Whatcom County Trustee Deed Form (Washington)

All Whatcom County specific forms and documents listed below are included in your immediate download package:

Trustee Deed Form

Whatcom County Trustee Deed Form

Fill in the blank form formatted to comply with all recording and content requirements.
Included Whatcom County compliant document last validated/updated 6/10/2025

Trustee Deed Guide

Whatcom County Trustee Deed Guide

Line by line guide explaining every blank on the form.
Included Whatcom County compliant document last validated/updated 4/24/2025

Completed Example of the Trustee Deed Document

Whatcom County Completed Example of the Trustee Deed Document

Example of a properly completed form for reference.
Included Whatcom County compliant document last validated/updated 4/21/2025

When using these Trustee Deed forms, the subject real estate must be physically located in Whatcom County. The executed documents should then be recorded in the following office:

Whatcom County Auditor: Recording

311 Grand Ave, Suite 103, Bellingham, Washington 98225

Hours: 8:30 to 4:30 M-F

Phone: (360) 778-5100

Local jurisdictions located in Whatcom County include:

  • Acme
  • Bellingham
  • Blaine
  • Custer
  • Deming
  • Everson
  • Ferndale
  • Lummi Island
  • Lynden
  • Maple Falls
  • Nooksack
  • Point Roberts
  • Sumas

How long does it take to get my forms?

Forms are available immediately after submitting payment.

How do I get my forms, are they emailed?

Immediately after you submit payment, the Whatcom County forms you order will be available for download directly from your account. You can then download the forms to your computer. If you do not already have an account, one will be created for you as part of the order process, and your login details will be provided to you. If you encounter any issues accessing your forms, please reach out to our support team for assistance. Forms are NOT emailed to you.

What does "validated/updated" mean?

This indicates the most recent date when at least one of the following occurred:

  • Updated: The document was updated or changed to remain compliant.
  • Validated: The document was examined by an attorney or staff, or it was successfully recorded in Whatcom County using our eRecording service.
Are these forms guaranteed to be recordable in Whatcom County?

Yes. Our form blanks are guaranteed to meet or exceed all formatting requirements set forth by Whatcom County including margin requirements, content requirements, font and font size requirements.

Can the Trustee Deed forms be re-used?

Yes. You can re-use the forms for your personal use. For example, if you have more than one property in Whatcom County that you need to transfer you would only need to order our forms once for all of your properties in Whatcom County.

What are supplemental forms?

Often when a deed is recorded, additional documents are required by Washington or Whatcom County. These could be tax related, informational, or even as simple as a coversheet. Supplemental forms are provided for free with your order where available.

What type of files are the forms?

All of our Whatcom County Trustee Deed forms are PDFs. You will need to have or get Adobe Reader to use our forms. Adobe Reader is free software that most computers already have installed.

Do I need any special software to use these forms?

You will need to have Adobe Reader installed on your computer to use our forms. Adobe Reader is free software that most computers already have installed.

Do I have to enter all of my property information online?

No. The blank forms are downloaded to your computer and you fill them out there, at your convenience.

Can I save the completed form, email it to someone?

Yes, you can save your deed form at any point with your information in it. The forms can also be emailed, blank or complete, as attachments.

Are there any recurring fees involved?

No. Nothing to cancel, no memberships, no recurring fees.

Washington State Trustee's Deed to Convey Living Trust Property

Transferring real property from a living trust requires a trustee's deed, not to be confused with the trustee's deed following foreclosure of a deed of trust. The trustee's deed to convey living trust real estate in Washington State is a bargain and sale deed (a statutory form in Washington under RCW 64.04.040) that has been descriptively named for the executing party.

In a living trust, a settlor transfers assets to another person (the trustee) for the benefit of someone else (the beneficiary). In many living trust arrangements, these roles may be performed by the same person, so long as the sole trustee is not also the sole beneficiary. The living trust is an estate planning tool established by the settlor (by the execution of a trust instrument and the funding of the trust), who receives the benefit of the trust during his lifetime. The settlor administers the trust during his lifetime as trustee, though not always, and typically designates a successor trustee to replace him as trustee in the event of death or incapacitation.

Real property is transferred into trust by a deed from the settlor, granting the property to the trust in the name of the trustee. Because the trustee now holds legal title to the property, the trustee must execute a deed to remove property from the trust.

The Washington trustee's deed (bargain and sale deed) transfers fee simple interest to the grantee with a limited warranty and contains the express covenants most typically associated with a special warranty deed, namely that "the grantor was seized of an indefeasible estate in fee simple, free from encumbrances, done or suffered from the grantor" except as otherwise limited by the restrictions enumerated on the deed. The grantor also promises that the grantee will have "quiet enjoyment against the grantor, his or her heirs and assigns" (RCW 64.04.040). This type of narrower warranty, limited to the duration of the grantor's title, is commonly used in cases where a trustee is selling property to a third party; due to the nature of a trust, the trustee may have no knowledge of the title prior to his trusteeship, and cannot offer a broader warranty.

The trustee's deed should comply with the statutory form of a bargain and sale deed under RCW 64.04.040 and requires, in addition to the granting trustee's name, recital of the name and date the trust as part of the grantor information. The form should conform to first-page and general recording requirements for documents affecting title to real property in the State of Washington. A third party may request a trustee's certificate under RCW 11.98.075, confirming the trust's existence and the trustee's authority and powers.

Consult a lawyer with questions regarding living trusts and conveyances of real property from living trusts in Washington, as each situation is unique.

(Washington TD Package includes form, guidelines, and completed example)

Our Promise

The documents you receive here will meet, or exceed, the Whatcom County recording requirements for formatting. If there's an issue caused by our formatting, we'll make it right and refund your payment.

Save Time and Money

Get your Whatcom County Trustee Deed form done right the first time with Deeds.com Uniform Conveyancing Blanks. At Deeds.com, we understand that your time and money are valuable resources, and we don't want you to face a penalty fee or rejection imposed by a county recorder for submitting nonstandard documents. We constantly review and update our forms to meet rapidly changing state and county recording requirements for roughly 3,500 counties and local jurisdictions.

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June 11th, 2025

Laborious process to gain access; need to indicate PRIINT when complete and inform that if page is backspaced, entered info disappears, necessitating starting all over again. rnThere is only one “A” provision, when some documents have several more. Space is too limited in some instances to provide what is necessary for recording. Thank you

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June 6th, 2025

Quick and easy. Quite the time saver.

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May 31st, 2025

I liked it, very much.

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October 22nd, 2022

They must have busy when I applied. The screen said it should be done in under10 mins unless heavier traffic. I was a little nervous because of a time deadline. It was completed in 45 mins and for under $30 it was worth every penny to have my deed details at my fingertips. So I give it a 5 on ease of use and quick handling. You can get it done less expensively, but great in a time crunch.

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May 28th, 2019

Easy! 5 stars

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October 23rd, 2019

Legal documents that served the purpose nothing too exciting.

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April 20th, 2022

descriptions for some areas were longer than what would print out on document - it showed and was visible on the form but would not print out - for example in the legal description. would be nice in fill in areas could be extended as needed

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March 19th, 2021

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January 2nd, 2025

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