News from the Office of the Recorder of Deeds, Chester County, Pennsylvania
August 2022
Officials:
Chris Pielli, Esq., Recorder
Diane O'Dwyer, First Deputy
Erin VanRyn, Second 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

Click "Records Search" for records online.
Hours: The office is open Monday through Friday from 8:30am to 4:30pm. Same-day document recording stops at 4:00pm. Same-day plan recording stops at 3:00pm.
Fees: For a full list, click here.
For more FAQs and an archive of past newsletters, please visit www.chesco.org/recorder.
Regarding COVID-19
Effective March 1, 2022, the County will no longer require the Health Screening survey to be completed by employees and visitors upon entry to County buildings/ locations. It is still recommended that visitors wear a mask, but is not required.

However, if you are not feeling well or you have symptoms that could be related to COVID-19, please refrain from entering a County building/location.
Recorder Remarks
Hi Folks,

We hope this issue of Good Deeds finds you all safe and well. And, just like that, we near the end of summer. William Shakespeare once wrote, “Summer’s lease hath all too short a date.” How true, but—as short as it might seem—the summer has witnessed several interesting events that have affected our housing market in none too subtle ways. For a current snapshot of our housing market, please see our "Housing Trends: Valuable Resources" section below.

First, a more personal note. I have never made it a practice to mention personal matters in my monthly remarks, but this month has proven to be the exception. My family and I want to thank all of you who have reached out with your prayers and condolences for the recent loss of both my parents. These last few months have been extremely difficult, but it has been made much more bearable by your support. A special shout-out to my ROD team of All Stars who kept the wheels on the bus during this difficult time. I am forever grateful to all of you and to my parents, Arthur and Mary, who made me the man I am today.

Arthur and Mo (Mary Margaret Dillon) Pielli met each other when they were just 15 years old in New York City at the Immaculata High School "Harvest Hop." They fell in love and have been together ever since. They had a great life, six kids, with all the ups and downs. Dad was a proud Navy Veteran, New York City Firefighter, and beloved Art teacher at Henderson High School. Mom raised us, then went back to school and became a dedicated and caring social worker who fought hard to bring the SEIU union to the Chester County Children & Youth department. They couldn’t be more different but, like two pieces of a puzzle, they fit together perfectly and loved each other fiercely. I suppose that’s why it should come as no surprise that they died within a day of one another, holding each other’s hands till the end. Mom passed Sunday, August 14, and dad passed Monday, August 15. They crossed the finish line together. In the many rooms of my heart, theirs is one of the largest. And, although I know they pulled down the curtains and shut the lights for a long, deserved rest, they will always be there—happy, safe and in everlasting love.
As always, we thank you for your continued support of our department. It is an honor to serve you, the public, to the best of our ability. We welcome any feedback to help improve and successfully continue our mission. We wish you and your families all the best and look forward to providing you with next month's issue of Good Deeds. In the meantime, Stay Well, Stay Safe and Stay Strong.

Please note, you can sign up for future publications here if you have received this in forward.
Chris Pielli, Esq.
Recorder of Deeds
Supporting Chester County Youth & Families
This month, the Recorder of Deeds office joined efforts with the Chester County Sheriff's Office and the Chester County Prothonotary to collect donations of school supplies for the Maternal and Child Health Consortium of Chester County (MCHC). On August 17th at the Justice Center, the three departments presented the entire haul to the MCHC, who will distribute backpack "kits" full of items tailored to individual students' specific needs to more than 600 children throughout Chester County in the coming weeks. Thank you to all who donated at our office! We are honored to serve and support our county's youth and families in this way.
Pictured top left to right are: Kim Bydlon, Special Projects Coordinator, Recorder of Deeds Office; Milena Lanz, Executive Director, MCHC. Middle row: Natalie Coughlin, MCHC; Joni Bommelyn, Chester County Sheriff’s Office; Bridget Blewitt, Prothonotary’s Office; Kristen Hume, Prothonotary’s Office. Bottom row: Briana Villagrana, MCHC; Emma Garner, MCHC; Fredda Maddox, Chester County Sheriff. Photo by Carol Metzker of the Sheriff's office.
*This story was also featured in the Daily Local News and Chester County Press.
Housing Trends: Valuable Resources
A Warm Chester County Welcome
Please join us in welcoming Maria Gallagher to the Chester County Recorder of Deeds. She started on Monday, August 22nd, as our newest Document Recording Technician I. Maria hails from Delaware County but is a long-time resident of West Chester. Previously, she served as a Settlement Officer for a national title insurance underwriter. Maria comes to us now with a bachelor's degree in Paralegal Studies and thirty years of experience in the Real Estate industry.

Maria is the wife of a career firefighter and emergency services instructor, together they care for three children and one beagle. In her free time, she enjoys cycling, the great outdoors, reading a good true crime or suspense novel and being an avid Philadelphia Flyers fan. Welcome to the team, Maria! (One day soon, maybe Roscoe can meet our beloved Bubbles!)
A "Buyer Beware" Warning for Veterans
The Recorder of Deeds has recently seen an increase in requests from third-party vendors to record military discharge paperwork "on behalf of veterans." It is important for you to know that these third-party vendors are not permitted to liaise for you in order to record your document(s) with our office. These companies charge a fee that is sometimes up to $125. Please note, we do not charge fees for any of our Veteran services if the Veteran records their discharge document(s) themselves. Bottom line? We cannot and will not send or accept a Veteran's documents to or from anyone that has not been verified to be that Veteran, an immediate family member of a deceased Veteran, or another authorized government official or employee. Most Recorder of Deeds departments throughout the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania require a direct, in-person request from the Veteran along with a verification of identity due to the sensitivity of the personal information found on these documents. Military discharges are the only type of record held within our department that is not publicly accessible.

If you have your DD-214 in your possession and have not yet recorded it with the ROD, you should contact us directly or come in person to our West Chester office, if you are able. In the event that a Veteran is disabled or an extenuating circumstance(s) exists that does not allow the Veteran to come in person, we will attempt to accommodate and/or travel to them to complete the process remotely, or another nearby government official can liaise with a complete and signed authorization form. If you have additional questions regarding the recording of your DD-214, please call our office at (610) 344-6330 or email VeteransID@chesco.org. You can also read more at chesco.org/recorder.
Bubbles the bulldog is the official mascot of the Recorder of Deeds and best fur friend to Second Deputy Erin VanRyn. Bubbles has all the answers to common questions as well as helpful tips to expedite your recording process without any major issues. Woof-hoo!
I have recently paid off my mortgage. My bank or mortgage company tells me that your office will send me a copy of my Deed or "Title" in the mail. Is this true?
Bubbles says... "Ruh roh! This is a common misconception passed along to customers. Paying off your mortgage(s) does NOT affect your Deed. Instead, your financial institution will record a Satisfaction Piece with us, which indicates that a particular mortgage was paid in full. However, since multiple mortgages can be taken out on a single property, one Satisfaction of Mortgage does not necessarily mean that a property is free and clear of liens; a title search would determine this. Our office is not authorized to conduct title searches."
When a homebuyer first purchases a property, we give the submitter a copy of the newly recorded Deed, which they should then pass along to the homeowner within six months of closing. If you can no longer locate the original Deed, you can acquire a copy from us that will sufficiently replace the one you received upon closing when it was recorded with the homeowner's name(s) as grantee(s). It is also kept on record here in perpetuity for public access at any time.
Recorded Documents: YTD
45,912
as of 8/28/22
87%
eRecording
News from the Office of the Recorder of Deeds, Chester County, Pennsylvania
August 2022
County of Chester, Recorder of Deeds | Website