March 27, 2026
Chris Mansfield and Durrell Hospedale/PHL City Council via Flickr
A new bill from Councilmember Anthony Phillips, above, requires landlords to provide the city with verifiable contact information so they can be held accountable for repairs.
Philadelphia landlords will be required to provide the city with up-to-date, reachable contract information following the passage of a new bill in City Council on Thursday.
The legislation, introduced by Councilmember Anthony Phillips (D-9th), said landlords who don't reside at their rental property need to have a verifiable address in the city or hire a local agent as a point of contact. Those who don't comply can be issued fines, lose their rental license or be unable to collect rent.
Phillips said he first decided to craft a bill on this after his office was "bombarded" with calls from renters who had large-scale issues at their homes but couldn't get ahold of the property owner.
"Renters in our neighborhood would say 'This landlord that I pay rent to, I can't get in touch with them, there's no email, there's no phone number, (even) when you mail them, I can't get touch with them,'" Phillips said.
He said landlords would apply for a rental license but only submit a P.O. Box or virtual address in the application. When officials tried to track them down for code violations, there was no physical address. Landlords could claim they weren't properly contacted, Phillips said, while renters were left with unsafe housing conditions.
Building conditions remain a point of contention among Philadelphia renters and landlords. Phillips pointed to situations at Upsal Gardens, Bentley Manor and Lindley Towers, where lawsuits were filed by tenants and the state attorney general after building owners illegally collected rent despite ongoing issues that required major repairs. In the case of Lindley Towers, a partial roof and facade collapse left over 100 residents without housing.
Phillips said those situations showed the need for timely restorations and enforcement of code violations.
"We would reach out to the city of Philadelphia's Licenses and Inspections Department, and they too would issue violations for defects in these properties that were not being fixed, yet they too could not get in touch with the landlords," Phillips said. "For us, we were frustrated, and we said, 'OK, we need to have a law in place that basically says if your information is not verifiable, then there must be a consequence for you in that particular vein.'"
The legislation said landlords have 30 days after receiving notice from L&I to make the necessary repairs. If they don't fix the issue in that timeframe, the city can then issue fines of up to $500 per violation and deny, suspend or revoke rental licenses. In Philadelphia, landlords are not able to collect rent, late fees or other charges during a period of noncompliance with the city.
L&I will determine how best to enforce the bill. However, Phillips envisions it developing a threshold of attempts to reach a landlord via phone, email or at their physical address. After a certain point, a violation and fine would would be issued, and if that remains unaddressed or unpaid for a certain amount of time, licenses can be revoked or suspended.
The legislation now awaits the mayor's signature and will go into effect after 90 days. Phillips said the goal is to improve accountability among landlords.
"We just have thousands of rental homes owned by landlords who don't live at the property, and they're often impossible to reach when emergencies or maintenance issues happen," Phillips said. "This law that I created really ensures that every landlord is reachable, responsible and accountable. We don't want renters left in unsafe conditions."
Housing conditions are top-of-mind for City Council as of late, as members are also considering Councilmember Nicolas O'Rourke's Safe, Healthy Homes Act, which offers additional tenant protections.
