To transfer and record a home title, you prepare a deed that names the current owner and the new owner, describes the property by its legal description, is signed by the current owner in front of a notary, and is then filed with the recorder’s office in the county where the property sits. Recording is a separate step from the transfer itself, and skipping it leaves the new owner exposed to later buyers and creditors who have no way to know the property changed hands.
Choose the Right Type of Deed
The deed you use decides how much protection the new owner receives. Four types cover almost every situation.
A general warranty deed gives the strongest guarantee. The seller promises the title is free of liens and competing claims going all the way back through the property’s history, not just their own period of ownership. If a prior claim surfaces years later, the seller remains liable. This is the standard choice in an ordinary sale between unrelated parties.1Legal Information Institute. Warranty Deed
A special warranty deed limits the guarantee to the time the seller held title. Anything predating their ownership is not their problem. Banks selling foreclosed properties and corporate sellers typically use this form.
A quitclaim deed transfers whatever interest the signer currently has, with no promises attached. If the signer actually owns nothing, the recipient gets nothing and has no recourse. Quitclaims fit transfers between family members, adding or removing a spouse after a marriage or divorce, and fixing clerical mistakes on an earlier deed. They do not belong in an arm’s-length purchase.
A transfer-on-death deed (also called a beneficiary deed) names someone to inherit the property automatically at the owner’s death, bypassing probate. The owner keeps full control during life and can revoke it anytime. Roughly 30 jurisdictions allow this option; check whether yours does.
What the Deed Must Contain
Every valid deed is in writing and includes the full names of the grantor (current owner) and grantee (new owner), a legal description of the property, and a statement of consideration. Consideration is just what the grantee gives in exchange. For a sale it is the price. For a gift, a nominal phrase like “ten dollars and other good and valuable consideration” satisfies the requirement.2Legal Information Institute. Deed
The legal description is not the street address. It is a technical boundary description using lot and block numbers, metes and bounds, or similar surveying references. Copy it exactly from the existing deed, from a survey, or from county records. An incorrect legal description can create a title defect that costs real money to clean up later.
The grantor must sign in front of a notary public. Every state requires notarization before a deed can be recorded, and some states require witnesses too. Confirm your county’s requirements before the signing appointment. Blank deed forms are available from most county recorder’s offices and legal document services, though having an attorney review the deed first is cheap insurance.
Other Documents to Prepare
You will usually need a handful of items alongside the deed itself:
- Transfer tax forms or declarations required by the state or county.
- A preliminary change of ownership report, if your state uses one to update the tax assessor’s records.
- Government-issued photo ID for the notary.
- Proof that property taxes are current.
- Mortgage documents, if the new owner is financing the purchase; the lender’s mortgage or deed of trust gets recorded alongside the deed.
Clear Liens and Check the Mortgage First
A deed moves ownership. It does not erase debts attached to the property. Any outstanding mortgage, tax lien, or judgment lien follows the property to the new owner. In a standard sale, the seller’s mortgage is paid off from closing proceeds and the lender records a satisfaction or release confirming the debt is cleared.
If a mortgage will stay on the property through the transfer, read the loan documents for a due-on-sale clause. Most residential mortgages have one, and it lets the lender call the full balance due the moment title changes. Federal law carves out exceptions for family and estate-type transfers. Under the Garn-St. Germain Act, a lender cannot enforce a due-on-sale clause on a residential property with fewer than five units when the transfer is:3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 12 USC 1701j-3 – Preemption of Due-on-Sale Prohibitions
- To a relative after the borrower’s death, or automatically to a surviving joint tenant or co-owner.
- To a spouse or child during the borrower’s lifetime, or to a spouse through divorce or legal separation.
- Into a living trust where the borrower stays a beneficiary and continues occupying the property.
- A subordinate lien such as a second mortgage or home equity line, as long as occupancy rights do not change.
Those exceptions mean you can deed your home to your spouse, your children, or your own living trust without the bank calling the loan. Outside those categories, transferring a mortgaged home without the lender’s consent is risky.
Record the Deed with the County
Once the deed is signed and notarized, file it with the county recorder’s office (sometimes called the register of deeds or county clerk) in the county where the property is located. Most offices accept documents in person or by mail, and a growing number accept electronic recording.
Recording fees vary by jurisdiction and usually depend on the number of pages, sometimes with flat processing charges on top. A straightforward deed recording generally runs somewhere between $50 and $150, with higher-cost counties pushing above that once surcharges like fraud prevention fees or housing trust fees are added. Call the recorder’s office or check its website for the current fee schedule before you submit.
After the office processes and stamps the deed, it becomes part of the permanent public record. The original stamped deed is typically mailed back to the new owner within a few weeks. Keep it in a safe place, but understand that the county’s copy is the one that matters legally.
Why Recording the Same Day Matters
A signed and notarized deed is legally valid between the grantor and grantee even if it is never recorded. The problem is everyone else. Without recording, you have no protection against third parties. If the grantor later sells the same property to someone who has no notice of your deed and that buyer records first, you can lose the property outright under most state recording laws.4Legal Information Institute. Race-Notice Statute
Recording also puts the world on notice, which blocks later buyers and creditors from claiming they did not know you owned the property. An unrecorded deed leaves you vulnerable to judgment liens that attach to the grantor’s assets, makes title insurance difficult to obtain, and gives most lenders a reason to refuse a mortgage on the property. Record the deed the same day it is signed if you can.
Title insurance adds another layer of protection against defects a search might miss, such as a forged deed deep in the chain, an undisclosed heir, or a prior recording error. An owner’s policy is optional but tied to your interest in the property for as long as you hold it, with a one-time premium that typically starts around 0.4% of the purchase price.
Tax Consequences You Should Know
Transferring real estate can trigger several tax issues, and the rules shift depending on whether the transfer is a sale, a gift, or an inheritance.
Transfer Taxes
Most states charge a transfer tax (sometimes called a documentary stamp tax or excise tax) when real estate changes hands. Rates range from a fraction of a percent to over 2% of the sale price, and roughly a dozen states charge nothing at all. The seller usually pays, though this is negotiable and varies by local custom. The county recorder collects the tax at the time of recording along with the recording fee.
Capital Gains on a Sale
If you sell your primary residence at a profit, you can exclude up to $250,000 of the gain from your income, or $500,000 for a married couple filing jointly, as long as you owned and lived in the home for at least two of the five years before the sale.5Internal Revenue Service. Topic No. 701, Sale of Your Home Gain above the exclusion is taxed as a capital gain. Investment properties and homes you have not occupied long enough do not qualify for the exclusion.
Gifts
Giving property for less than fair market value is a gift in the eyes of the IRS. For 2026, the annual exclusion is $19,000 per recipient, or $38,000 for married couples who split gifts. If the property’s value exceeds that amount, you must file IRS Form 709, though no tax is actually due until you exhaust the lifetime exemption, which is $15,000,000 for 2026.6Internal Revenue Service. Gifts and Inheritances7Internal Revenue Service. Whats New – Estate and Gift Tax
The recipient of a gifted home takes the donor’s original cost basis. If you bought the home for $100,000 and gift it when it is worth $400,000, the recipient’s basis is $100,000 and they will owe capital gains tax on $300,000 when they sell.
Inherited Property
Property received through inheritance gets a stepped-up basis equal to the fair market value on the date of death. If the home was worth $400,000 when the owner died, that becomes the heir’s basis regardless of the original purchase price. An heir selling shortly afterward often owes little or no capital gains tax.8Internal Revenue Service. Gifts and Inheritances That difference is why estate planners sometimes advise against gifting appreciated property during life.
Transfers at Death
Different mechanics apply when the owner has died, so if that is your situation, the standard deed-and-record steps above are only part of the picture. Property that passes through a will moves through probate, and the executor eventually records a new deed in the heir’s name. Without a will, state intestacy laws decide who inherits, typically starting with the surviving spouse and children.9Legal Information Institute. Wex – Intestate Succession
Property held in joint tenancy with right of survivorship bypasses probate. The surviving owner files an affidavit of death along with a certified death certificate at the county recorder’s office, and the public record updates to reflect that the survivor holds full title. A transfer-on-death deed works the same way: the named beneficiary records the deed with the death certificate and takes title without court involvement.