Deed Date: Signed or Recorded?

[Meandering]

Does the law say the legal date of ownership transfer is the recording date? I'd bet even though the law says transfer has to be recorded, that doesn't mean that a resulting recording date is the date of ownership transfer. Betcha the courts say if you hand me a deed with my name as grantee, and I take possession, I own it recorded or not. I would think the problem comes in if constructive notice is not given and you proceed to sell the property to five or six more people.

We had a guy that was doing that and he went to jail. And from the jail, he continued to resell the same lots to multiple people. In PA the ownership has to be recorded. Showing up with an unrecorded deed is not proof of ownership.

 

[Jo Ann Meyer Stratton]

Arizona is a race to the courthouse state. A transfer does not occur, regardless of signature date until the deed is recorded. If there were two deeds with the same seller for a parcel and two different buyers that signed their deeds on different dates, the one that makes it to the recorder's office first is the new owner. And the other one does not have any rights to the property at all, even if his signature is the latest.

So it depends on the laws of the applicable state.

 

[Terrel L. Shields]

an unrecorded deed is an oral contract, I have been told and if unrecorded, then a lot of things can happen, none of which are good.

 

[ctapraser]

an unrecorded deed is an oral contract, I have been told and if unrecorded, then a lot of things can happen, none of which are good.

Oh, so thats what JZ does at his recording studio.

 

[Alpine]

Thank you all for your input. I just love consensus...

 

[Joyce Potts]

Transaction, but as important, the contract date when the meeting of minds took place. The closing date is when the money changed hands but could be under different market conditions than when the contract was signed. <here we go>

 

[Terrel L. Shields]

I just love consensus...

Follow us, we're right behind you...

could be under different market conditions than when the contract was signed.

...could be if a frog had a pocket to carry a pistol in, he wouldn't be afraid of snakes. Even in the "plunge" of 2008-09 in prices, I cannot think of any contract signings that were so far removed from the closing date as to affect the MV significantly. I certainly wouldn't anticipate such in this low velocity market.

 

[Katie Cosner]

This is a fascinating thread, because the areas operate so differently.

A buyer doesn't become the owner here until the deed is recorded. While there are probably many reasons for this, one big one is that, homeowners insurance will not go into effect until then.

 

[sputnam]

Some states, the deed is legal when it is signed.....it becomes enforceable when it's recorded. There is a difference.

 

[The Warrior Monk]

We've come across a few cases we're deeds don't get recorded for some reason, then the issue is handled at some point in an estate. The recording date is then decades after the deed date. The oldest deed date I've seen come through the transfers is 1917.