A New Jersey special warranty deed is a form that transfers an ownership interest in real estate with a limited warranty of title quality. The limited warranty protects the new owner (the “grantee”) against liens and other title defects accumulated by the current owner (the “grantor”), but not against defects that happened before the grantor held title. If it turns out after the deed is signed that the title is encumbered from a period prior to the grantor’s ownership, the grantee will be financially responsible for clearing the title.

Special warranty deeds are uncommon in standard real estate transactions due to the minimal security they provide buyers. Instead, they are best suited for commercial sales and bank foreclosures.