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Project

Philadelphia Research and Policy Initiative

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Philadelphia Research and Policy Initiative
Pew’s Philadelphia research and policy initiative seeks to inform discussions on important issues facing the city and the region and to provide policymakers and other decision-makers with data, analysis, and examples of promising practices that may help them address key challenges.

We regularly release reports that often offer comparisons with other major U.S. cities, and we conduct polling to determine Philadelphians’ views on policy issues, elected officials, and various aspects of life in the city.

We also combine our local capacity with our state- and national-level expertise to convene city and regional stakeholders with experts and officials from around the country to discuss effective, evidence-based solutions being implemented in other jurisdictions and the impacts of those reforms.

Report

Philadelphia 2024

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Report

In many ways, 2024 is a year of significant transition for Philadelphia. In this year of transition, the challenge is clear for Philadelphia and its new leaders: They must nurture and strengthen the positive trends while making progress on a set of deep-seated problems that can sometimes seem intractable.

Philadelphia's Immigrants

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Over the past three decades, immigrants have become a main source of population growth in Philadelphia, an influx not seen at such levels for more than a century. This diverse population is transforming what it means to be a Philadelphian, just as immigrants themselves are adapting to the city and the United States.

Report

Single-Family Home Sales in Philadelphia

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Report

For decades, Philadelphia has had a reputation for being a relatively affordable place to buy a home—at least when compared with New York, Boston, Washington, and some other major cities—a reputation that has held steady even in an era of rising home prices nationwide.

Report

Equity in Philadelphia’s Capital Budgeting

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Report

When Philadelphians talk about their local government, the conversations often involve places where the city provides services to residents—facilities such as the parks, libraries, fire stations, and city office buildings that Philadelphia creates, maintains, and improves with funding from its capital budget.

Our Work

City skyline
City skyline

Philadelphia's Fiscal Future

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Philadelphia’s economy was performing well in the decade before the pandemic—matching and, in some years, outperforming the nation in job generation. But COVID-19 halted that progress, and the city’s recovery has lagged that of the national economy. That’s especially troubling given that Philadelphia’s pre-pandemic job growth did not extend to workers of color in the city.

Sayre Health Center
Sayre Health Center
Article

8 Trends That Defined the Past Year in Philadelphia

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Article

COVID-19 affected nearly all aspects of Philadelphians’ lives, magnifying existing inequities and exposing new fault lines at a time when calls for racial justice were mounting in the city and throughout the country.