Deed Registration Requirements in Bucks County

Recording your deed with the Bucks County Recorder of Deeds in Doylestown is just the first step. In many Bucks County municipalities, you must also register the deed with the municipality within two business days of recording, and most buyers, and even some attorneys, do not know this.

The deadline and ground rules come from a state law, the Uniform Municipal Deed Registration Act (Act 110 of 2008), but whether registration is required at all depends on each municipality's own ordinance. Under that Act, a municipality may not require registration before the deed is recorded, may charge a fee of no more than $10 per deed, and the owner (or an agent on the owner's behalf) must register within two business days after recording. Failure to register can result in fines, and some municipalities use the registration requirement to enforce local transfer taxes or fees.

Municipalities Requiring Deed Registration (Within Two Business Days of Recording)

The following Bucks County municipalities require deed registration after recording with the county. This list is maintained by the Bucks County Recorder of Deeds:

Boroughs:

• Doylestown Borough: Code Ch. 24, Part 5, §§ 503 to 504. Register within 2 business days of county recording. Registration form available on borough website.
• Morrisville Borough: Registration required within two business days of recording.
• Newtown Borough: Grantee must present recorded deed to the Borough Secretary within two business days of county recording.
• New Britain Borough: Registration required within two business days of recording.
• Sellersville Borough: Registration required within two business days of recording.
• Perkasie Borough: Registration required within two business days of recording.
• Quakertown Borough: Registration required within two business days of recording.

Townships:

• Buckingham Township: Registration required within two business days of recording.
• Doylestown Township: Registration required within two business days of recording.
• New Britain Township: Registration required within two business days of recording.
• Lower Southampton Township: Registration required within two business days of recording.
• West Rockhill Township: Registration required within two business days of recording.
• Wrightstown Township: Registration required within two business days of recording.
• Durham Township: Registration required within two business days of recording.
• Warwick Township: Registration required within two business days of recording.

What Registration Involves

Typically, the municipality requires presentation of the recorded deed (or a copy) along with a registration form. Some municipalities charge a small registration fee, which state law caps at $10 per deed. The purpose is to update the municipality's records for tax billing, voter registration, water/sewer accounts, and code enforcement purposes.

What If You Do Not Register?

Consequences vary by municipality but may include fines, penalties, or complications with municipal services (water, sewer, trash). More practically, failure to register can cause billing and assessment problems that take months to sort out. It is a 10-minute task, just do it.

Statutory content on this page was last verified against Pennsylvania statutes (20 Pa.C.S.; 72 P.S. Art. XXI): Jun. 2026. If you are reading this significantly after that date, confirm key provisions with current statute text or contact our office.