Building permits, zoning and septic rules in East Goshen Township, PA

At a glance

Building permit

Required; issued by East Goshen Township, including for all decks and siding replacement²

Zoning

Township zoning under Chapter 240, with residential districts R-1 through R-5¹⁵

Coverage limits

Single-family homes in R-1 to R-5: 25% building coverage, 35% impervious coverage⁶

Septic permits

Chester County Health Department⁴

Well permits

Required; Chester County Health Department⁷

Subdivision

Regulated by the township's Chapter 205⁸

RV and tiny-home living

Not confirmed; ask the township's Director of Codes and Zoning³

Who to call

Contact details are copied from each office’s official page and were checked against it on October 14, 2026.

Do you need a building permit in East Goshen Township, PA?

Yes. East Goshen Township requires a building permit for construction, and the township deleted the state exemptions so that a permit is also required for all decks and for replacing existing siding². The township administers the Pennsylvania Construction Code Act itself rather than leaving enforcement to the state⁹.

Pennsylvania also requires a certificate of occupancy before a residential building is used or occupied¹⁰. Permit fees are set by resolution of the Board of Supervisors and kept on file with the township secretary, so ask the Codes department for the current schedule¹¹.

Who issues building permits in East Goshen Township, and how do you reach them?

East Goshen Township's Codes and Zoning department issues building permits. Its Code Enforcement Officer handles residential and commercial permits and inspections, and its Permit Coordinator handles scheduling inspections and permit status³. The department's phone is 610-692-7171 ext. 3103, and the township office is at 1580 Paoli Pike, West Chester³¹².

This is the township's office, not Chester County's. The county planning commission does not administer municipal zoning or building permits, so a buyer inside East Goshen should not start at the county planning counter¹³.

Does East Goshen Township have zoning, and what does it mean for lot size and setbacks?

East Goshen Township has its own zoning, adopted under Chapter 240 and covering all land inside the township¹. The residential districts are R-1, R-2, R-3, R-4 and R-5, alongside commercial, industrial and business-park districts and a Historic Resources overlay⁵.

Single-family homes in R-1 through R-5 are limited to 25 percent building coverage and 35 percent impervious coverage⁶. Minimum lot sizes, setbacks and height limits are set district by district in Chapter 240¹, and we could not confirm them here; the Director of Codes and Zoning can tell you the rules for a specific parcel⁵¹⁴. Land-development and subdivision plans go through Chapter 205⁸.

How do septic permits work in East Goshen Township?

The Chester County Health Department, not the township, issues permits for new onlot sewage systems and for well construction in Chester County⁴. A permit is required for new systems, repairs and modifications, and new permits start with soil testing¹⁵.

The township does run a pump-out program for private systems already in place: each on-lot system must be pumped at least once every three years, and the township collects confirmation of the pump-out¹⁶. Many lots in the township may be on public sewer instead; we could not confirm which areas are sewered, so ask the township before assuming a parcel needs a septic system.

County-wide, about 24 percent of soils are rated not limited for a conventional drain field, so expect a site evaluation¹⁷.

Can you live in an RV or tiny home in East Goshen Township?

We could not confirm East Goshen Township's rules on living in an RV, a tiny home, a manufactured home or an accessory dwelling. Those answers sit in the use rules of each Chapter 240 zoning district, and they differ by district⁵. Call the township's Director of Codes and Zoning with the parcel's address and the type of dwelling before you commit to a purchase¹⁴.

Any dwelling that is built or placed here still needs a township building permit and, once finished, a certificate of occupancy²¹⁰.

Building a home in East Goshen Township: the steps, in order

1. Confirm the parcel's zoning district and use rules with the township Codes and Zoning department¹⁴.
2. If you are dividing or developing land, start the subdivision or land-development process under Chapter 205⁸.
3. If the lot has no public sewer, apply to the Chester County Health Department for a sewage permit and a well permit⁴⁷.
4. Apply for a building permit from the township, and keep within the coverage limits for your district²⁶.
5. A driveway onto a state highway needs a PennDOT permit¹⁸.
6. Schedule inspections through the township Permit Coordinator and obtain a certificate of occupancy before moving in³¹⁰.

What to check before you buy land in East Goshen Township

Pennsylvania has no statewide license requirement for most construction contractors, which matters if you plan to act as your own builder, though we found no township owner-builder provision to confirm¹⁹.

This is a suburban township in Chester County, not rural acreage: the county has about 733 people per square mile and a typical home value near $587,747²⁰²¹. Chester County's effective property tax rate is 1.3 percent, with a median bill of $6,191 a year²²²³. For land outside the township, see the Chester County page.

Watch-outs

• Minimum lot sizes, setbacks, building height, and RV, tiny-home and accessory-dwelling rules sit in the district articles of Chapter 240, which we could not confirm; ask the Director of Codes and Zoning¹¹⁴.
• Township code adopts the International Building Code, 2003 edition, "and its successor building codes", so the current edition in force should be confirmed with the Codes department⁹.
• A permit is required for decks and for replacing siding here, jobs that many Pennsylvania municipalities exempt².
• Septic permits are county decisions: a township building permit does not replace the Chester County Health Department's sewage permit⁴.

Sources

1. East Goshen Township Chapter 240 Zoning, Article I (East Goshen Township), quoted and re-checked
2. East Goshen Township Chapter 100 Building Construction (East Goshen Township), quoted and re-checked
3. East Goshen Township Codes and Zoning (Code Enforcement) (eastgoshen.org)
4. Sewage & Water, quoted and re-checked
5. East Goshen Township Chapter 240 Zoning, Article I (East Goshen Township), quoted and re-checked
6. East Goshen Township Building and Impervious Coverage Permit Worksheet (East Goshen Township), quoted and re-checked
7. Chester County Health Department Rules and Regulations, quoted and re-checked
8. Township of East Goshen, PA Code of Ordinances (eCode360) table of contents (East Goshen Township), quoted and re-checked
9. East Goshen Township Chapter 100 Building Construction (East Goshen Township), quoted and re-checked
10. Part XIV, Uniform Construction Code, Chapter 403 Administration (Pennsylvania statewide rule), quoted and re-checked
11. East Goshen Township Chapter 100 Building Construction (East Goshen Township), quoted and re-checked
12. East Goshen Township Municipal Building (eastgoshen.org)
13. Planning in Pennsylvania, quoted and re-checked
14. East Goshen Township Planning & Zoning (eastgoshen.org)
15. Permits for On-Lot Sewage Disposal Systems, quoted and re-checked
16. East Goshen Township Onlot Sewer program (eastgoshen.org)
17. Share of soils USDA rates "not limited" for a conventional septic drain field (SSURGO). A strict rating: the median county is about 6% and a tenth of counties are 0%, so a low figure means most lots need a site evaluation or an engineered system, not that septic is impossible. Cite it only with that caveat: Bolthole Index county data
18. Apply for a PennDOT Highway Occupancy Permit (Pennsylvania statewide rule), quoted and re-checked
19. Contractor Licensing (Pennsylvania statewide rule), quoted and re-checked
20. Population density: Bolthole Index county data
21. Typical home value (Zillow): Bolthole Index county data
22. Effective property tax rate: Bolthole Index county data
23. Median property tax bill: Bolthole Index county data

Written October 14, 2026 from the rules quoted below, each taken from an official source and re-checked by an independent reviewer. This is research, not legal advice: rules change, so confirm with the office before you buy or build.