A quitclaim deed is a legal document used to transfer ownership of real property like a house or a piece of farm. However, unlike other real estate documents such a general warranty deed, in a quitclaim deed – there is no guarantee that the ownership or title is free of defect.
For this reason, it is most commonly used to transfer property titles between people who have a trusted and established relationship such as family members or spouses. But how exactly do you go about drafting such a deed; are there specific rules to follow or essential details you must include?
Well, the answer to that depends on which State your property lies in. This is because different states have different laws & procedures or may require specific formats, language, or additional forms to make a transfer deed valid.
Our Quit Claim Deed Form has been created in light of these discrepancies in state laws, and on the basis of the most commonly required essentials, including identifying the grantor/grantee, specifying a monetary consideration, and adding the signatures of witnesses and a notary public.
Now, let’s go over each part of our Form in more detail:
Identifying the Grantor & Grantee
In this section, you identify the grantor and grantee. The grantor being the party that transfers interest in a piece of real property to another party – that is, the grantee.
Remember, either party can be an individual, a group of individuals, a corporation, or a trust. For this reason, we insert 5 different options for each where you can check the ones applicable to your situation.
Note that in a QuitClaim deed, someone can be both a grantor and a grantee. For example, if you are the sole owner of your home and want to transfer half of the interest to your new spouse, you would list yourself as both the grantor and a grantee and your spouse as only a grantee.
In this section (the first page of our form), you will also identify the exact date when the deed was executed by both parties.
Consideration
In this section, you specify a price that the grantee is paying for the piece of real property. This price is known as consideration.
Even though Quitclaim Deeds are ordinarily used when transferring property without the exchange of money (say within a family), you will still need to specify this amount (and provide evidence of it) to create a legally binding agreement in most states.
You can simply list a nominal amount, such as $10.00, as the sale price. However, different states may differ as to this particular legal requirement. For example, if you are transferring property in California and use a Quitclaim Deed to do it, you do not have to specify any price at all.
Property Description
Here, you must identify which specific county the property is located in. This is followed by a blank space where you insert a more specific and formal legal land description of the property that you may obtain from the County Recorder’s office or Registry Office.
In some states, you may also need to list a parcel ID number, which you can find on past tax statements. A description of your property may also be found within your land title and mortgage agreement.
Transfer Tax
A transfer tax is a charge levied by state and local governments on properties when their ownership changes. State laws and rates vary greatly in this regard. Some states, like Texas, Indiana, and New Mexico, don’t have a transfer tax. So make sure you double-check the specific tax regime that applies to you.
In our template, we provide two different options to deal with scenarios where such a transfer tax is required by law and ones where it is not. For the first scenario, you will need to enter the exact amount based on the total consideration or market value of the property. For instance, in Massachusetts, there is a property transfer tax which is typically $2.28 per $500 of taxable value.
Signatures
In this section, we add space for the grantor and the grantee to add their dated signatures to make the deed valid.
However, note that depending on your state laws, the grantee may or may not be required to sign. However, the signature of the grantor is always required.
We include a space for two witnesses to add their dated signatures to the deed. In some states, a quit claim deed must be signed by witnesses who watch the grantor and the grantee sign the deed. Note that some states require two witnesses, while others need only one or none at all.
To confirm whose signature is required as well as the minimum number of witness signatures you need on your form, we recommend that you consult a real estate attorney before starting the process of drafting a quitclaim deed.
Notarization
The last page of our form provides a standardized acknowledgment of the transfer deed by a notary public who must verify the grantor’s identity and the fact that they are willingly giving up their claim to the property.
The notary public must also verify that the signatures are authentic and not forged by personally witnessing the grantor sign the deed, and then adding their notary seal or signature.
Not that different states also differ in terms of what kind of notarization is necessary for validity. While most US states such as Florida, California, Indiana, and Missouri require a quitclaim deed to be notarized, other states such as Ohio have no such legal requirement.
So you must make sure that you are familiar with the notarization laws and procedures in the state where the property being transferred is located.
Once a deed has been notarized, many states also require the deed to be filed with the county clerk in the county where the property lies in exchange for a nominal fee. This is done to create an official public record of the transfer of ownership, give public notice, and prioritize the grantee’s claim of ownership.
Who Can Benefit From Our Quitclaim Deed Form?
- Family members can use our form to transfer property among relatives, such as parents to children or between siblings
- Spouses or ex-spouses can use it during a divorce where property is transferred between spouses as part of property division agreements
- Trustees or estate planners can use it to transfer property into the trust or to a beneficiary, simplifying inheritance processes
- Business partners can use it to alter their ownership shares or transfer ownership between each other
- Individuals might also use it to correct errors in property ownership records or remove someone’s name from a title
Wrapping Up
To sum up, you can use our quit claim form to formalize the transfer of property without warranties or guarantees, simplifying real estate transactions in cases where a quick or low-cost transfer is preferable over detailed title research and protections. Since the form provides no title guarantees, it’s best suited for low-risk situations, like transfers between trusted parties.
Our fillable form is available in WORD, Google Docs, and PDF formats!
