08 Oct Philadelphia vs the Suburbs: Why Your Transfer Tax Bill Is Different
Philadelphia’s realty transfer tax is 4.578% of the sale price, and Montgomery County’s is 2%. The state’s 1% is the same on both sides of the city line, so the whole difference is the local share: 3.578% in Philadelphia and 1% in a borough like Bridgeport.
On the same sale price, that’s more than double the tax. Here’s where the difference comes from, what it looks like in dollars, and how to check the rate for your own address.
Why is the transfer tax different in Philadelphia and the suburbs?
The realty transfer tax has two parts. Pennsylvania charges 1% of the sale price, wherever in the state the house is. Local taxing bodies add their own share, and each one sets its own rate.
So the municipality your house is in decides the total. A sale in Philadelphia and a sale a few miles away in Montgomery County carry the same state tax and a very different local tax.
What is the transfer tax in Philadelphia?
Since July 1, 2025, Philadelphia’s rate has been 3.578% for the city plus 1% for the state, 4.578% in total. If you’ve seen 4.278% online, that was the rate before the July 2025 increase.
What is the transfer tax in the Philadelphia suburbs?
It depends on the municipality. Here is what each county’s Recorder of Deeds lists as of October 2026:
- Montgomery County: 2% in total. Bridgeport is an example: the borough’s local transfer tax is 1%, and with the state’s 1%, the total comes to 2%.
- Bucks County: 2% in total, 1% for the state and 1% local.
- Delaware County: 1% for the state and 1% local, except in four municipalities. Radnor Township, Upper Darby Township and the City of Chester have a 1.5% local share, and Upper Providence Township’s is 2%.
- Chester County: 1% for the state and 1% local, with exceptions. Malvern Borough and Tredyffrin Township have a 1.5% local share, and the City of Coatesville’s is 2.5%.
Where a local share is listed, add the state’s 1% to get the total.
Two cautions on names. The City of Chester is in Delaware County, not Chester County. And the Upper Providence Township on that list is the one in Delaware County, not the Upper Providence Township in Montgomery County.
Local rates change. Philadelphia’s went up in July 2025. Confirm the rate for your municipality before you rely on any figure, including these.
What does the difference look like on a $400,000 sale?
Here’s an example. The price is illustrative, not a typical price and not a prediction for your home.
Example: the same $400,000 sale in four places.
| Where the house is | Total rate | Total transfer tax | Each side with an even split |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bridgeport, Montgomery County | 2% | $8,000 | $4,000 |
| Radnor Township, Delaware County | 2.5% | $10,000 | $5,000 |
| Upper Providence Township, Delaware County | 3% | $12,000 | $6,000 |
| Philadelphia | 4.578% | $18,312 | $9,156 |
Between Bridgeport and Philadelphia, the same price carries $10,312 more in transfer tax. With an even split, that’s $5,156 more for the seller and $5,156 more for the buyer.
Who pays the transfer tax, the buyer or the seller?
The custom is the same on both sides of the city line: buyer and seller each pay half. That split isn’t set by law. It’s written into your agreement of sale, and it can be negotiated. We cover it in Who Pays the Transfer Tax When You Sell a House in Pennsylvania.
What changes is how much money the split moves. In the example, half the tax is $4,000 in Bridgeport and $9,156 in Philadelphia. If a buyer asks you to pay their half, that request costs more than twice as much in the city.
What if you sell in the city and buy in the suburbs?
Each sale is taxed where the property is. Say you sell a $400,000 house in Philadelphia and buy a $400,000 house in Bridgeport, with an even split on both. Your share is $9,156 on the sale and $4,000 on the purchase, $13,156 in transfer tax across the two.
Move the other way and the two numbers swap. Either way, run each sale at its own rate.
How do you check the transfer tax rate for your address?
- Find your municipality. The tax follows the borough, township or city the property is in, and that isn’t always the name in your mailing address. King of Prussia, for example, is a mailing address inside Upper Merion Township. Your deed and your property tax bill show the municipality.
- Look up the rate. Your county’s Recorder of Deeds publishes it. In Philadelphia, the Department of Revenue does.
- Have it confirmed. Ask your agent or title company, and check that the rate on your settlement statement matches the published one.
What stays the same on both sides of the city line?
- The state’s 1%.
- The custom of an even split, and your freedom to negotiate a different one.
- Buyer and seller are both responsible for the full tax until it’s paid.
- The tax is due when the deed is recorded, and your share comes out of your proceeds at settlement.
The transfer tax is one line on your settlement statement. For the rest of them, see What It Costs to Sell a House in the Philadelphia Suburbs.
Frequently asked questions
Is Philadelphia’s transfer tax more than double the suburbs’?
Compared with Montgomery County’s 2%, yes: Philadelphia’s is 4.578%. Some suburban municipalities charge more than 2%, so the gap depends on where the house is.
When did Philadelphia’s transfer tax change?
On July 1, 2025. The total went from 4.278% to 4.578%.
Is the transfer tax the same in every suburb?
No. Montgomery and Bucks counties list 2%. Delaware and Chester counties list 2% with exceptions they name. Check the rate for your own municipality.
Do I pay Philadelphia’s rate if I live in the city and sell a house in the suburbs?
No. The tax depends on where the property is, not where you live.
What will the transfer tax be on your sale?
Where your house is sets the rate, and your agreement of sale sets your share. If you’re thinking about selling in Philadelphia or the Philadelphia suburbs, we’ll confirm the rate for your address and build a net sheet for your house, line by line. Any value range we give you is a broker price opinion, and a broker price opinion is not an appraisal. Contact Plus Realtors and tell us where your home is.