Transaction Coordinator in Bucks County, PA.

What we handle on a Bucks County file

Bucks County publishes a single transfer tax figure for the whole county and no municipal rate table, so any claim of a different local rate has to be checked with the Recorder. Resale requirements split three ways: some townships run a full inspection, several have replaced the walkthrough with third-party certifications, and a few have confirmed in writing that they require nothing. The Recorder changed its payment rules in January 2026 in a way that can stop a settlement at the counter. Once your deal is ratified, PLS builds and manages the file in KW Command, tracks every deadline and contingency, routes documents for signature, and coordinates with lender, title, attorneys, and the co-op agent. See the full transaction coordination service for the complete scope, and the Pennsylvania overview for statewide notes.

Realty transfer tax in Bucks County: 2.0%

The Bucks County Recorder of Deeds states there is a transfer tax of 2 percent for all property sales, with 1 percent to the state and 1 percent to the municipality and school district, and the page carries an effective January 2026 banner. Bucks does not publish a per-municipality rate table the way Allegheny and Delaware do. A claim of a higher local rate in a specific township or borough should be confirmed directly with the Recorder at 215-348-6209 before it goes onto a settlement statement. The 2 percent countywide figure is the safe number to work from.

Recording a deed in Bucks County

The Bucks County Recorder of Deeds sits at 55 East Court Street, 6th Floor, Doylestown, PA, 215-348-6209. The current recording fee is $82.75 for a deed of any form, effective January 1, 2026. The base fee covers up to 4 pages, 4 names, and 1 tax parcel. Additional pages are $4.00, names $1.00, and parcels $10.00. The rejection fee is $10.00. The office runs 7:45 to 4:15. E-recording runs through Simplifile, CSC, and ePN. LANDEX is the county's online records search rather than a submission route, which is a common mix-up. One helpful local quirk: the REV-183 statement of value does not count as a fee page in Bucks.

Effective January 2026 Bucks no longer accepts personal checks for realty transfer tax. The remaining options are cash in office, cashier's check, money order, or credit card with a 3 percent service fee, and this is a live settlement-day trap for agents who have not updated their check instructions. The statement of value must be the June 2019 version and must be submitted in duplicate, or the package is rejected.

What actually holds up a closing here

Bucks resale requirements run on certifications more than walkthroughs

Bensalem Township charges $100 and files one month before settlement, but the process is certification based rather than a walkthrough: it needs an electrical underwriter certificate, a heating certificate, and an NFPA 211 Level II chimney certificate. Warminster Township charges $140, requires filing 30 days before settlement, and issues a certificate valid for only 60 days. Lower Southampton charges $100 for a single family dwelling with a $50 re-inspection and requires a mandatory sewer lateral CCTV inspection and video under Ordinance 598 by a township-registered plumber, and it states expressly that properties sold as-is are not exempt. Falls Township eliminated its walkthrough in January 2021 but still requires five certifications: heating, NFPA 211 Level 2 chimney, sewer lateral inspection, electrical underwriter, and smoke and carbon monoxide detectors with house numbers.

Three Bucks municipalities have confirmed in writing that no resale permit is required

Northampton Township states that it does not conduct an inspection or require a certificate for the resale of residential property. Newtown Township states that it does not require a use and occupancy for residential resale. Sellersville Borough states that at this time it does not require a use and occupancy permit for property resale, but a sewer certification of $30 and a deed registration of $10 still apply at settlement, so the file is not free of municipal steps. These three are worth knowing because the assumption in this region runs the other way. Equally important is the reverse: a long list of Bucks municipalities has no published position either way, so telling a client there is no requirement without a confirming source is a risk rather than a service.

No countywide septic inspection, but the sewage permit itself has to be transferred

The Bucks County Department of Health is the Act 537 local agency for all 54 municipalities, and its rules governing on-lot sewage disposal systems, effective March 25, 2023, contain no countywide point-of-sale septic inspection, pump-out, or certification requirement. What is mandatory at transfer is different and easy to miss: the sewage permit must be transferred to the new owner on Form SA-51 at a fee of $200.00, and a maintenance agreement with the municipality may be required before that transfer can happen. A well permit transfer uses Form SA-135 at $130.00. Separately, Doylestown Township's Septic Management Program under Ordinance 299 requires on-lot systems to be pumped and inspected by a township-approved hauler every three years. That is not a sale trigger, but the buyer inherits the compliance clock and any open enforcement file.

Pricing

Transaction coordination in Pennsylvania is billed per file, not as a monthly retainer. Contract to close is $400 per transaction, and the full rate card including dual agency, transaction licensee, FSBO, and listing management is published on our pricing page. No fixed overhead, no minimum volume.

Where these figures come from

The county-level figures on this page come from the official sources listed below. Municipal fees and deadlines come from each municipality's own published schedules and ordinances, which are revised more often than they are archived. We publish what we could verify and leave out what we could not. Fees and ordinances change; if you are relying on a figure here for a live file, confirm it with the issuing office, and tell us if you find a discrepancy so we can correct the page.

• Bucks County Recorder of Deeds, transfer tax
• Bucks County Recorder of Deeds fee schedule, effective January 1, 2026
• Bucks County Department of Health, on-lot sewage rules
• Bucks County Department of Health 2026 fee schedule
• PA common level ratio factor, July 2026 to June 2027