We Buy Houses in Fishtown, Philadelphia

Do you really buy houses in Fishtown?

Yes. Our office is in Fishtown, Philadelphia, so a call about a house on Memphis Street or Shackamaxon Street is a call from a neighbor. Text or call (267) 551-5554 and a real local person answers. Michael Neavson and Jen Gorsen are two of the people you might talk with.

Michael Neavson

Jen Gorsen

We buy houses ourselves, for cash. We're not agents, and we don't list houses. Sellers give us 4.6 stars on Google and 5.0 on Facebook. Read about our company, or get in touch.

Which parts of Fishtown do you buy in?

All of it. OpenDataPhilly's neighborhood map draws Fishtown big, and it's nearly all ZIP 19125.

What are Fishtown houses like?

Mostly old brick rowhomes, with a lot of new ones mixed in. In City records, about 6 of every 7 Fishtown single-family homes are rowhomes, and about 3 in 4 were built before 1940. Many build years are City estimates, but 2,594 are listed as built before 1900.

The Census Bureau's 2020 to 2024 survey agrees. In the four census tracts that cover most of Fishtown, 65% of homes were built in 1939 or earlier and 17% in 2010 or later, against about 6% citywide. City planners have described Fishtown's small, odd-shaped blocks as giving it a village-like feel.

In a row that's a hundred years old, the money usually goes to the roof and the flashing along the party walls, the rear wall, water in the basement, old wiring (some still knob-and-tube), and the pipes out to the street. Fishtown adds one of its own: when the house next door gets torn down and rebuilt, your shared wall can take a beating.

You don't have to fix any of it to sell to us. We buy Fishtown houses as-is, open L&I violations and all. See our guides to knob-and-tube wiring and selling with code violations. Staying, and the sewer backs up when it storms? The Water Department's Basement Backup Protection Program puts in a free backwater valve if your water bill is current or in a payment agreement.

How much have Fishtown home values gone up?

A lot. These are the City's own assessments for the same houses, 2015 against 2027.

The new houses sit in a different price range. The City lists 1,397 new-style rows in Fishtown (it calls them "row, modern"), with a typical 2027 value of about $653,000. As for actual sales, the City's property records put the typical recorded price of a Fishtown single-family home sold in 2025 at $410,000 (445 sales), and $380,000 for 2026 sales recorded through mid-September, fixed-up and as-is houses mixed together.

The 2027 reassessment itself went the other way. Fishtown's ZIP had the biggest drop in the city:

That's the City's number for taxes, not what your house would sell for. At the City's 1.3998% rate, every $100,000 of taxable value costs about $1,400 a year. And only about 4 in 10 Fishtown single-family homes have the Homestead Exemption. If you live in yours and don't have it, apply by December 1. It takes $100,000 off your taxable value, and the City says most owners save up to $1,399 a year.

My Fishtown house is worth far more than I paid. What does that mean for me?

It means you've got real choices, and some homework. In City records, the gap is huge:

Owners like that are now a small group. In the census tracts covering most of Fishtown, only about 1 in 7 households moved in before 2000, against about 1 in 5 citywide.

If that's you, talk to a tax professional before you sell. If you've owned the house and lived in it as your main home for at least 2 of the last 5 years, you may be able to leave up to $250,000 of profit off your federal taxes, or up to $500,000 if you're married and file jointly. Someone who paid $17,500 and sells for $300,000 has about $282,500 of profit before counting improvements and selling costs, which is more than the single limit.

Inherited it? The IRS generally sets your basis, the number your profit is measured from, at the home's fair market value on the date of death, not what your parents paid.

Rather stay? Beyond Homestead, the City has LOOP for owners of 10 years or more whose assessment jumped, and a tax freeze for seniors under the income limits. Our Philadelphia page has the details.

Inherited a Fishtown rowhome?

We buy inherited houses as-is, full of furniture or empty. First, someone needs the legal right to sign. The Register of Wills in City Hall, Room 180, probates the will. If there wasn't one, it issues letters of administration so a family member can handle the estate.

On Fishtown values, Pennsylvania's inheritance tax is real money: 4.5% on what passes to children and grandchildren, 12% to brothers and sisters, 15% to most other heirs, and nothing to a spouse. At 4.5%, every $100,000 of value is $4,500 of tax. It's late nine months after the death, and if it's paid within three months, you get 5% off.

While you decide, an empty house needs a $202 Vacant Residential Property License, renewed every year, unless it's being renovated. And Homestead only goes to an owner who lives there; when the deed changes, it has to be applied for again. Still in a late parent's or grandparent's name? Our guide to tangled titles in Philadelphia walks through the fix, and our guide to selling an inherited house in Philadelphia covers every step.

What about Fishtown's new houses and the tax abatement?

Many pay little tax on the building for their first years. The City's abatements exempt all or part of an improvement for a set number of years, including a ten-year abatement on new homes. In City records, 1,222 of the 1,761 Fishtown single-family homes built in 2010 or later have all or part of the building exempt from tax and no Homestead Exemption, which for new houses most likely means an abatement.

Two things to know. While a 10-year residential abatement runs, the house can't also get the Homestead Exemption. And when it ends, the full value is taxed. At the 1.3998% rate, a $650,000 house owes about $9,100 a year before Homestead. If you own one of those newer houses and the bill's about to jump, we'll make you an offer. If it's in good shape, listing it will probably get you more, and we'll tell you so.

What City paperwork comes up when you sell a Fishtown house?

The same as anywhere in Philly, and the title company handles most of it.

For the full picture, read our guides to selling a house in Philadelphia and what it costs to sell a house in Philadelphia.

How does selling to us work in Fishtown?

1. Call, text or send the form. Tell us the address and what's going on.
2. We see the house as it is. No cleaning, no repairs, and we work around your tenants.
3. You get our written cash offer, usually within 24 hours, with no fees from us. It shows what you walk away with after any mortgage, liens or back taxes are paid off from the sale.
4. You pick the closing day. We pay all the closing costs, and the title company handles the payoffs.

Our price will be less than your house could bring fully fixed up and listed, because we pay for the repairs, carry the house while the work gets done, and pay to sell it again. If listing would put more money in your pocket, we'll tell you. No pressure either way. See how we calculate our offer and how a cash sale compares with listing.

Get my cash offer Text or call (267) 551-5554

Where else nearby do you buy?

Just up the river, see our Port Richmond page. We also buy in South Philadelphia, Germantown and West Philadelphia, and across the Delaware in Camden County, NJ. Our Philadelphia page covers every part of the city, plus probate, sheriff sales and L&I.

Fishtown seller questions

This page is general information, not legal or tax advice. For your situation, talk to a Pennsylvania attorney or tax professional.