Inactive Rental License - Philadelphia PA townhome

Member since 2021 · 2 posts · 0 votes

Hi! I'm under contract on a property in the Tacony neighborhood of Philadelphia and noticed that the current landlord has an inactive rental license since 2020.

Has anyone else been in a similar situation? Anything to lookout for and is this a potential deal breaker?

Thank you in advance.

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Alan AsriantsBusiness Member
Real Estate Agent · Philadelphia, PA · Member since 2019 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
2y
This is not a dealbreaker. The license is registered to the property owner. When you close on the property you should immediately work on getting your rental license. If the property is built before 1978 you will need to do Lead based paint tests to get approved. Then you can get the license
This will involve getting a tax number then a commercial activity license and then a rental license (yes I know, ridiculous)
What would be a deal breaker is if the property is listed as a duplex but in reality is a single that was illegally converted and has no rental license
Verify the zoning if all checks out, you will be able to get a rental license in your name once you close
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Alan Asriants - New Century Real Estate 591 Reviews
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Stuart UdisPro Member
Attorney · Philadelphia · Member since 2018 · 2k+ posts · 3k+ votes
2y
Are you purchasing a single-family or mix-use/multi-family building? If it's a single-family house and properly zoned as such, this is not an issue. You will be required to obtain your rental license after you take title. If you are acquiring a building with multiple residential units, it's important to first verify the use permit if still on record and more importantly the last active rental license matches the number of residential units. Frequently the underlying zoning district differs from the historic use and it's not uncommon for the original use permit records to be lost (even by L&I). This is when the rental license is most important. The license can lapse for up to three years but after 3 years, L&I may not honor the historic use. Since this is discretionary its best not to leave this to chance. I have seen instances where an invoice has been issued for the retroactive licensing fees and in other instances less cooperation and the need to apply for a new use permit or even worse a variance if the use is not permitted by the base zoning. Along with maintaining certain rights not available to landlords without a rental license in Philadelphia, the license should be viewed as an insurance policy protecting the use in instances where the base zoning differs from historic use. In this case the rental license was active as recently as 2022 which is helpful, but it's also good practice to have the License and Inspections Affidavit of Continuous use completed by the prior owner as an extra precaution.
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