Philly Homeowners Hope for Deadline Extension on Tax Relief Program
Philadelphia City Council is considering legislation that would extend the deadline for the Longtime Owner Occupants Program (LOOP), offering property tax relief to homeowners with low-to-moderate incomes. Currently, the deadline for applying to the program is set for Saturday. However, if the proposed legislation passes, homeowners would have until January 31, 2024, to apply for tax year 2023.
City Councilmember Quetcy Lozada introduced the bill, aiming to raise awareness about the program, inform the community, and provide an extended deadline for more people to access tax relief. LOOP’s primary goal is to prevent displacement in rapidly gentrifying neighborhoods by permanently fixing property values for eligible homeowners.
Under this program, a homeowner’s reassessment value can be capped at 150% of the previous year’s value. For example, if a property was assessed at $100,000 in 2022, its value for 2023 couldn’t exceed $150,000. Homeowners also have the option to freeze their property value at 175% of the lowest assessment issued in the previous five years, a provision approved by the City Council last year, applying to property assessments from tax year 2023 onward.
To qualify for LOOP, applicants must meet specific criteria, including:
- Residing in the same home for at least 10 years.
- Being homeowners whose primary residence’s assessment increased by 50% from the previous year or 75% over the last five years.
- Being up-to-date with property taxes or having a payment plan.
- Having an income that falls below the program’s limits, which, for a family of four, is $137,250.
The program is capped at a total of $35 million, and homeowners cannot enroll in both LOOP and the Homestead Exemption program simultaneously. The Homestead Exemption program allows residents to deduct $80,000 from their property value before calculating property taxes, potentially reducing their annual tax bill by approximately $1,119. This marks an increase from the previous exemption value of $45,000, which saved homeowners about $629 annually.
