Short answer: FastCashAnyHome buys houses, condos and land across Philadelphia for cash, as-is: no repairs, no showings, and no fees or commissions charged to you. It is a cash sale — no bank loan or appraisal needed on your side — and closing runs through a neutral, third-party title company in 30 days or less. You get an initial cash offer, confirmed after a quick walkthrough. Call or text 267-388-0347.
Get a no-obligation cash offer: enter the property address and your phone number below.
A house that is in good shape, and an owner who can wait a few months, will usually do better listed with an agent. A fast cash sale earns its place when something else is in charge: the condition, an estate, a title problem, back taxes, tenants, or a date. This page covers the parts of that decision that are specific to Philadelphia.
Philadelphia’s transfer tax is 4.578%, and the split is negotiable
Selling in Philadelphia comes with a realty transfer tax, and the city’s is a big number. The City’s own figures:
“3.578% (City) + 1% (Commonwealth) = 4.578% (total)”
It is figured on “the sale price or assessed value of the property, plus any assumed debt.” On who pays, the City says the tax “is usually split evenly between the buyer and the seller, but this is not a legal requirement,” and that “the City has the right to collect 100% of the tax from either party” (City of Philadelphia, Realty Transfer Tax, read 2026-10-11).
To put a number on it: the median value of an owner-occupied home in Philadelphia is $243,100 (U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024, table DP04). A sale at that price carries about $11,129 in transfer tax, or about $5,565 per side if it is split down the middle.
Two things follow from that. First, a transfer tax is owed to the City and the state; it is not a fee a buyer charges, so “no fees or commissions” does not settle who pays it. Second, the split is whatever the agreement of sale says. Before you sign with anyone, us included, ask to see the transfer-tax line in writing, next to the price.
Most of the city’s housing is attached, and much of it is old
The Census Bureau counts 55.6% of Philadelphia’s housing units as “1-unit, attached” and 39.9% as built in 1939 or earlier (same DP04 table). “Attached” is the Census category for row houses and double houses, the city’s twins: each house counts as its own structure when the wall it shares with the neighbor runs from ground to roof (Census ACS subject definitions).
A house built before 1940 has had more than 80 years of wear and of repairs, some done well and some not. When a buyer finances a purchase, their inspector and their lender look hard at the roof, the wiring, the plumbing, the heater and the basement. What they find can turn into a repair request, a lower price, or a loan that stalls.
We price condition in instead of handing you a repair list. You don’t fix the roof, you don’t clean out the basement, and you don’t stage anything for showings. Take what matters to you and leave the rest.
An estate, or a name that isn’t on the deed
Probate in Philadelphia runs through the Register of Wills in City Hall, Room 180. The office probates wills, issues letters of administration when a Philadelphia resident dies without a will, and also serves as the Clerk of the Orphans’ Court (City of Philadelphia, Register of Wills).
The City also describes a related problem, in its own words: “If you live in a home and consider yourself the homeowner, but your name isn’t on the deed, you may have a tangled title.” It often happens when the relative who owned the house died without a will, or before probate was finished. The Register of Wills runs a Title Clearance Unit that “helps qualified residents navigate the probate process and transfer the titles of their properties,” reachable at (215) 686-6262 (City of Philadelphia, Get help with clearing your home’s title).
Why that matters for a sale: the person who signs the deed generally has to have the legal right to sell. We close once clear title comes in, not before. What we can do in the meantime is look at the house and give you an initial offer, so the sale is ready when the paperwork is. Our page on selling an inherited house in Philadelphia goes further into the estate side.
Back real estate taxes, or a foreclosure filing
If keeping the house is the goal, look at the City’s payment plan first. For owners who live in the home, the City’s Owner-Occupied Payment Agreement “allows homeowners to make affordable monthly payments on property taxes that are past due.” There is no down payment to sign up, and some low-income and senior residents qualify for payments “as low as $0” (City of Philadelphia, Owner-occupied Real Estate Tax Payment Agreement). A sale is not the only answer to a tax bill.
If a mortgage lender has filed. Philadelphia’s Court of Common Pleas runs a Residential Mortgage Foreclosure Diversion Program for owner-occupied homes. Our page on selling a house in foreclosure in Philadelphia explains how it works and how a sale fits around it. A fast sale may help some homeowners avoid a completed foreclosure, but timing matters. If a sale date is already scheduled, contact your lender, an attorney or a housing counselor right away, the same day you call any buyer.
When a sale does go ahead, back taxes, a mortgage and any other liens are paid out of the sale proceeds at closing, the same as in any sale.
This page is for general information only and is not legal, tax, or financial advice. Anyone dealing with foreclosure, probate, liens, back taxes, or a legal deadline should consider speaking with a qualified attorney, tax professional, or housing counselor before making a decision.
How a sale to us runs
- Call or text 267-388-0347, or use the form. We need the address, rough condition, whether anyone lives there, and what’s going on with the house. No financial paperwork, no obligation.
- Get an initial cash offer. We look at nearby sales, the condition, and what it would take to make the house sellable, and we walk you through that arithmetic. The number is confirmed after a quick walkthrough; if anything changes, a person tells you what changed and why.
- Close through a title company. A neutral, third-party title company handles the paperwork and the money. Closing: 30 days or less, with flexible closing dates so you can move on your terms. An estate waiting on letters, or a title being cleared, sets its own pace, and we wait for it.
- Get paid at closing. No fees or commissions to you. Any mortgage, liens or back taxes come out of the sale proceeds, and the transfer tax is split the way the agreement of sale says.
We buy houses with tenants in place, on the leases as written, and we buy condos and land as well as houses. Outside the city line, we also buy in Bucks, Chester, Delaware and Montgomery counties.
Want to know what a direct sale could look like for your Philadelphia house? Call or text 267-388-0347 for a no-obligation cash offer.
Your options, side by side
- List with an agent. Usually the most money for a financeable house in good order, if you can wait out showings, the buyer’s inspection and their loan approval. You pay the commission, and often some repairs.
- Sell it yourself. Saves the listing commission. The marketing, the showings and the negotiating are all yours, and a buyer with a mortgage brings the same inspection and loan approval.
- Keep it. A payment plan for back taxes, or renting the house out, can make more sense than selling. Renting in Philadelphia takes a City rental license, which requires being current on City taxes and having no open L&I violations, plus a lead-safe or lead-free certification for any property built before March 1978 (City of Philadelphia, Get a Rental License).
- Sell as-is for cash. No repairs, no showings, no fees or commissions to you, and a closing date you can plan around. The trade-off is a price below what a fully fixed-up house would bring on the open market.
If listing would clearly put more in your pocket, we’ll say so.
Other areas we buy in
- Bucks County
- Montgomery County
- Delaware County
- Chester County
- Selling an inherited house in Philadelphia
- Selling a house in foreclosure in Philadelphia
- Selling a house in probate in Montgomery County
Questions Philadelphia sellers ask
How fast can you close on a Philadelphia house?
Closing is 30 days or less once the title is clear, with flexible dates if you need more time. An estate or a tangled title sets its own pace, and we work around it.
Who pays the transfer tax if I sell to you?
Whatever the agreement of sale says. The City says the 4.578% tax is usually split evenly between buyer and seller, but that is not a legal requirement. Ask us to show the split in writing before you sign, and ask the same of any buyer.
Do I have to fix anything or clean it out first?
No. We buy as-is. Leave what you don’t want; the condition and the cleanout are priced in.
My name isn’t on the deed. Can I still sell?
Usually not until the title is cleared, because the person signing has to have the right to sell. The City’s Title Clearance Unit at the Register of Wills helps qualified residents with exactly this, and an estate attorney is the other route. You can still call us first and get an initial offer while that work goes on.
The house has tenants. Will you buy it?
Yes, with the tenants in place and the leases as written. We don’t ask anyone to empty a house before selling it.
Are there any fees or commissions?
No fees or commissions to you. Any existing mortgage, liens or back taxes are paid from the sale proceeds at closing, as in any sale, and the transfer tax follows the agreement of sale.
Is your first number final?
It is an initial cash offer, confirmed after a quick walkthrough. If something changes, a person explains what and why.
FastCashAnyHome · 267-388-0347 · Buying in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York · General information, not legal or tax advice. No obligation. Your information stays private.