Philadelphia / Move in guide

Moving into a Philadelphia rental: the documents and rules that protect you

By Homzora Team · September 22, 2026

Philadelphia requires landlords to hold specific licenses and hand tenants specific documents at the start of a lease. These are not formalities. In many situations, a landlord who skipped them cannot collect rent for the period involved or evict for nonpayment. Knowing what to ask for protects you from the first day.

Time your search

Philadelphia's rental market follows the academic calendar in some neighborhoods. In University City and near other campuses, many leases start in the late summer, and good units can be committed months in advance. Elsewhere, availability tends to rise in the summer as households move between school years. Start looking about 30 to 60 days before your move date, and check your current lease for its notice requirement before you commit to a new home, so that you do not end up paying rent on two places.

Before you apply: confirm the landlord and the license

Every residential rental in Philadelphia requires a rental license from the Department of Licenses and Inspections, renewed each year.^[1] You can look up a property on Atlas, the city's online property lookup tool, to see its ownership and licensing information. Compare the owner's name with the person or company you are dealing with. Be cautious about any listing where the "landlord" cannot show you the inside of the home, asks for money before a tour, or wants payment by wire transfer or gift card.

The license matters for more than safety. Under the Philadelphia Code, as summarized by the city's volunteer legal services organizations, no rent may be collected, and no eviction sought, for any period during which the landlord did not have a valid rental license.^[2] If you discover later that the property was unlicensed, contact a legal aid organization before withholding rent, because the details matter.

Applying: screening fees and criteria

For leases signed or renewed on or after December 2, 2025, Philadelphia limits application and screening fees to the actual cost of the background or credit check, and never more than $50.^[3] A landlord may not charge you more than one screening fee within a 12 month period.^[3] Ask for the fee amount in writing before you pay it.

Philadelphia's Renters' Access Act also regulates how landlords screen applicants.^[4] Before accepting applications, landlords must provide their written screening criteria.^[4] They must assess each applicant individually rather than relying only on a credit score or a screening company's report, and if they reject you, they must tell you why in writing and give you a chance to dispute errors, explain mitigating circumstances or show how your situation has changed.^[4] The law also limits the use of certain eviction records, such as dismissed cases, sealed cases and filings more than four years old.^[4] Philadelphia's Fair Practices Ordinance also prohibits discrimination based on many protected characteristics, including source of income, so a landlord may not reject you simply because you will pay part of your rent with a housing voucher.^[5]

The documents you must receive

At the start of a lease, a Philadelphia landlord must give you two documents together.

A Certificate of Rental Suitability. The landlord obtains it from the city, at no cost, and must provide it when the lease begins.^[6] According to the defense checklist used by Philadelphia's volunteer lawyers, the certificate must have been issued within 60 days before the lease starts.^[2] It confirms that the landlord holds the required license, that there are no outstanding code violation notices other than those on appeal, that smoke detectors and fire protection are in good working order, and that the landlord will keep the property safe and habitable.^[6][2]
The Partners for Good Housing handbook. This city publication explains the responsibilities of owners and tenants for keeping homes safe and in good repair.

A new certificate is required for each new tenant and each lease renewal.^[6] The same legal summaries note that rent may not be collected, and eviction may not be sought, for any period before the landlord provided an unexpired certificate and the handbook.^[2] Keep both documents with your lease.

Lead safety in older homes

Philadelphia has a large stock of older housing, and homes built before 1978 may contain lead paint. Two sets of rules apply.^[7] Federal law requires landlords of housing built before 1978 to disclose known lead hazards and give tenants an informational pamphlet.^[7] Philadelphia's Lead Disclosure and Certification Law goes further. After a phase in by ZIP code that ran from October 2020 through September 2022, landlords of rental properties built before 1978 must certify the unit as lead safe or lead free to sign a new or renewed lease or to obtain or renew a rental license.^[8][1] Ask for a copy of the certificate. The city also requires certification, regardless of ZIP code, whenever a child aged six or younger lives in the home.^[8]

Deposits: limits and installments

Pennsylvania limits security deposits to two months' rent in the first year of a lease and one month's rent from the start of the second year.^[9] Deposits above $100 must be held in a separate account or secured by a bond, and the landlord must tell you where the money is held.^[9] After the second year, the deposit must be held in an interest bearing account, and the landlord pays you the interest annually, less an administrative fee of 1 percent.^[9][10]

For leases signed or renewed on or after December 2, 2025, Philadelphia allows tenants to pay any part of a deposit above one month's rent in three equal monthly installments, starting the month after the lease begins.^[3] Landlords with two or fewer units are exempt.^[3] A landlord may not charge a higher deposit because you choose installments.^[3]

Read the lease closely

Pennsylvania leases often include clauses that shorten or waive the notices a landlord would otherwise have to give before starting an eviction.^[11] Read any section on notice, termination and default carefully, and ask about anything you do not understand before you sign. Also note the length of the lease. In Philadelphia, a lease of less than one year carries extra protection under the city's good cause rules, which require the landlord to give written notice and a qualifying reason before ending or refusing to renew it.^[12] Our jurisdiction guide explains those rules.

Check who is responsible for utilities, snow removal from the sidewalk, minor repairs and yard care. In rowhouse leases, these responsibilities are sometimes assigned to the tenant, and they can add cost and effort.

Heat, utilities and moving day

Ask how the home is heated and who pays. For two family homes, multifamily buildings and rooming houses, Philadelphia requires landlords to maintain at least 68 degrees in habitable rooms, bathrooms and toilet rooms from October 1 through April 30.^[13] Set up gas service with Philadelphia Gas Works and electricity with PECO, or with an alternative electricity supplier if you choose one, well before moving day. If the water account will be in your name, arrange it with the city's water revenue office.

On the day you receive the keys, walk through the home before you move your belongings in. Photograph and film every room, including radiators, windows, floors, ceilings and appliances, and note any existing damage in writing. Test the smoke detectors and carbon monoxide alarms, run the hot water, and check that windows lock. Send the landlord an email listing any defects and needed repairs so that the date of your report is recorded. Many rowhouse blocks have narrow streets, so check whether you need a temporary parking permit for a moving truck.

Get promises in writing

If the landlord promises to make repairs, paint, replace appliances or treat for pests before you move in, ask for the promise in writing, ideally as a clause in the lease with a completion date. Do the same for any agreement about parking, pets, storage or permission to install window air conditioners. Verbal promises are easily forgotten, especially if the property is managed by a company whose staff change, and they are much harder to prove in a dispute. Keep a copy of any signed addendum with your lease, and send a short confirming email after any conversation in which the landlord agrees to something new.

Insurance and roommates

Renters insurance protects your belongings against risks such as fire and theft and usually includes liability coverage. It is inexpensive and some leases require it. Standard policies do not cover flood, which matters in low lying areas such as parts of Manayunk.^[14] If you are sharing a home, decide whether each roommate will buy a separate policy, since one person's policy usually does not cover another's belongings. Agree in writing how you will divide rent, utilities and the deposit, and remember that on a joint lease each tenant may be responsible for the full rent.

Know your rights from day one

Heat and repairs: Report problems in writing. For heat, water or safety emergencies, also contact the city through 311. Our inspection guide explains the repair process.
Lockouts and utility shutoffs: Philadelphia prohibits landlords from changing locks, removing doors or windows, or shutting off utilities to force a tenant out.^[15] Only a court process can remove a tenant.
Retaliation: A landlord may not raise your rent or try to evict you in retaliation for reporting code violations or joining a tenant organization.^[15]
Domestic violence: Victims of domestic violence or sexual assault have the right to end a lease early and recover their security deposit.^[15]

Your completion record

Rental license verified
Screening fee within the cap
Certificate of Rental Suitability received
Partners for Good Housing handbook received
Lead certificate for pre 1978 homes
Deposit location and installment plan
Utilities scheduled
Move in photographs and written defect list

Keep these records together for the entire lease. See the evidence guide for how to protect your deposit, and use the move in cost calculator to plan your payments.

Sources and official resources

Use the planning tools · All Philadelphia guides

Comparing possible destinations? Read Philadelphia vs. Washington, DC Cost Of Living for metropolitan price comparisons, illustrative budgets and the limits of the underlying data.

Put your moving payments on a calendar

Confirm the property identity before using a building record or paying an application expense. A similar street address or another unit in the same building may describe a different arrangement. Carry the exact unit, lease start and quoted payment dates into the schedule, then verify the person receiving each payment.

A dated cash schedule is more useful than one large total

Use the following worksheet after collecting the actual written payment requirements for your home. It is an illustrative planning exercise shared across Homzora editions, not a survey of local prices, a recommended deposit or a statement that every listed charge is permitted. Confirm applicable rules separately. The point is to see what leaves your account before the next reliable income arrives.

Begin with money that is available for the move after setting aside your other commitments. Do not include an expected deposit refund, an unconfirmed reimbursement or a future sale of furniture as though it has already cleared. Enter a future receipt on its expected date and test a second version in which it arrives later. This distinction matters even when your total monthly income looks sufficient.

Hypothetical moving cash schedule starting with $5,000
Timing	Assumed transaction	Cash movement	Balance
Before payments	Available moving funds	$5,000 opening funds	$5,000
Fourteen days before entry	Deposit and moving reservation	$1,000 plus $100 paid	$3,900
Two days before entry	Initial rent and utility allowance	$1,500 plus $200 paid	$2,200
Entry day	Remaining moving balance	$300 paid	$1,900
Three days after entry	Essential household purchases	$200 paid	$1,700
Seven days after entry	Assumed income receipt	$900 received	$2,600

The assumed payments total $3,300. The $100 moving reservation is part of the $400 moving bill, so the delivery day balance is $300, not another $400. The assumed $1,000 deposit uses cash even if it may later be returned. Whether the $200 utility allowance contains a refundable deposit, a fee or both must be established from the real provider documents. These amounts deliberately separate a payment schedule from a final expense calculation.

Find the lowest balance before committing

In this example, the lowest balance is $1,700 before the assumed income arrives. If you want to retain $300 for unexpected needs, the remaining headroom at that point is $1,400. The reserve is still part of your money; do not subtract it as an expense and then count it again as a bill. Keep a separate column showing how much of the balance is committed or deliberately retained.

If opening funds were only $3,000 with every other assumption unchanged, the balance would reach negative $300 before the income receipt. Keeping a $300 reserve would require another $600 available by then, or equivalent agreed reductions or timing changes. A positive balance after payday would not solve the earlier shortage. Do not assume a provider will delay payment unless that change has been confirmed.

Make every row traceable

For your own version, add the payee, written amount, due date, payment reference and refund conditions. Record what a reservation payment will be applied toward. When an estimate changes, preserve the old version and explain which row changed. For a shared household, separate the person who pays the provider from the people who reimburse that person. Otherwise the same expense can appear several times or a funding gap can be hidden inside an informal promise.

Before sending money, verify the property, the person authorized to receive payment and the instructions through a contact method you have independently checked. A payment request arriving in an existing email conversation is not enough by itself to prove that new account details are genuine. Keep evidence of what you agreed and of the payment you actually made.

Connect the budget to the existing guide

Use the local sources and lease questions elsewhere in this guide to establish the actual terms, then enter the confirmed figures into this worksheet. Add storage, extra travel, overlapping housing payments, insurance or other services only when they apply to your move. Existing optional provider links can help you request quotes, but a quote is useful only when its scope matches the arrangement you intend to buy. Recheck the schedule after the first ordinary week in the home.

Continue with a focused decision worksheet

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