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(484) 290-8667

The line is answered at any hour, on any day of the week. A licensed Pennsylvania lender calls you back, usually the same business day.

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Chester County mortgages for houses, land and the house you haven't built yet

What are you financing? In this county it comes down to four things — a house, a piece of land, a build, or repairs to a place you already own — and each one takes a different file, a different appraisal and a different order of operations. A licensed Pennsylvania lender who works on yours calls you back, usually the same business day.

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Where does the loan land?

Estimate
Down payment
$120,000
Loan amount
$480,000
Territory
Under the $630,200 FHA limit for this area, and under the $832,750 conforming limit
Transfer tax at 2%
$12,000

Estimate, in round numbers, and loan size only: which programs an address and a household can actually use is settled by the lender. Uses the 2026 one-unit limits published for Chester County ($630,200 FHA, $832,750 conforming) and the standard 2% transfer tax, which buyer and seller customarily split; Malvern and Tredyffrin charge 2.5%, Coatesville 3%. HUD sets the FHA figure for the Philadelphia metro area, and the lender confirms it on HUD's own lookup before an offer goes in. No rates and no payments here; those come on the call back.

(484) 290-8667The line is answered at any hour, on any day of the week.A call back, usually the same business day.

Chester County, and what it asks of a loan file

Four things get financed here, and they are not the same file

A house on a street in Downingtown is the ordinary one. A lot off a back road in Honey Brook is a land loan, and it wants a perc test and an Act 537 answer before anyone talks about a rate. A build in one of the planned communities west of Exton is a construction file with draws and inspections and a conversion at the end. And a stone farmhouse with a 1970s kitchen is a renovation loan, where the money for the kitchen is inside the mortgage.

Say which of the four you are standing in front of when you ring, and the lender who calls you back is one who writes that kind. That is most of what this site is for.

A stone farmhouse on West Strasburg Road, West Bradford Township. Two feet of fieldstone, a roof that has been done twice, and a kitchen somebody put in around 1974.
Chester County. A stone farmhouse on West Strasburg Road, West Bradford Township. Two feet of fieldstone, a roof that has been done twice, and a kitchen somebody put in around 1974.Photograph by Timothy Colgan, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)

Loan programs, the Chester County ones first

Every program

USDA for the south and west of the county, construction and construction-to-permanent for the lots and the planned communities, jumbo for the western Main Line, renovation loans for the stone farmhouse with a 1970s kitchen. The ordinary ones are here too.

  1. 01

    USDA loans

    Zero down inside USDA's eligible areas, the address check that has to come first, and what the site rule says about acreage, wells and septic.

  2. 02

    Construction-to-permanent loans

    The sequence: one closing before the build, funds into escrow, draws paid against inspections, and the conversion to permanent financing.

  3. 03

    One-time-close construction loans (FHA, VA, conventional)

    FHA, VA and conventional single-close compared, what each one asks the builder to produce, and the clocks that run on the build.

  4. 04

    Lot and land loans

    Why land is its own product, the perc test and Act 537 questions that decide the file, and how a lot loan bridges into construction financing.

  5. 05

    Financing a new-construction home

    Deposits, the builder's affiliated lender, appraisals written on plans and specs, and why the certificate of occupancy sets your closing date.

  6. 06

    Renovation loans: 203(k), HomeStyle, CHOICERenovation

    The caps, the consultants and the completion deadlines on 203(k) Limited and Standard, HomeStyle and CHOICEReno eXPress.

  7. 07

    Jumbo loans

    Where the jumbo line falls in 2026, the towns that straddle it, and why every down payment and score figure you read is a lender's policy.

  8. 08

    Conventional loans

    The $832,750 conforming limit against July 2026 sold medians in Exton, Downingtown, Malvern and Berwyn, the 3% down programs and their income rule, and how private mortgage insurance ends.

  9. 09

    FHA loans

    The 2026 FHA limit for the Philadelphia MSA, 3.5% down, how long the mortgage insurance lasts, what the appraiser flags on pre-1940 borough stock, and the well and septic rules the county enforces.

  10. 10

    VA loans

    Nothing down with full entitlement, no monthly mortgage insurance, how the funding fee is set, the property standards the appraiser applies, and what a well and septic add on acreage.

What the four files look like

Lancaster Avenue in Downingtown. Brick three-storeys, storefronts at the pavement, apartments above them, and the ordinary purchase file behind every one.
Lancaster Avenue in Downingtown. Brick three-storeys, storefronts at the pavement, apartments above them, and the ordinary purchase file behind every one.Photograph by Doug Kerr, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0)

A house on a street

Doug Kerr, Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0)

The meadow and pond at Welkinweir, up in the north of the county. Land like this is its own loan, and the perc test comes before the rate does.
The meadow and pond at Welkinweir, up in the north of the county. Land like this is its own loan, and the perc test comes before the rate does.Photograph by Nolabob, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

A lot, before anything is on it

Nolabob, Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Carver Court in Caln Township, built in 1943 for workers at the Coatesville steel mill and listed on the National Register. A whole street designed at once, and still a street people buy on.
Carver Court in Caln Township, built in 1943 for workers at the Coatesville steel mill and listed on the National Register. A whole street designed at once, and still a street people buy on.Photograph by JERRYE & ROY KLOTZ. M.D., via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

A street built all at once

JERRYE & ROY KLOTZ. M.D., Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

A house in the Kennett Square historic district. Deep porch, painted clapboard, and a National Register listing that changes what you may do to the outside.
A house in the Kennett Square historic district. Deep porch, painted clapboard, and a National Register listing that changes what you may do to the outside.Photograph by Ceeb47, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

A house with a century on it

Ceeb47, Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

What one call actually involves

  1. 01

    The phone gets answered

    At any hour, with no queue and no hold music. Notes get taken, the numbers get read back, and Coatesville gets spelled right.

  2. 02

    Ten questions, give or take

    Buying, building, land or a refinance. Where. The price, in round numbers. When. Whether a lot, a well, a septic or a builder is already in the picture. Five minutes, no documents.

  3. 03

    A licensed lender calls you back

    One who does that kind of loan, usually the same business day. Quotes, pre-approval and closing all happen there. If it goes quiet, call again and we chase it.

The Chester County parts

All guides

A national site does not know that Chester County still assesses on 1996 values, or that the transfer tax steps up when you cross into Malvern. These pages do.

  1. 01

    Which parts of Chester County are USDA-eligible

    The zero-down program, how to run a Chester County address on USDA's own map, why the boundary moves, and what the site rules in 7 CFR 3555.201 actually require.

  2. 02

    Chester County's $40,000 first-time buyer program

    The $40,000 second lien, the income table to eight people, the 20% down payment ceiling and the $15,000 liquid asset rule, plus the PHFA limits it sits behind.

  3. 03

    Transfer tax in Chester County: 2%, 2.5% in Malvern and Tredyffrin, 3% in Coatesville

    The 2% standard rate, the three municipalities that deviate, the customary split, joint liability, the family exemptions, and what the difference costs on real July 2026 medians.

  4. 04

    1996 assessments and the 30.6% CLR: reading a Chester County tax bill

    Why the assessment is a fraction of the price, what the 30.6% ratio and the 3.27 factor are for, and how county, municipal and school millage stack into one bill.

  5. 05

    Wells, septic and Act 537: the two extra inspections when you buy land or a farmette

    FHA's well and septic standards, the stricter Chester County Health Department distances and water panel, what Act 537 means for a lot, and the township pumping rules on top.

  6. 06

    How a construction loan pays the builder: draws, inspections, the final conversion

    The single closing, how lot equity becomes the down payment, written authorization at each draw, the 12-and-18-month clock, the VA draw account, and what the builder has to produce.

  7. 07

    Flood zones along the Brandywine and what they do to your loan

    What the three Brandywine gauges recorded in 2021, the flood planning money since, and what a mapped zone does to insurance, escrow and the payment you qualify on.

Chester County, in round numbers
Realty transfer tax, standard2% of the price
Malvern and Tredyffrin2.5%
City of Coatesville3%
2026 FHA limit, one unit, as published for the Philadelphia metro area$630,200
2026 conforming limit, one unit$832,750
Jumbo starts above$832,750
County first-time buyer loanup to $40,000 at 0%, deferred
Assessment base year1996
Common level ratio, Jul 2026 to Jun 202730.6%
Regional RailPaoli/Thorndale Line

Where the house is

All areas

One page per place, with the transfer tax on that side of the township line and the programs that apply there. Check the map before you fall for the house: USDA eligibility changes at boundaries you cannot see from the road.

Answers on the record

Are you a lender?

No. You call or send the form, say what you are doing, and a licensed Pennsylvania mortgage lender who handles that kind of loan calls you back, quotes, approves and closes. The lender’s payment is what funds this; you never pay anything, and that payment is set against marketing and technology deliverables. It does not move with your loan amount or your rate.

Can I finance land, or a house that does not exist yet?

Yes, with more paperwork than a resale. A lot loan covers the land on its own, usually with a larger down payment and a shorter term. A construction-to-permanent loan pays the builder in draws as the house goes up, then converts to an ordinary mortgage when the certificate of occupancy arrives. Expect to show a signed builder contract, plans and a budget before the appraisal is ordered. The program pages go through the sequence.

What is a USDA loan, and where does it apply in Chester County?

A USDA-guaranteed loan lets a household within the income limit buy with nothing down, on a house in an area USDA classes as rural. Parts of the south and west of Chester County fall inside those areas. The boundary is drawn address by address on USDA’s own map and household income is tested separately, so the map decides before anyone else does, and two houses a street apart can get different answers. The program page explains how to check.

Does calling or sending the form touch my credit?

No. Nobody at this number can see a credit report, and nothing on the site asks for a Social Security number. A credit check happens later, when you decide to apply.

Who answers at night?

An AI phone assistant, the same one that answers during the day. Ask whether it is a person and it will say plainly that it is not. It takes the same questions a person would, and a licensed Pennsylvania lender follows up on the next business day. No voicemail, no menu. What it will and will not do is written out here.

Write it down instead

About a minute of typing. A licensed Pennsylvania lender who does this kind of loan calls you back, usually the same business day. If the call has not come by the following business day, ring the line again and say so; it gets chased. Nothing here touches your credit. If you would rather talk, the number is (484) 290-8667.

Sending this form asks a licensed Pennsylvania mortgage lender to get in touch with you about financing. It is not a loan application, and nobody pulls your credit. Chesco Financing itself is a marketing and referral service, not a mortgage lender or broker. What to expect.

The consent you just read: communications consent. How the details are handled: privacy policy · terms of use. To change your mind later: privacy choices.

Say what you are buying, building or refinancing.

The number is answered at any hour. The form takes about a minute. Both reach the same desk, and a licensed Pennsylvania lender calls you back.

(484) 290-8667
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