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Quitclaim Deed: A Document that transfers property-interest

Posted on: 05th Jun, 2005 10:42 pm
A quitclaim deed is a legal document that transfers your interest to another individual in the property such as
  • House - A building for human habitation
  • Land - A place which can be used for habitation, investment or any other purpose
  • Mobile home - A movable house that is parked in a place
Two parties are there in a quitclaim deed process – grantor and grantee. Grantor is the party that transfers the property and the grantee is the party that gets the property. In a quitclaim deed, no promises are made by the grantor that the property is lien-free. Before opting for this deed, it is advised that the grantor should consult an attorney and know about the possible consequences of such property transfer.

To help you get a clear idea of what a quitclaim deed (often misspelled as quick claim deeds or quit claim deeds) is, the whole information is divided into different sections:

When to use quitclaim deed

A quitclaim deed is commonly used in the following situations:

  1. In a divorce, when an ex-spouse transfers ownership of the property to the other.
  2. A spouse may add other spouse's name to the property title after marriage only by issuing the spouse a deed.
  3. At the time of purchasing a property, ownership is transferred from the seller to the buyer. For such transfer, parties involved may use a quitclaim, general warranty, or special warranty deed.
  4. Sometimes, previous owner of the property may retain some ownership interest in the property. This interest can be transferred to the new owner with the help of a quitclaim deed.
  5. A person planning a will or a living trust can use the document to transfer ownership of the property into a trust or the person they want to inherit the property.
  6. Parents willing to transfer the ownership in a property to a child or a relative before the property gets stuck in a probate.

6 Steps to follow in a quit claim deed

Preparing a quitclaim deed is very easy. Here are some quick steps to do so.

  1. First of all, obtain a quit claim deed form. You can get the form online. You can also obtain it from the office of the local county recorder.
  2. Fill in the names of the grantor and the grantee. If possible address of both the parties has to be filled in.
  3. Signature of the grantor should be there in the form. In some states, signatures of both the grantor and the grantee are required.
  4. A public notary should verify the signature of the grantor. Generally, the grantor has to sign the deed in front of a public notary.
  5. A legal description of the property is a must. This is because of the fact that without the legal description, deed can’t be recorded in the recorder’s office.
  6. In order to make the deed valid, it should be recorded in the recorder’s office.

Life estates and quitclaim deeds

Even after transferring a property through quitclaim, you can have the right to stay there till your death. This is possible only if you retain a life estate for yourself. A life estate is a kind of estate where you retain interest in the property for your lifetime, and specifically name the person to whom the property is to go to immediately after your death.

Reverse/undo quitclaim

Once you have signed a quitclaim, the only way to get the property back is to have the grantee quitclaim it back to you or prove the transfer was invalid. If you can prove that you signed the deed under threat, external pressure, or the grantee made you sign by telling you false information, then you can have the quitclaim deed invalidated. For invalidating a deed, consult an attorney in your state. Learn more...

This legal document is a good way to transfer property if you are transferring it between family. The best way to transfer property to or from someone who is not family is to use a general or special warranty deed which gives the buyer warranties as well as transfers property.

Related Readings

Related Forum Discussions

I'm going to disagree with Zeal here and say that you need to A. Talk to your divorce attorney and then B. Talk to a tax attorney. It probably should have been handled in your mediation however if he was making those payments and can prove it he may be correct.....if on the other hand you made all the payments in 2005....then I wouldn't be worried about the IRS.
Posted on: 12th Feb, 2006 08:34 pm
my wife's parents deeded house to four children as a tenacy in common with quit claim conveience what is this?
Posted on: 16th Feb, 2006 06:16 pm
Hi,

If your wife’s parents have quit claimed their property to four children as joint tenants then I think it means that all four of them have the joint ownership of the property without the right of survivorship.

Thanks,
Jerry
Posted on: 16th Feb, 2006 06:47 pm
My mother and I are on title of our home. I have become handicap and disabled. Am I able to quick deed my portion of my home to my daughter.
Posted on: 17th Feb, 2006 09:41 pm
Hi SB,

I feel for you. Let's hope that you can cope up with your health.

You may have your name along with your mother's on the title to the house. But you can still transfer your portion of interest in the house to your daughter through the quit claim deed. But let me mention, the quit claim deed only allows you to transfer your share of interest and not the ownership rights to your daughter.

Thanks,

Caron.
Posted on: 17th Feb, 2006 10:56 pm
Can a lien still be put on the house if I quick deed my portion of the house to my daughter. Upon sale of the house should a lein exist does a quick claim deed delete this said lein. Upon sale of the house and should there be a profit can monies be with held because of the lein and in what instance/cases can this happen. What is the difference between transferring my share of interest to my daughter and my ownership rights?
Posted on: 18th Feb, 2006 12:47 am
If you quit claim your property to your daughter then it will have no affect on the lien. And regarding your second question, you cannot sell a property that has a lien without your lender's consent.

And in case the property is sold, the new owner has to take the responsibility of taking off the lien. For eg, if you have a mortgage against that property, then your lender has to agree before you transfer the liability of repaying the loan.

Regarding your final query, when you transfer your share of property-interest through quit claim deed, you are actually allowing your daughter
to occupy that portion. But her name will not appear on the title to the property, she will not be the owner of your part of property.

Zeal_Deal
Posted on: 18th Feb, 2006 01:24 am
Hi,
I am looking into buying a newly constructed townhouse. The builders are offering a special to military members. I am not military but my friends are: the realtor suggested a quit claim deed. As such my girlfriend (active duty military) would get the property and do a quit claim deed. Is this what the realtor is suggesting? If so, then when the house is constructed and all, we do do a quit claim deed and I would have sole ownership of the house? Please advise.
Lisa
Posted on: 17th Mar, 2006 12:25 pm
Hi,

Welcome to MortgageFit Forums.

Your friend can transfer the ownership rights for the title to you through a quit claim deed.

Involve an attorney in the process and get the deed notarized. It's better if you record it with your county's recorder office.

Feel free to ask if you have more doubts.

God bless you.

For MortgageFit,
Samantha
Posted on: 17th Mar, 2006 12:52 pm
We will be selling the house and property what form do we need?
Posted on: 20th Mar, 2006 08:18 am
Hi Elaine,

Welcome to MortgageFit Forums.

You need to know first whether your state law requires the seller to give the potential buyers the property disclosures. Normally this is required. In that case property disclosure form is required. You may get disclosure forms offered by many state agencies online.

For house built prior to 1978, the Federal law requires the buyers to be provided with a lead paint pamphlet, for which EPA form is available.

Either the seller or the buyer must prepare a contract form for the deal. The form should cover all the areas of real estate laws of your state. For this reason it is better to prepare the form under the guidance of a real estate attorney.

Feel free to ask if you have more queries.

God bless you.

For MortgageFit,
Samantha
Posted on: 20th Mar, 2006 08:47 am
Elaine,

Real estate transaction form and requirements may differ a little from state to state. But all the forms should be notarized so that it can be recorded with the land records.

James
Posted on: 20th Mar, 2006 09:01 am
i signed a quick claim at purchase due to credit issues,do i still have interest in community property state? we live and share all bills 4 years
Posted on: 21st Mar, 2006 08:39 pm
Yeah, you do have.

Can i ask you one thing, what exactly you are looking forward to.

Mac
Posted on: 21st Mar, 2006 09:54 pm
Hi,

Here I disagree with Mac, once you have signed a quit claim deed then you no longer have the interest in the community property state.

For further help you can coordinate with an attorney.

Thanks,
Jerry
Posted on: 21st Mar, 2006 11:05 pm
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