A quit claim deed is a legal document used for transferring a property’s title from one person to another. The document prioritizes speed and simplicity in exchange for offering no protections for the buyer of the property.

• General warranty deed – Provides guarantees regarding the title for both the current owner and all previous owners.
• Special warranty deed – Like a general warranty deed, but only guarantees the property for the period of time the seller owned the property (i.e., does not guarantee the title for any previous owners).

By State

• Alabama
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What is a Quit Claim Deed?

A quit claim deed is a document completed by the grantor (seller) to transfer the title to the grantee (buyer).

What can it be used for?

A quit claim deed is not just for transferring property from one to another. It can be used for:

• Transferring property – Due to the contract requiring both parties trust one another (due to no guarantees being provided), quit claim deeds are especially useful for gifting property to family members or friends.
• Clearing a title defect – Title defects (“clouds”) are anything that prevent a title from being conveyed from one person to another. They can come in the form of unknown easements, liens, mortgages, survey or boundary issues, misspellings, or missing information in the deed.
• Removing someone from the title – In the event of a divorce (for example), the grantor can go about removing their ex with the deed.

How to Use

Quit claim deeds are the fastest and most efficient means of transferring real property. So long the grantor and grantee know and trust one another and the title is free of defects, they’re just as effective as warranty and special warranty deeds.

Step 1 – Obtain the Correct Form

Each state has highly specific requirements for how deeds need to be formatted. Because of this, using a deed customized to the state the property is located in is essential. If the formatting is incorrect, the county recorder can reject the deed.

Step 2 – Input Information

Once obtained, the form can be filled by-hand or online. The following information will be required in order to complete the deed in-full:

• The names, marital statuses, and addresses of the grantor(s) and grantee(s)
• The amount ($) the property is being sold for. If the property is a gift, the amount can be listed as $1.00, for example.
• The state and county the property is located in.
• The official legal description of the property. This can be found at the recorder of deeds in the county the property is located in.

Step 3 – Sign and Acknowledge

Check the signing requirements for the state the deed is being completed in. Every state either requires notarization or offers it as an alternative to have witnesses sign the form.

If witnesses are required, they should be disinterested, which is a term that refers to a witness that has no stake in the property being transferred. Furthermore, the witness should not be someone that is related to either party, whether by blood or marriage.

Step 4 – Record

Once the deed has been filled-out in full, signed, and acknowledged by the appropriate parties, the grantor will need to bring the form to the recorder’s office in the same county that the property is located in. A fee will be required to file the document (for example, the Dallas, TX County Clerk has a standard fee of $26 for the first page, and $4 for any additional pages).

How to Fill Out a Quit Claim Deed

Download: PDF, Word (.docx), OpenDocument

Step 1 – “Prepared By” + “After Recording” Sections

Enter the name and address of the person that is filling-in the deed. More often than not, this will be name of the grantor. Beneath their name, enter their street address, including their city, state, and ZIP code.

For the “After Recording Return To” section, enter the name(s) and address of those that will be receiving the deed. This is commonly the grantee(s).

Step 2 – State & County

Enter the state and county that the property is located in.

Step 3 – Grantor(s) & Grantee(s) Info

In this section, the following will need to be entered from top to bottom:

• The amount that is being paid to the grantor(s) for the property. The first field is for writing the amount word-for-word (e.g., One-hundred thousand dollars), and the second is for writing it as a number ($100,000).
• The name(s) and marital status(es) of the grantor(s).
  • If the grantor is just one person, it could be written as: “John Smith, a single individual”.
  • If there are two (2) grantors, it could be written as: “Kevin Smith and Katy Smith, a married couple”.
• The address of the grantor(s). This includes the street address, county, city, and state.
• The name(s) and marital status(es) of the grantee(s).
• The address of the grantee(s), which requires the same information as was inputted for the grantor(s).
• The county and state the property is located in.

Step 4 – Property Description

The legal description of the property can be found on property’s existing deed. The deed can be found in the county clerk or recorder’s office.

Many offices have online records that can be searched without going to the clerk in-person. If the property description is especially long, it can be added to a separate page, which should be added to the end of the quit claim deed.

Note: The entity that manages a county’s deeds can go by several different names in addition to “county clerk” or “county recorder”, including “registrar of deeds”, “deeds registry”, “county register of deeds”, or “township clerk”.

Step 5 – Grantor Signature(s)

The grantor(s) will need to sign the form in compliance with the requirements in their state. Notarization is almost always required, with only a few states permitting the use of witnesses instead of notary acknowledgment. If the grantor(s) will be having their signatures notarized, they cannot sign until directed to do so by the notary public.

Note: There are no signature fields for the grantee(s). This is intentional, as the grantor is the only party that needs to sign in all 50 states.

Step 6 – Witness Signature(s)

If the grantor(s) will be having their signatures viewed by one (1) or more witnesses, each witness will need to 1) sign their name, 2) enter their full name, and 3) enter their mailing address (including their city, state, and ZIP code).

Step 7 – Notarization

The notarization section is for a Notary Public to complete ONLY. At the time of notarization, the notary will complete all applicable fields, sign, and add their official seal.

Sample

Download: PDF