Important changes to recording fees and transfer tax starting July 1, 2025

City of Philadelphia

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If you’re buying or selling property in Philadelphia, there are some important fee changes you need to know about. Starting July 1, 2025, several fees at the Department of Records will increase.

What’s changing?

Document recording fees: Recording fees for several types of real estate documents will increase by $3. Here are the current fees and the new fees:

Deeds: $274.75 → $277.75

Miscellaneous Deeds: $259.75 → $262.75 (These include documents such as mortgage modifications, mortgage subordinations, and mortgage refinances, among others)

Mortgages: $244.75 → $247.75

Assignment of Mortgage: $242.75 → $245.75

Release of Mortgage: $227.75 → $230.75

Mortgage Satisfaction: $227.75 → $230.75

Realty Transfer Tax: The city’s realty transfer tax rate will also increase from 3.278% to 3.578%. This is the tax you pay when you buy or sell property in Philadelphia.

Why are these fees increasing?

The extra money from these increases will help fund affordable housing programs across the city, including help for first-time homebuyers, home repairs for low-income residents, and the creation of new affordable housing units.

The fee increases are part of Mayor Parker’s H.O.M.E. (Housing Opportunities Made Easy) plan. This $2 billion program aims to create and preserve 30,000 housing units over the next four years.

What this means for you

If you’re planning to buy or sell property, record a deed, or handle mortgage paperwork after July 1, 2025, you’ll pay the new higher fees. Make sure to budget for these increases when planning your real estate transactions.

Need more information?

For complete details about how to record documents and current fees, visit our webpage. This page includes step-by-step instructions for recording documents and a full fee schedule.

If you have questions about these fee changes, call (215) 686-1483 or email recording.info@phila.gov. Our staff can help explain how these changes might affect your specific situation.

These tax increases will help Philadelphia create more affordable housing options for families and individuals throughout our city.