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Transfers of real property can be made by recording of an instrument. Recording an instrument does not make a transaction legal. It only provides public notice of a private transaction.
Transferring a property to a third party, adding, or removing a person from title, transferring a property into or out of a trust are examples of changes in ownership that you can accomplish by preparing and recording an instrument.
The most common types of instruments used to change title are:
Grant Deeds
Affidavit of Death
Quitclaim Deeds
We highly recommend that you consult an attorney, title company, or professional document preparation service if you are contemplating making any change in ownership to real property. Without the advice of a professional, you cannot really be sure that the document you record will be interpreted the way you intended.
Please note that changes to title may result in a reassessment of the property and a change in your property taxes. Additionally, many transfers are subject to Documentary Transfer Tax and some may trigger an I.R.S. gift tax or other legal consequences. These considerations should be made when recording an instrument.
If you choose to prepare the instrument(s) yourself, it is your responsibility to determine the appropriate form(s) and course of action that best suit your needs. Under California law, Assessor Clerk Recorder’s Office staff are prohibited from providing legal advice. This prohibition includes offering any guidance as to what actions must be undertaken, how to complete the forms, or determining what forms are required in making changes to title for real property.
View InstructionsAlthough we cannot assist you in selecting and preparing your instrument, we have provided samples of commonly used recording forms and a description of each. The descriptions are general and are not intended to be complete legal definitions. The forms are provided on this website as a courtesy and as a public service for your convenience. We make no representation as to their suitability for your purposes. Other forms may be obtained from attorneys, real estate professionals, stationery or office supply stores, or from other legal forms websites. Our employees are precluded from providing legal advice and they cannot assist the public in the preparation of legal documents. If you have questions concerning which document form is appropriate for your transaction, or if you are in need of assistance in the preparation of that document, you should consult an attorney or obtain other professional advice.
