News from the Office of the Recorder of Deeds, Chester County, Pennsylvania

June/July 2023

Officials:

Diane O'Dwyer, Acting Recorder

Erin VanRyn, First Deputy

Nancy W. Pine, Esq., Solicitor

Mailing Address:

Chester County Recorder of Deeds

313 W. Market Street, Suite 3302

P.O. Box 2748

West Chester, PA 19382

Telephone: (610) 344-6330

Fax: (610) 344-6408

Email: RODinfo@chesco.org

Website: www.chesco.org/ recorder

Click "Records Search" in the website menu for records online.

Hours: The office is open Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Same-day document recording stops at 4:00 p.m. Same-day plan recording stops at 3:00 p.m.

Fees: For a full list, click here.

For more FAQs and an archive of past newsletters, please visit www.chesco.org/recorder.

Recorder Remarks

Hello Friends,

We hope this combined June/July issue of Good Deeds finds you well.

As William Shakespeare said, “Summer’s lease hath all too short a date.” It’s hard to believe how quickly this summer is going by! We’ve celebrated the fourth of July, and while folks are enjoying family outings and vacations, we’re all finding ways to make the best of the hot & stormy summer weather.

We’ve had some staff changes here at Recorder of Deeds since our last issue. Read further to learn about one resignation and a couple of promotions. Also, as part of a reorganization of our department, I am proud and happy to report that I was able to reclass the pay grades of some of our positions, resulting in well-deserved raises for our hard-working team members.

Due to the downturn in the housing market, our volume of work has been slower this year than in the previous 3 years. However, in June we recorded our highest number of documents yet this year. Let’s hope that trend continues!

Thank you for subscribing to Good Deeds. We will continue to distribute our newsletter to keep you up to date about happenings at the Recorder of Deeds office and offer useful information about our services. "Teamwork and Service" is our motto here at the ROD. Our team is proud to serve you, the public, to the best of our ability. Until the next time, enjoy what’s left of summer!

Please note, you can sign up for future publications here if you have received this in forward.

Diane O'Dwyer

Acting Recorder of Deeds

County Wide Celebrations in June

In June, Chester County Government Offices celebrated Pride Month and Juneteenth. Pride Month celebrates American Diversity and is a commemoration of LGBTQI+ pride. Chester County did its part in showing support for the LGBTQI+ community by flying the Rainbow Pride Flag outside the Chester County Justice Center for the duration of the month. Chester County also celebrated and observed the federal holiday Juneteenth. Juneteenth became a federal holiday through the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act in 2021. It is a celebration of the emancipation of slaves in Texas on June 19, 1865, two and a half years after President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation (Jan. 1863). Though only recently a federal holiday, since 1865 Juneteenth has been recognized and celebrated throughout the country. All government offices were closed on June 19th, 2023 in observation of the holiday.

The Pride Flag flying outside the Justice Center in support of Pride Month. It is a positive symbol of diversity and acceptance of all LGBTQI+ people.

Guest speakers Alex Parham (top left) and Theresa Thornton (bottom right), Mayor Lillian DeBaptiste(left), Commissioner Josh Maxwell (top right) and Marian Moskowitz (middle) posing with the Commissioners Juneteenth Proclamation.

Celebrating Independence Day

This July fourth, we celebrated Independence Day in remembrance of our country's fight for independence nearly two and a half centuries ago. Chester County played an active role in our nation's collective fight against the British. The Chester County Archives has resources detailing the recruiting process of the Chester County Revolutionary War Militia along with many other intriguing projects on Chester County during the war. Visit the Chester County History Center's collection of documents, articles, and paintings detailing the Battle of Paoli and Battle of Brandywine. As we celebrate Independence Day, let us also learn more about our past and how our county played a role in the development of our nation!

Recording Refreshers: UPI Reminder and CLR Change!

UPI Reminder: Chester County requires the

UPI number to be placed on the first page of each land record document submitted for recording. The UPI number (Uniform Parcel Identifier) is a standardized parcel number given to each property in Chester County. The UPI is an effective, efficient, and secure measure to ensure the safe transfer of property, and allows for the interconnectivity of record processing across county departments. When a document is submitted for recording, a BLR specialist first looks for a properly formatted UPI and that ownership matches county records. In Chester County, a properly formatted UPI number does not have any leading zeros, if there is a letter it must be upper case, and it must include dashes. An improper UPI is the most common rejection

reason in our office.

Properly formatted UPI number consists of:

1. Municipality identifier (a number from 1 to 73). Identifies in which municipality a property is located. This number is always followed by a dash.

2. Map sheet number, with a possible alpha suffix. Map alphas, if present, are always upper-case. The map sheet number is always followed by a dash.

3. Parcel Number

4. Sub-parcel number. Always preceded by a decimal point.

5. Sub-parcel alpha suffix. Always upper-case and never an "I" or an "O".

Example: 1-8-420

This property is located in West Chester Borough(1) on map sheet 8, as parcel number 420.

CLR Change: As of July 1st, the PA Department of Revenue changed the CLR (Common Level Ratio) from 2.53 to 2.78. A property's county assessed value is multiplied by the CLR to calculate the computed value on which transfer tax is paid. All deed transfers from July 1st, 2023 until June 30th, 2024 are subject to the new CLR.

Below is an example of a Statement of Value form with the new Common Level Ratio Multiplier:

ROD Office Updates

Promotion Alert!

A special congratulations to our all-star staff member Elizabeth Sheahan who has, through her continued effort and dedication to her work, earned a promotion from Document Recording Technician I to Document Recording Technician III as of June 9th, 2023, almost

to the day of her 3 year anniversary with ROD. She was initially set to start in March of 2020, but the pandemic delayed her start date for 3 months! Elizabeth is the brains behind the ChescoRODtree and our award-winning holiday decorations in the office. Elizabeth is a valued employee and always a friendly source of fun for the office. Stop by, say hi and congratulations to Elizabeth for a well-deserved promotion!

A Passing of the Torch

The ROD department would like to bid a fond farewell to Kim Bydlon, Special Projects Coordinator, who has left us to pursue a new opportunity. Kim started shortly after the COVID-19 pandemic began and has been integral in the development of our community outreach, media relations and Veterans programs. To our delight, she also volunteered as the go-to national anthem singer for Veteran-related and other county events during her time here! We thank Kim for all the hard work and dedication, brightening our days with her bubbly personality, and we wish her the absolute best in her next endeavor.

Congratulations go out to Marc Verduci (pictured here next to Kim), who has been promoted to Special Projects Coordinator, effective July 1st. We thank Marc for stepping into the new role with gusto and ensuring a smooth transition of responsibilities from Kim. Marc joined us just a little less than 2 years ago, initially as a part-time General Clerk, and has quickly moved up the ranks. In this short time, he has proven himself to be an asset to our team, taking on whatever tasks are necessary to keep the office running smoothly, including assisting our accountant with daily and monthly bookkeeping. Our resident history buff, Marc is taking evening classes at WCU towards a masters degree in History. Stop by and congratulate Marc on his well-deserved promotion!

It is with a heavy heart that the Recorder of Deeds department, on behalf of its First Deputy Erin VanRyn, shares news of the passing of its official mascot, Bubbles the bulldog. Sadly, our best fur friend unexpectedly crossed the Rainbow Bridge on Saturday, June 3rd, 2023. Bubbles provided our staff with much affection over the years and our readers with a great deal of well-earned wisdom. She will be sorely missed.

Recorded Documents: YTD

25,925

as of 7/27/23

83%

eRecording

News from the Office of the Recorder of Deeds, Chester County, Pennsylvania

June/July 2023

County of Chester, Recorder of Deeds | Website