Tenants are demanding that Mayor Cherelle Parker’s administration step in to prevent hundreds of subsidized homes in West and Southwest Philadelphia from being sold to for-profit developers,

Neighborhood Restorations alerted the city in July 2025 of the company’s intent to sell its 925-unit portfolio, which is scattered across multiple neighborhoods. The move triggered a one-year waiting period, in accordance with a recent municipal law designed to give City Hall time to come up with a plan to preserve affordable housing.

Latoya Burgess, who has lived in her Kingsessing home for 30 years, said the renters met with Parker’s team last month but have not heard anything since.

“My 13-year-old daughter is worried we may lose our home,” she said during a rally Tuesday afternoon outside City Hall. “No child should have to worry about losing their home.

“We cannot stand and wait for our homes to be sold underneath us.”

Parker, in a statement, said her office’s commitment to the impacted families is “unwavering,” but that they “deserve action, not misinformation.”

Neighborhood Restorations, formerly known as Prime Property, built out its portfolio using federal low-income tax credits, which require landlords to maintain affordability for at least three decades. Parker’s team said the affordability limits have expired for 225 properties. The remaining 700 will continue to be subject to the restrictions for at least four more years, according to city officials.

Acquiring all 925 units could cost more than $280 million, a price tag that is “beyond the resources of the city or any one agency alone,” Parker added.

“There is no simple or immediate solution at this scale,” the mayor continued. “My message to everyone who cares about these families is simple: come to the table. Join these talks. Bring your ideas, your resources, and your solutions. We welcome everyone who is serious about working together to find a path forward that protects these families and preserves these homes.”

Tenants and advocates from One Pennsylvania favor a solution in which the city purchases the portfolio and provides a pathway for renters to buy their homes below market rate. 

“If these homes are sold to the wrong person, I would be losing my community, where I live and raise my children as well as memories,” said Christie Davis, a 22-year resident of a home owned by Neighborhood Restorations.

Three City Council members – Jamie Gauthier, Curtis Jones Jr. and Nicolas O’Rourke – joined tenants at Tuesday’s rally. They are pushing the Parker administration to use funding from the Housing Opportunities Made Easy program, an $800 million bond initiative to create or preserve 30,000 units of affordable housing, to save the Neighborhood Restorations properties.

“I love my mayor. I’m for the H.O.M.E. program,” Jones remarked. “But if the H.O.M.E. program isn’t for the people you see right here, then who’s it for?”

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Keywords

Cherelle Parker,

affordable housing,

Neighborhood Restorations,

West Philadelphia,

Southwest Philadelphia,

Philadelphia City Council,

H.O.M.E. program,

housing