We Buy Houses in Bucks County, PA

Who are we, and what do we buy in Bucks?

Vivid Properties is a family-owned real estate investment company from Philadelphia, with our office at 2614 Amber St. We buy houses directly, with a written cash offer. We are not real estate agents, and we never put your house on the market. Lower Bucks begins where Northeast Philly ends at the Poquessing Creek, and we buy all the way up to Riegelsville and Durham.

• Levittown and Fairless Hills houses, original or added onto over the years.
• Twins and rowhomes in Bristol Borough and Morrisville.
• Ranchers, splits and colonials in Bensalem, Warminster, Feasterville, Southampton, Langhorne and Newtown.
• Farmhouses and country houses in central and upper Bucks, including ones on a private well and septic.
• Small 2 to 4 unit buildings, with or without tenants.

Condition does not matter: inherited and full of furniture, a tired rental, a heater or roof at the end of its life, an addition built without permits, or a house behind on taxes.

Which Levittown township is my house in?

Check your tax bill, because Levittown is not a town. It is the name for the neighborhoods Levitt and Sons built from 1952 to 1958, split among Bristol Township, Middletown Township, Falls Township and a sliver of Tullytown borough. Locals know it by section, and the streets in each section generally start with the same letter as the section's name.

It matters because the township, not "Levittown," sets your resale inspection and your taxes. A Thornridge house follows Falls Township's rules; a Snowball Gate house follows Middletown's. Fairless Hills, built starting in 1951 for workers at U.S. Steel's Fairless Works, is in Falls Township too.

Which Bucks towns and neighborhoods do we buy in?

All of them, from the Philly line to the edge of the Lehigh Valley. Find your area by the name you use; each card lists the townships and boroughs it covers and the main ZIP codes.

Will my Bucks township make me get a U&O before I sell?

Most likely. Many Bucks townships and boroughs require a resale use and occupancy permit (U&O) before settlement, and they go about it very differently. Some send an inspector; others, like Bensalem and Falls, want certifications from private contractors instead.

What if the house fails? Pennsylvania's Act 133 of 2016 says a town that requires a U&O must issue a temporary certificate when an inspection finds violations, so the sale can still close and the buyer gets 12 months to make repairs. That is how we can buy a Bucks house as-is. More on how an as-is sale works.

Where does probate happen for a Bucks County house?

At the Bucks County Register of Wills, on the 6th floor of 55 East Court Street in Doylestown, which holds both in-person and virtual appointments. There are satellite offices at 7321 New Falls Road in Levittown and 261 California Road in Quakertown; call ahead to check their hours. Before an estate can sell the house, the executor or administrator generally needs Letters from this office. Our guide to selling an inherited house in Pennsylvania covers the state steps and inheritance tax.

How do sheriff sales and tax sales work in Bucks?

Bucks still holds sheriff sales in person: the second Friday of each month at 11 a.m. in the Commissioner's Meeting Room of the county Administration Building, 55 E. Court Street, Doylestown. Bidder registration starts at 10 a.m. with photo ID and proof of funds, and the buyer takes the house as-is. The lender's attorney can postpone a sale up to 130 days, and only twice to a set date without a court order.

Unpaid property taxes run on a separate track. The county Tax Claim Bureau holds its upset sale each September, and property with real estate taxes two years past due may be eligible. A continued upset sale and a judicial sale follow in December, all held online through GovEase. Facing either one? Our Pennsylvania sheriff sale guide lays out every option, including ones that have nothing to do with selling.

What do Bucks houses usually need?

Here is what tends to come up when a Bucks house is sold:

• Heaters and chimneys. Bensalem and Falls both want them certified at resale.
• Sewer laterals and sump pumps. Lower Southampton wants a camera report on the lateral and sump pumps draining to the yard, not the sewer.
• Unpermitted additions. Decades of add-ons, especially in Levittown and Fairless Hills, can turn up at resale.
• Wells and septic in the country townships of central and upper Bucks.
• Flooding. Near the Delaware River or a creek, check FEMA's flood map.

We buy with all of it as-is. You do not fix, test or clean anything before you sell to us.

Is a cash offer the right move for a Bucks house?

Sometimes, and sometimes not. If your house is updated and you can wait for the right buyer, listing with an agent will usually bring a higher price, and we will tell you so. A cash, as-is offer comes in below a fully repaired price because we take on the repairs, the risk, the months of carrying costs and the cost of reselling. It makes sense when the house needs work, the township inspection looks like a fight, you are settling an estate from out of town, or you need a certain closing day. We pay all the closing costs, and your written offer shows exactly what you walk away with before you sign. See how we calculate our offer.

1. Tell us about the house. Use the offer form or text (267) 551-5554. It takes about a minute.
2. We check your township's rules. You know what the resale inspection will need before settlement.
3. You get a written offer, usually within 24 hours, and we pay all the closing costs.
4. You pick the closing day. No repairs, no cleaning, no showings.

What do sellers say?

Greg was a tired landlord in Mayfair, in Northeast Philly. If you own a rental in Bensalem or Levittown and you are ready to be done, his story may sound familiar. More on selling a house with tenants.

Tired landlord

Greg, Mayfair

Questions Bucks sellers ask

We also buy in Philadelphia, Delaware County, PA, and across the river in Burlington County, NJ.

This page is general information, not legal or tax advice. For your situation, talk to a Pennsylvania attorney or tax professional.