What Real Estate Documents Need to Be Recorded?

How Does Recording of Real Estate Records Work?

Just as in any transaction, keeping an official paper trail and record of any sale or change in ownership is an important part of verifying the history of a given property or purchase. Recording represents the act of putting a document into official county records, providing a traceable chain of title to a property.

Many types of real estate documents get recorded, depending on the type of property and real estate transaction. These include mortgages, deeds, easements, foreclosures, estoppels, leases, licenses, and fees.

Documents showing ownership, encumbrances, and lien priority also get recorded and help maintain proper real estate transactions.

Recording Real Estate Documents

Recording real estate or property documents into the county records helps provide information for government authorities and buyers and sellers of real estate property.

Public Notice

Recorded documents are made public to be used to help resolve disputes between parties with competing claims to a property. However, recorded documents do not establish who owns a property.

Property Ownership

Recorded documents do not establish who owns a property since the title defines the asset’s legal owner. However, recording documents show the history or chain of title throughout the property’s history, which can help resolve disputes.

For instance, if two different claimants have conflicting deeds to a property, the date of recording can determine the ownership timeline. In most cases, these public records provide clarity; typically, the owner with the most recent deed would be considered the rightful owner. If issues arise, it would be wise to seek legal counsel.

Liens and Mortgages

A mortgage is the financing or loan that a bank or credit union provides to a homebuyer. However, the lien represents the claim on the property in case the borrower defaults on the mortgage loan. The mortgage lien gets recorded at the county clerk’s office. Courts use the date of a recording to determine the priority for which liens should receive payment first.

Real Estate Recording Systems

Real estate recording systems vary by state and are established by individual state statutes. Not all states use a process of instrument recording to track titles; some states use land registration systems instead. In any case, it is the responsibility of the local county or state to make sure that these official documents are kept on file.

To understand which documents have been or must be recorded, check with your state and county recording division. Some states have also passed recording acts or statutes that establish how official records are kept.

Example of Real Estate Recording Requirements

Since each state and county has its own laws on what must be recorded, there are minute variations in recording requirements on what is required. For example, for Los Angeles County, all “courier services, third-party representatives, attorney services and messengers must drop off Deeds, Deed of Trust, Leases, and Notice of Default submitted for recording.”

The Bottom Line

The recording of real estate documents constitutes the process of placing documents in the county records to establish a public record of activity or transactions regarding a property. Recording allows the public to trace the history of ownership of a property and help resolve disputes over the legal status of the property.