What is a property deed?
A property deed is a legal document that shows the chain of ownership for land and property. In property deeds documents, you can see all real estate ownership transfers from sellers to buyers in the past.
Property deeds are legal records predominantly used in real estate that legitimately mention the property’s transference from the seller to the buyer. Land or anything connected to the land, including buildings and roads, is categorized as real property. For the property deed to be respected legal, the document must include the credentials details of the seller as well as the buyer and the explicit representation of the property. A property deed should satisfactorily mention the signature of both parties that are legally involved in the process. The prerequisites for the deed to be considered legal apply the document to be in writing. The seller should sign the property deed under the legal capacity to transfer the property. The deed must also be legally conveyed and sent to the buyer and those deciding on the buyer’s behalf. A deed is an important legal document as it clarifies and dictates the ownership rights to the new proprietor.
How to Find a Deed to a House?
To find a deed to a house, you need to visit your recorder, county clerk, auditor, or state registry of deeds. However, you can get the complete history for property deeds only if you visit the office and request physical records.
A property deed falls under the legal category. Still, the details mentioned on the deed including the location, boundaries, the personal information and identification of the previous and current owner’s falls under the classification of public record. The details of the property rights can be easily acquired if you have the ownership information along with the residence address. The previous and current ownership details can be extracted through the property assessor or appraiser.
Are deeds public records?
Yes, property deeds are public records, and they are available at the Office of Assessor-Recorders’s or County Recorders Office.
The main task of the property appraiser and assessors is to understand the worth of a property, so the legal information along with the property details are transferred to the public office as soon as the ownership status changes. You also have the option to visit the register of deeds or recorder of deeds for the particular county to evaluate further details provided if the address and location of the property are known.
How to find property deeds directly?
To find property deeds, you need to visit physical or online at the Office of Assessor-Recorder’s County Recorders Office. Here all additional copies of property deeds are available as public records.
But, now let us see can we do this everything online?
Before you go online to search, you need to know the name of the house deeds.
How to check the name on house deeds?
To check the name on house deeds, you can get it from a tax collector or assessor. However, if you can not get that information from them, you can find information from the county’s land records (from the county clerk) or the recorder of deeds.
Now you can easily get all the important information.
How can I view a deed online for free?
To find property deeds online for free, you need to start using the tax assessor website. Here, you can find the records section and examine records such as the sales dates, current owner, current valuation, and price history.
Here is an example of how to find the deed to your house online in the video below:
You need to contact the property tax assessor’s office and provide details regarding the house’s exact location, including county, town, or city. The assessment information is sometimes available on the municipality’s website as well, where you can search by the exact address to retrieve the owner’s name. There is another option of contacting the assessor’s office by phone and provide the house address to the representative or agent who can assist you in finding the ownership information. Not always, but you may be required to pay a small amount of fee to track down the house location and information. The property tax office can also be contacted to search for the home’s location if you cannot get your hands on the assessor’s office. The ownership documents and previous records are found at the property tax office. To receive up-to-date information, contacting the assessor’s office is the right bet. Most of the data is available online, so reaching the tax assessor’s office can be performed online or by calling the customer service agent.
The proprietorship details of the property are typically found at the tax assessor’s office if the owners are paying taxes on the property. The official website of the county tax assessor is available online. The detailed search will take you to the exact search without further and complicated navigation. If you have the property identification number, then the investigation will be trouble-free, and the reference number will take you directly to the required page. It may also be called Accessor’s Identification Number and Accessor’s Property Number. However, it can be a lengthy and monotonous process, and the link between the county‘s website and the technology utilized is inconsistent. You will get the exact property details with limited information involving the owner’s name and the mailing address to where the tax is usually sent.
If you fail to retrieve information through the tax collector or assessor, you can also visit the land records department of the particular county. The official records and ownership details are usually collected by the county clerk, the recorder of deeds, or the register of deeds. You can also visit the county‘s website to gain more information. The clerk may assist in tracking the land records for the current property deeds. The policies and regulations vary according to the counties, towns, and states, so the clerk sitting behind the phone desk can provide a better insight on the latest property dates. Some assistance and clerks also need to respect the local privacy regulations; therefore, some municipalities will adhere to the laws and avoid disclosing the information right away. However, you can still get your hands on the recent property deeds by filling out special request forms or by visiting the office in person. If the property is located and situated in a big city, you can see the cities’ records rather than small towns or counties. Usually, City Hall reveals the location and the property records if the house is situated in a bigger city.
Some common problem that you can see is an exchange of property dead:
What is an exchange of property deed?
Deed of Exchange or exchange of property deed represents document by which a property is transferred for another property. Usually, this document is created if the property is exchanged in place of another property sold by mistake.
Utilizing the information of property deeds helps determine ownership issues. Suppose you are interested in purchasing a house or looking to alert the authorities for suspicious illegal activities. In that case, the owner’s name can be discovered as ownership transactions are a matter of the public domain. The name and details of the recent buyer or owner can be acquired through the county’s office typically associated with collecting taxes, such as the county’s treasurer. The county’s treasurer is primarily responsible for managing the recent ownership transactions; therefore, that information can be combined with other county records. Some counties charge a small amount of fee if you are tracking ownership information online. To waive this fee, you need to visit the office in person.
Property deeds and marketing companies
You can also contact the marketing list companies and the marketing brokers who have grown sophisticated over the last few years. They have had the upper hand on the property details, and there is a list of brokers that will allow you to contact a list broker who will provide you the target information. This process is comparatively more accessible and faster, but limitations are primarily in terms of data quality. The quality of data can be compromised particularly if it is accumulated through different sources.
Property deeds are legal documents that signify the name of property owners. If you are interested in buying a house, it is essential to consult a real estate attorney who will mention the protections in warranties and the deed.
After leaving Wells Fargo Bank in 2014, Daniel began a career as a finance consultant, advising companies and individuals on economic policy, labor relations, and financial management.
At Promtfinance.com, Daniel writes about personal finance topics, value estimation, budgeting strategies, retirement planning, and portfolio diversification.
Read more on Daniel Smith's biography page.
Contact Daniel: daniel@promtfinance.com