The neighbourhoods
Fishtown & Northern Liberties
USD 1,500–2,000 / month for a 1-bedFormer working-class riverside blocks turned the city's music, bar and restaurant centre
Commute: 10–15 minutes to Center City on the Market-Frankford Line
- Best bar and live music scene in the city
- On the El, minutes from Center City
- Rowhouses with real space for the money
- Gentrification has moved fast and rents with it
- Weekend noise along Frankford Avenue
- Parking is tight on the narrow streets
Center City — Rittenhouse & Washington Square
USD 1,800–2,500 / month for a 1-bedThe dense, walkable core — squares, brownstones, restaurants and towers
Commute: Walk to almost everything; all transit converges here
- Genuinely walkable and central
- Best restaurant density and the squares
- Every SEPTA line meets here
- Most expensive part of the city
- Smaller flats than the rowhouse neighbourhoods
- Parking is expensive if you have a car
South Philadelphia — Passyunk & Bella Vista
USD 1,200–1,700 / month for a 1-bedItalian Market, corner bars and tight rowhouse streets, with the stadiums to the south
Commute: 10–20 minutes to Center City on the Broad Street Line or on foot
- Excellent value with genuine neighbourhood character
- The Italian Market and East Passyunk's restaurants
- Broad Street Line runs straight into Center City
- Very narrow streets and difficult parking
- Older housing stock needs careful inspection
- Stadium traffic on game days
University City & Powelton
USD 1,400–1,900 / month for a 1-bedPenn and Drexel's neighbourhood — Victorian twins, the science campus and a large student population
Commute: 5–10 minutes to Center City on the El, or walk across the Schuylkill
- Walk to Penn, Drexel and the hospital systems
- 30th Street Station for regional and Amtrak connections
- Good value with handsome Victorian stock
- Heavy student turnover and September churn
- Some blocks are noticeably rougher than others
- Landlord quality varies enormously
Mount Airy & Chestnut Hill
USD 1,300–1,800 / month for a 1-bedLeafy north-west neighbourhoods with stone houses, the Wissahickon gorge and a long tradition of integration
Commute: 25–35 minutes to Center City on SEPTA Regional Rail
- The Wissahickon on the doorstep — genuinely wild forest inside the city
- Beautiful stone housing stock and mature trees
- Strong, settled community feel
- Regional Rail is more expensive and less frequent than the subway
- Far from the city's nightlife
- Quiet in a way that suits families more than anyone else
Across the line — Cherry Hill, Conshohocken, Camden waterfront
USD 1,400–1,900 / month for a 1-bedNew Jersey and the Pennsylvania suburbs — no Wage Tax if you also work outside the city
Commute: 20–35 minutes to Center City on PATCO or Regional Rail
- Avoiding the Philadelphia Wage Tax is worth thousands if you work outside the city too
- More space and newer stock
- PATCO runs 24 hours from New Jersey
- If you work in Philadelphia you still pay the non-resident Wage Tax
- New Jersey has its own income tax and higher property taxes
- You give up the city itself
How renting works in Philadelphia
Leases are typically 12 months, with a large September turnover driven by the universities. Pennsylvania has no rent control but does cap security deposits — no more than two months' rent in the first year of a tenancy, and no more than one month from the second year onward, with deposits over $100 required to be held in an escrow account. Philadelphia additionally requires landlords to hold a rental licence and a certificate of rental suitability.
- 1
Ask to see the landlord's rental licence
Philadelphia requires residential landlords to hold a valid rental licence and to give you a Certificate of Rental Suitability issued within the previous 60 days, plus the City's partners-for-good-housing handbook. A landlord who cannot produce these may be unable to enforce the lease or collect rent — it is the single most useful question you can ask.
- 2
Decide whether to live inside the Wage Tax line
Philadelphia residents pay the Wage Tax on all earned income wherever they work. If your job is in the suburbs or fully remote for an out-of-state employer, living outside the city can save thousands a year. If your job is in the city, you pay the non-resident rate anyway and the saving shrinks.
- 3
Get the application pack ready
Photo ID, offer letter or pay stubs, and bank statements. Landlords typically want gross income around 3× the monthly rent. Pennsylvania caps deposits at two months in year one, which limits how much extra can be demanded without US credit history.
- 4
Inspect an old rowhouse properly
Much of the stock is pre-war. Check for damp in the basement, the age of the heating system, whether the roof has been recoated, and window condition. Ask about lead paint disclosure — required for pre-1978 properties — particularly if you have young children.
- 5
Check heating type and what winter costs
Winters are cold enough to matter and older rowhouses lose heat. Gas forced-air or radiators are cheaper to run than electric. Ask the landlord or outgoing tenant what December to February actually cost.
- 6
Sign and document the condition
Photograph every room and every defect at move-in and email the set to the landlord. Pennsylvania requires deposits returned with an itemised list within 30 days of the tenancy ending, and deposits over $100 must be held in escrow with interest after two years.
Upfront cost
Typically first month's rent plus a security deposit, which Pennsylvania caps at two months' rent during the first year of a tenancy and one month thereafter. Deposits over $100 must be held in an escrow account. There is no broker fee culture in Philadelphia, unlike New York and Boston.
Where to search
Insider tips
- Ask for the rental licence and Certificate of Rental Suitability. It is a legal requirement and a good filter for landlord quality.
- The September university turnover dominates the market. Searching in June and July gives the widest choice; December is quiet and cheaper.
- Rowhouses give you far more space per dollar than an apartment. If you want rooms rather than square footage, look at the whole-house rentals in South and West Philadelphia.
- Philadelphia is genuinely walkable and flat, and SEPTA covers the core well. Between the Wage Tax and the insurance premiums, going car-free here makes more financial sense than in most US cities.
- If you are moving from New York, the Regional Rail and Amtrak connections at 30th Street make keeping a New York job while living here a real and increasingly common arrangement — just model the tax position first.
Avoid these
- Wiring a deposit for a place you have not seen — the standard US rental scam.
- Renting from a landlord without a valid rental licence and Certificate of Rental Suitability.
- Not modelling the Wage Tax before choosing between the city and the suburbs.
- Taking an old rowhouse without checking basement damp, the heating system and the roof.
- Ignoring lead paint disclosure in a pre-1978 property with young children.
- Assuming a deposit above two months is lawful in the first year — it is not.
Some of this may be out of date. Spotted something inaccurate? Help us keep it right for the next newcomer.