com/?lvcode=1244947&amp;utm_source=imps.conversionlogix.com&amp;utm_medium=search&amp;utm_campaign=brand-national&amp;utm_&amp;utm_term=bq&amp;gad_source=1&amp;gad_campaignid=19178136841&amp;gbraid=0AAAAApIKDtVz9Dv2FYvPqawBUPtGR8W6r&amp;gclid=Cj0KCQjwjb3SBhDgARIsAMKiWzg28Cr9IFYKFpyVmZx0lybfBXsf8vQnVYWflfqUI2qqRLCgXg1G51oaAlrDEALw_wcB" data-vars-content-id="a3dcdcab-d56c-476e-a493-3a4892ca9eb7" data-vars-headline="Philadelphia weekender: Barnes on the Block, Blobfest and comedy" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://thedrake.com/?lvcode=1244947&amp;utm_source=imps.conversionlogix.com&amp;utm_medium=search&amp;utm_campaign=brand-national&amp;utm_&amp;utm_term=bq&amp;gad_source=1&amp;gad_campaignid=19178136841&amp;gbraid=0AAAAApIKDtVz9Dv2FYvPqawBUPtGR8W6r&amp;gclid=Cj0KCQjwjb3SBhDgARIsAMKiWzg28Cr9IFYKFpyVmZx0lybfBXsf8vQnVYWflfqUI2qqRLCgXg1G51oaAlrDEALw_wcB" target="_blank">Drake</a> building. You can choose from around a dozen remaining comedy shows, including a show for kids. <ul><li>Performances are <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="$15 each" data-vars-click-url="https://www.tickettailor.com/events/varietypack" data-vars-content-id="a3dcdcab-d56c-476e-a493-3a4892ca9eb7" data-vars-headline="Philadelphia weekender: Barnes on the Block, Blobfest and comedy" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.tickettailor.com/events/varietypack" target="_blank">$15 each</a>. </li></ul>

Things to Do

MLB All-Star Week wraps Tuesday, but its legacy will live on in Philadelphia for decades to come.

Why it matters: Big-ticket events don't just bring visitors. They also leave behind permanent upgrades that neighborhoods will use long after the last pitch.

Driving the news: MLB, the league's community platform, and Phillies Charities invested more than $5.5 million in several legacy projects around Philly, like field upgrades. 

Others, like a new blue baseball mural at 20th Street and Oregon Avenue (pictured above), were created through a partnership between MLB, Mural Arts and Deer Park. 

The large-scale mural spans more than 2,500 square feet along a wall near the ballpark in South Philly. 

Philly artist Paul Carpenter designed "Hometown Grit" with images of Ben Franklin wielding a baseball bat, the Liberty Bell, cheesesteaks and William Penn.

Bright green baseball mascot in a Phillies jersey with red lettering stretches arms on a sunny baseball field; blue and red hair, large eyes, green snout, with infield dirt and distant scoreboard.

The Phillie Phanatic recently shows off the newly refurbished Ashburn Field at FDR Park. Photo: Courtesy of MLB Photos

South Philly's Ashburn Field has been transformed, replacing its grass-and-dirt field with synthetic turf and upgrading the drainage system. 

The field hosts 100-plus events each year and serves as one of the homes of the Phillies' youth academy. 

White textured fabric sculpture in the foreground, with a worn baseball glove and baseball nearby; a blurred figure wearing a red cap and red bunting in the background.

A model of for one of the statues coming to the Negro League Memorial Park. Photo: Erin Blewett/MLB Photos

A quartet of 7-foot-tall statues will be installed at the Philadelphia Stars Negro League Memorial Park in West Philly. 

The sculptures, from Philly artist Miguel Horn, will represent Philadelphia Stars and Negro League players. The installation date is TBD. 

Tree House Books will receive funding to expand its literacy programs and renovate its North Philly building, which includes adding a new children's library and teen center. 

Old City's Veterans Multi-Service Center will receive several upgrades, including the addition of a therapeutic indoor garden area and the transformation of the fifth floor into a 5,200-square-foot space to expand access to services and programs.

Philadelphia Stars and Negro League players

The Philly projects built from MLB's All-Star investment

From a South Philly mural to field upgrades, the investments will outlast All-Star Week.

Blue mural covering a brick wall, filled with various sports imagery and figures in light and dark blues. To the left is a tree-lined street; a wall-mounted AC unit sits mid-wall.

Philly's newest mural is an ode to baseball at 20th Street and Oregon Avenue. Screenshot: Courtesy of The Lab/Primo Brands

<a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="MLB All-Star Week" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/philadelphia/2026/07/09/sneak-peek-all-star-week-arrives-at-citizen-bank-park" data-vars-content-id="e9ccbe04-d678-434e-ad8d-45855abc6894" data-vars-headline="The Philly projects built from MLB&#x27;s All-Star investment" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/philadelphia/2026/07/09/sneak-peek-all-star-week-arrives-at-citizen-bank-park" target="_self">MLB All-Star Week</a> wraps Tuesday, but its legacy will live on in Philadelphia for decades to come.Why it matters: Big-ticket events don&#x27;t just bring visitors. They also leave behind permanent upgrades that neighborhoods will use long after the last pitch.

Sports

Culture

Trump administration-approved educational panels are now greeting visitors at Philadelphia's President's House slavery exhibit after months of legal fights over the site's interpretation of history.

Why it matters: The Trump administration has remade one of the nation's most visited historical sites.

Driving the news: The new panels were installed at Independence National Historical Park sometime Tuesday night, as South Philly hosted the MLB All-Star Game.

On Wednesday, more than 20 new panels were in place, while a handful of television screens at the site were not operating.

Catch up quick: A federal appeals court recently cleared the way for the Trump administration to replace the panels at the site after months of legal back-and-forth with Mayor Cherelle Parker's administration.

It's part of the Trump administration's push to eliminate what it calls "improper ideology" from national parks nationwide.

Parker said in a statement that the city will continue fighting to restore the old panels, despite its recent court loss.

Parker also called the Trump administration's overnight installation of the new panels shameful, saying it violates community trust.

Context: The memorial, which opened in 2010, previously focused primarily on nine enslaved people who lived in George Washington's Philly home and their place in the nation's founding.

Those 30-plus glass and ceramic panels included illustrations of enslaved individuals, many of which were among the first panels visitors saw when they entered the site. 

Large beige outdoor exhibit board reading "Ona Judge Seizes Her Freedom" in red script, with a painting of a woman in a bonnet on the right, and a dark blue underline, set beside a granite pillar.

A newly installed educational panel at the President's House Site. Photo: Mike D'Onofrio/Axios

What's new: Those illustrations have been removed. And while the exhibit still discusses slavery, it devotes less space to enslaved people. 

The panels about enslaved people have largely been relocated to the rear of the site, closer to the Liberty Bell. 

Visitors entering from Market Street now first encounter panels focused on executive power, the commander in chief, and a timeline "Celebrating Independence Throughout the Years," as well as illustrations of the nation's founders and historical figures, who are overwhelmingly white.

What they're saying: Michael Coard, head of the Avenging the Ancestors Coalition, which fought to preserve the President's House as it was, tells Axios the new panels put less emphasis on slavery and more on George Washington's accomplishments.

"It's a watered-down version — not only in substance but in form," Coard says about the new panels.

The other side: A U.S. Department of the Interior spokesperson tells Axios the new panels are "full of historical context." 

"They acknowledge the evils of slavery, including its injustices and hypocrisies, and, by telling the stories of the nine slaves that Washington kept in the President's House, remind us of their essential humanity," the spokesperson adds.

Trump admin replaces President's House slavery exhibit panels overnight

Open plaza with white rectangular arches set in a red brick wall, a red, white, and blue bunting draped on one arch, brick walls and display boards, trees and city buildings under a clear blue sky.

The President's House Site at the Independence National Historical Park on Wednesday after the Trump administration installed its own educational panels. Photo: Mike D'Onofrio/Axios

Trump administration-approved educational panels are now greeting visitors at Philadelphia&#x27;s <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="President&#x27;s House" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/philadelphia/2026/02/19/trump-slavery-exhibit-independence-national-historic-park-restored" data-vars-content-id="fc42542e-aace-44be-9943-7b1b4ab4c9be" data-vars-headline="Trump admin replaces President&#x27;s House slavery exhibit panels overnight" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/philadelphia/2026/02/19/trump-slavery-exhibit-independence-national-historic-park-restored" target="_self">President&#x27;s House</a> slavery exhibit after months of legal fights over the site&#x27;s interpretation of history.Why it matters: The Trump administration has remade one of the nation&#x27;s most visited historical sites.

Politics

Thousands and thousands of people trekked across the 1.8-mile Ben Franklin Bridge on Saturday to mark the span's 100th birthday. 

Context: The port authority shut down all lanes to traffic to mark the occasion — and people showed up. 

💭 Mike's thought bubble: This needs to be an annual celebration.

A dense crowd of people walks on a blue steel suspension bridge, with a large Thank You sign from the Delaware River Port Authority hanging over the roadway; orange cones line the right lane.

The Ben Franklin Bridge was the place to be this weekend. Photo: Mike D'Onofrio/Axios

Massive crowds turned out to walk the Ben Franklin Bridge

The port authority shut down all lanes to traffic to mark span's 100th birthday — and people showed up.

Large crowd of runners crosses a blue suspension bridge on a sunny day, with barriers, cones, and signage. City buildings and billboards line the riverfront; a police car is in the foreground.

The Ben Franklin Bridge was packed on Saturday for the span's 100th birthday. Photo: Mike D'Onofrio/Axios

Thousands and thousands of people trekked across the 1.8-mile Ben Franklin Bridge on Saturday to mark the span&#x27;s <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="100th birthday" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/philadelphia/2026/07/10/ben-franklin-bridge-100th-birthday-walk-across" data-vars-content-id="fd6ae0c3-7f22-4108-a5e3-26896de2c4ae" data-vars-headline="Massive crowds turned out to walk the Ben Franklin Bridge" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/philadelphia/2026/07/10/ben-franklin-bridge-100th-birthday-walk-across" target="_self">100th birthday</a>. Context: The port authority <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="shut down all lanes to traffic" data-vars-click-url="https://drpa.org/bfb100/?fbclid=IwY2xjawS8u7xleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFJRTV5VE1rYk1mR1BPSWRUc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHm0b3jBSbkT38PuuV0Iw5Yvme30IfnGBfSlDySHwua4vWmeRLfakSe9kITpa_aem_RrHwL1hbS_faOvUtjs7Fxg" data-vars-content-id="fd6ae0c3-7f22-4108-a5e3-26896de2c4ae" data-vars-headline="Massive crowds turned out to walk the Ben Franklin Bridge" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://drpa.org/bfb100/?fbclid=IwY2xjawS8u7xleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFJRTV5VE1rYk1mR1BPSWRUc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHm0b3jBSbkT38PuuV0Iw5Yvme30IfnGBfSlDySHwua4vWmeRLfakSe9kITpa_aem_RrHwL1hbS_faOvUtjs7Fxg" target="_blank">shut down all lanes to traffic</a> to mark the occasion — and people showed up.

Mike D'Onofrio

Featured stories

Trump admin replaces President's House slavery exhibit panels overnight

New Philly property assessments bring big tax hikes for some

The Philly projects built from MLB's All-Star investment

Massive crowds turned out to walk the Ben Franklin Bridge

Philadelphia weekender: Barnes on the Block, Blobfest and comedy