We Buy Houses in Toby Farms

Is Toby Farms in Brookhaven, Upland or Chester?

None of those, exactly. Toby Farms is in Chester Township. Its homes use Brookhaven 19015 mailing addresses, and some home-search websites file the neighborhood under Upland. But we looked up addresses on Rainer Road, Powell Road, Elson Road and Gideon Road in the Census Bureau's address finder, and every one came back in Chester Township and the Chester Upland School District. Toby Farms Intermediate School is right in the neighborhood, at 201 Bridgewater Road, but most of Bridgewater Road runs through Brookhaven Borough and Aston Township instead.

That matters because each town runs its own inspection, taxes and schools, and Chester Township is a separate place from Chester City. The whole township had 4,080 people in the 2020 Census, and about two-thirds of them live in the Census tract that takes in Toby Farms. If your house is on the borough side of the line, our Brookhaven page covers the borough's own transfer inspection.

What are Toby Farms houses like?

Almost all of them are attached houses, rows and twins that listings usually call townhouses. They're younger than most homes in the county. Here are the Census numbers for the tract that takes in Toby Farms:

At 50 to 60 years old, these houses usually need the big stuff: a roof, heating and cooling, windows and an older electric panel. On the blocks near the creek, water damage can go on that list too. We buy them as they are, with all of it.

What does Chester Township require when you sell?

Two inspections: the township's own resale inspection and a camera inspection of the sewer lateral. Here's the order we'd plan around:

1. Book the lateral inspection. Under the township's sewer lateral ordinance, no owner can transfer a property in Chester Township without first having the sewer lateral inspected by one of three companies the township has approved. The lateral is the pipe from the house to the township sewer, and the inspection includes a camera run through it.
2. Apply for the Certificate of Compliance. The township's application lists a $250 first inspection and $100 for a re-inspection, and it asks sellers for the settlement date and the lateral inspection date. The township's fee schedule, updated August 7, 2025, lists the same amounts.
3. The video goes to the township. The lateral video report has to reach the township's Department of Licenses and Inspections before it issues its inspection report for the U&O. Any defect that could let rainwater or groundwater into the sewer, or sewage out, gets written up.
4. Get the certificate. No violations means a use and occupancy certificate. Violations mean a temporary use and occupancy certificate. A violation that makes the house unfit to live in means a temporary access certificate: the new owner can get in to make repairs, but no one moves in until they're done.

The township office is at 1150 Engle Street in Chester, 610-494-4149. The same lateral rule applies when an owner turns a house into a rental, so landlords run into it too.

Can I sell as-is if the house has violations?

Yes. Chester Township's ordinance follows Pennsylvania's Act 133 of 2016, so violations lead to a temporary certificate, not a stopped sale, and the town can't require an escrow or a bond to issue one. The new owner then has 12 months from the purchase to bring the house up to code. A new owner who doesn't can face fines of $1,000 to $10,000, and each day counts as a separate offense. When you sell to us, that's on us. The inspection report and the lateral video become our repair list after closing, not yours before it. More in our guide to selling a house as-is.

Does Toby Farms flood?

Parts of it do, and we buy here anyway, flood history and all. The county's hazard mitigation plan says Chester Township "suffers from recurrent flooding of Chester Creek in an area known as Toby Farms," and it blames part of the problem on the bridges over the creek in Upland, just downstream. The plan's numbers for the whole township:

"Serious flood damage at least twice" is FEMA's repetitive loss list: insured buildings where each flood cost at least a quarter of the building's value to repair. "Mitigated" means work was done to cut future losses.

On FEMA's current flood map, the risk changes from block to block. The high-risk zone near the creek reaches parts of streets like Powell Road and Rainer Road, other blocks sit in the moderate-risk 0.2% zone, and plenty of houses are outside both. Check your exact address on FEMA's flood map. If water has been in the house, tell us when and how high. You don't have to clean up or repair a thing first. See selling a house after fire or water damage.

How much is the transfer tax in Toby Farms?

It's 2% of the price: 1% to Pennsylvania and 1% local. When you sell to us, we pay it, along with all the other closing costs. Don't let a Chester address on old paperwork confuse things. Chester City charges 1.5% local starting September 1, 2023, so 2.5% in all, but Toby Farms is in the township. On a $200,000 sale, that's $4,000 here instead of $5,000 in the city.

The only money paid off from the sale at closing is what you already owe against the house, like a mortgage, liens or unpaid taxes.

What's the property tax bill in Toby Farms?

Lower than a lot of Delco. Three rates add up to about 24 mills. A mill is $1 for every $1,000 of assessed value, so that's roughly $2,400 a year for every $100,000 your house is assessed at, about half the rate in Westbrook Park or Briarcliffe.

Behind on taxes? Call us early, and see selling with liens or back taxes.

Selling a Toby Farms rental?

At Vivid Properties, we buy rentals with the tenants in place, including Section 8 tenants and tenants who are behind on rent. One townhouse or several, we can buy them together on a closing day you pick, and we buy 2 to 4 unit buildings and bigger apartment buildings too. See how we buy rental properties and our guide to selling a house with tenants.

In the Census tract that takes in Toby Farms, more than a third of the homes are rented, a bigger share than the county as a whole. If you keep renting, Chester Township's fee schedule lists a $25 yearly rental registration, and remember that the camera lateral inspection kicks in when a house goes from owner-occupied to rental.

Inherited a Toby Farms house, or live far away?

If you inherited a house here and live somewhere else now, we can help. Our guide to selling a house from out of state covers how to handle a sale from a distance, and our guide to selling an inherited house in Pennsylvania covers probate through the county Register of Wills and the state inheritance tax. If it was a parent's home, see selling your parents' house. We buy the house with everything still in it.

What will our offer look like?

It'll be in writing, usually within 24 hours of seeing the house, and it shows exactly what you walk away with before you sign. We pay all the closing costs, the transfer tax included. There's no commission and no fees from us, and you pick the closing day.

Our price will be less than what the same townhouse would bring fully fixed up. We're the ones paying for the repairs, the lateral work, any flood cleanup, and the months of taxes and utilities while we fix it. If your house is in great shape and you have time to list, listing may get you more, and we'll say so. See how we calculate our offer or our cash sale vs listing comparison.

How does selling to us work here?

1. Call or text (267) 551-5554, or send the form. A real local person answers.
2. We see the house as it sits. Water stains, old carpet, a full basement: leave it.
3. You get a written cash offer. Take the time you need to decide.
4. You pick the closing day. We plan around the lateral inspection and the township's inspection, so the paperwork is ready for settlement.

Get my cash offer Text or call (267) 551-5554

What nearby areas do we also buy in?

Every other town we buy in is on our Delaware County, PA page.

Questions Toby Farms sellers ask

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