Pocopson, Pennsbury, Birmingham, and West Marlborough hold the countryside around Unionville, feed the school district buyers wait years for, and share the simplest municipal answer in Chester County: no resale certificate, in any of the four. The work of selling here lives in the wells, the septic, the easements, and one historic district.
The Unionville country picture
This is the Brandywine Valley at its most protected: horse farms along Route 82, preserved parcels rolling toward Longwood Gardens, and housing stock that ranges from eighteenth-century farmhouses to estate builds on conserved land. The Unionville-Chadds Ford School District does the pricing, preservation does the scarcity, and sellers who list correctly meet a buyer pool that has usually been waiting. West Marlborough, with fewer than 900 residents and more hunt country than any township in the county, is the purest version of the market; Pocopson, Pennsbury, and Birmingham carry the same economics closer to Route 1.
No certificate in any of the four
Pocopson’s official FAQ answers the resale question in one sentence: no occupancy inspection for resales. Pennsbury’s codes department issues occupancy certificates for new construction and changes in use, with a checklist of sewage permits, water tests, and final inspections aimed at finished builds. Birmingham and West Marlborough tie their permits to construction the same way. A confirming call when you list costs five minutes; as published, no township here stands between agreement and settlement.
What matters instead
- Wells and septic. Nearly universal here, county-permitted, and buyer-tested. A current water test and pump-out receipt in the listing folder shortens diligence by weeks.
- The easement file. Conservation easements and sold development rights define Unionville country. Buyers paying for protected views want the documents that guarantee them; have the easement deeds and boundary survey staged.
- The permit history. Estate properties accumulate outbuildings, pools, and additions across decades. Pull the township permit file before photos and close anything open.
The Pennsylvania money
All four townships sit at the standard 2% total realty transfer tax, the local 1% divided with the school district and customarily split with the buyer, so the seller’s half on an $850,000 sale is $8,500. Pennsylvania withholds nothing at settlement. At Unionville price points, the federal exclusion, $250,000 single and $500,000 married, deserves an actual calculation with your accountant rather than an assumption, especially for long-tenure owners with large gains. The home-sale tax guide and the cost-to-sell guide carry the detail.
Getting started
The Unionville order: a free valuation, the well, septic, and easement records gathered before the photographer, HARB checked before any exterior work in Birmingham, and pricing set against the district’s waiting demand. The Kennett Square guide covers the borough down Route 82, the East Fallowfield and Newlin guide continues the countryside north, the Chester County downsizing guide maps the county, and the sequencing guide settles what to do first.