Transfer tax
Pennsylvania charges a state realty transfer tax of 1% plus local taxes. Who pays and how it applies to a gift with no consideration is confirmed when we prepare the deed. Where the tax falls on the grantee, it is ours.
Donate a house, farm or lot in Pennsylvania, in any of the 67 counties
Pennsylvania property specialists: (888) 228-7320
Donate Real Estate in Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania taxes transfers twice, once at the state level and again locally, and the local half varies from township to township. It also has row-house cities where a sound house can be worth less than its roof, farmland under preferential assessment, and a Pocono lot market built on mail-order sales. We accept property in all 67 counties.
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Pennsylvania rules for a property donation
Federal tax rules are the same in every state. These three are set by Pennsylvania and by the county where the property sits.
The Statement of Value
Where a deed states no consideration, or a nominal one, Pennsylvania expects a Statement of Value filed with it setting out the computed value and the basis of any exemption claimed. Getting that right at recording avoids an assessment from the Department of Revenue later. We prepare it with the deed.
Recording
Deeds are recorded with the county recorder of deeds for the county where the property sits. You sign before a notary wherever you live, and we handle the filing.
What Pennsylvania owners call us about
Four situations this state produces more of than most. None is a reason a property is turned away.
A row house worth less than its repairs
Sound brick shells in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and the older river towns where a new roof and a new heater cost more than the finished house will appraise for.
A Pocono lot bought from a brochure
Parcels sold across the Poconos to New York and New Jersey buyers decades ago, many in associations with annual dues, some without a road cut.
Farmland under Clean and Green
Preferential assessment lowers the tax bill and carries a rollback if the use changes. It is a number in the review rather than an obstacle.
An estate facing inheritance tax
Pennsylvania taxes inheritances by relationship rather than only at the federal threshold, so heirs often want the property resolved rather than held.
Pennsylvania property we accept
Each links to the full guide for that type, including how a donation compares with selling.
Houses in PennsylvaniaRow houses, twins, farmhouses and post-war suburban homes.
Pennsylvania landPocono and Endless Mountains parcels, woodland and village lots.
Farm groundLancaster and Berks cropland, dairy ground and pasture.
Commercial propertyMain street buildings in the mill towns, small offices and retail.
Industrial buildingsMill and warehouse space left from the steel and textile era.
Land contractsProperty sold on terms years ago. We take over the payments and deliver the deed at payoff.
What a donation looks like by region
The state changes character every hundred miles, and so does the property that reaches us.
Philadelphia and the southeast
Row houses, tangled family title and a city transfer tax well above the state rate. Vacant lots between occupied houses are common gifts.
Pittsburgh and the southwest
Hillside houses on steep lots, mill town commercial buildings, and coal and gas rights severed from the surface generations ago.
The Poconos and the northeast
Lot subdivisions sold by mail, community associations with dues, and second homes the second generation does not use.
The Lehigh Valley
Older industrial buildings and dense small-city housing stock, with warehouse development pressing on the farmland around it.
Lancaster and central Pennsylvania
Working farmland, much of it under Clean and Green, plus small borough commercial buildings.
Erie and the northwest
Lake plain farms, vineyards on the ridge, and city housing where repair costs outrun value.
Pennsylvania real estate donation questions, answered
Is a donated deed subject to Pennsylvania transfer tax?+
Pennsylvania charges a state realty transfer tax of 1% plus local taxes. Who pays and how it applies to a gift with no consideration is confirmed when we prepare the deed. Where the tax falls on the grantee, it is ours.
I live outside Pennsylvania. Do I have to travel there to sign?+
No. We prepare the deed in the form Pennsylvania requires for the county where the property sits, you sign before a notary where you live, and we record it with the county recorder of deeds.
My farm is enrolled in Clean and Green. Does a donation trigger the rollback?+
It can, depending on what the new owner does with the land and on the county assessor’s treatment. It is a figure we work out during the review rather than a surprise afterwards. Send the parcel number and the enrollment.
Does Pennsylvania give a state tax deduction for a property donation?+
Pennsylvania has a state income tax, and how it treats a charitable contribution is set by Pennsylvania law rather than by us. Your federal deduction follows the usual IRS rules. Take the state question to your own advisor.
My Pocono lot has association dues I stopped paying. Is that a problem?+
It is a number, not a bar. The association balance is weighed against what the lot can sell for. Tell us the association name and roughly what is owed rather than leaving it to surface later.
We do not provide tax or legal advice. State and local transfer tax rules change; we confirm current requirements when we prepare each deed. Consult your own advisor.
Tell us about your Pennsylvania property and we will review it
The county and a parcel number are enough to start.