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The Clerk/Recorder is responsible for maintaining records for real property located in Imperial County.
Recording Fees
$14.00-FIRST DOCUMENT PAGE exactly 8.5" x 11"
$10.00-Real Estate Fraud Fee
$3.00-Additional pages exactly 8.5" x 11"
$3.00-Penalty fee per page; applies to all pages of document if any one page is not exactly 8.5" x 11"; any page larger than 8.5" x 14" is not accepted
$1.00-Penalty print (per page with small print)
$1.00-Conformed Copies
FOR ADDITIONAL INDEXING
$14.00-Each document (fee per title)
$1.00-Each recording reference requiring additional indexing
$1.00-For every group of 10 names or fraction thereof
$20.00-Penalty fee for missing Preliminary Change of Ownership Report
Documentary Transfer Tax: 55 cents for each $500.00 or fraction thereof for value or consideration
Copy Fees
Official Records, first page per record: $2.00
Each additional page per record: $1.00
Certification under seal: $2.50
Each additional page per record: $1.00
County recording fees are subject to change without notice. For the most current fees and further information, contact the local recorder directly.
On January 1, 2018, California Senate Bill 2, a.k.a., the "Building Homes and Jobs Act," goes into effect and may increase recording fees for real estate instruments. The fee will address homelessness and housing shortages, and help to increase the rate of home ownership within the State by creating a Building Homes and Jobs Trust Fund to which the additional fee will be remitted.
Upon taking effect, the recorder's office will impose a fee of $75.00 to be paid when recording every real estate instrument, paper, or notice required or permitted by law to be recorded, per each single transaction per single parcel of real property, not to exceed $225.00.
Transfers subject to the documentary transfer tax as defined in Section 11911 of the Revenue and Taxation Code or on any real estate instrument, paper, or notice recorded in connection with a transfer of real property that is a residential dwelling to an owner-occupier are exempt from this fee.
If you have any questions about how the Building Homes and Jobs Act affects your recording fees, please speak with a clerk with the Recorder's Office or a licensed attorney within the state.
Document Formatting Requirements
The Recorder's Office is responsible for the recording of deeds, mortgages, leases, and other instruments affecting title to real property located in Imperial County.
The recording act in California is a race-notice act. A later buyer who pays fair value, does not have notice that there were any earlier conflicting interests, and records first, wins and will have priority over any later recordings.
* Submit an original document that has been signed and acknowledged in front of a notary public. A California all-purpose acknowledgment is needed for real property documents.
* The entire document must be sufficiently legible to produce a readable photographic copy. Black ink with a font size of at least 10 point should be used to ensure legibility and to avoid penalty print charges.
* Documents should be on 8.5 x 11 inch white paper. Printing should be single-sided.
* On the first page, a 2.5 inch top margin should be provided. The left 3.5 inches of this space should include the name of the party requesting the recording, as well as a return address where the document should be returned after recording.
* Side margins should be at least 1/2 an inch. Top and bottom margins should be a minimum of 1 inch.
* Directly below the 2.5 inch top margin on the first page, the title of the document should be given. The recorder is required to index only the title (or titles) listed in this space. Additional titles may be identified and indexed at the discretion of the recorder.
* Corresponding names should be typed or written beneath signatures in the document.
* Across the bottom of the first page, include the name and return address of the person or entity to where future tax statements should be mailed.
* A document that modifies, cancels, or releases the provisions of a previous document of record requires a recording reference.
* If an entire instrument or part of an instrument is in a language other than English, it will not be accepted unless it is accompanied by an English translation. The translation must be performed by a certified or registered court interpreter or by an accredited translator registered with the American Translators Association. The translation must be accompanied by a notarized declaration.
* If the document effects or evidences a transfer or encumbrance of an interest in real property, the name or names in which the interest appears of record, shall show the name(s) of the assessed owners as they appear on the latest secured assessment roll.
* If the document releases or terminates any interest, right, or encumbrance, it shall contain the names of the persons and entities owning the title or interest being relieved by the document, or the names of the owners of that title or interest as they appeared at the time and in the document creating the right, interest, or encumbrance.
A Preliminary Change of Ownership Report is required to be submitted with each document that changes title to real property. Questions regarding this form should be directed to the assessor's office.
Documents that transfer title are subject to payment of the documentary transfer tax on the value of the property transferred or on the amount paid for the property being purchased.
If the document is exempt from transfer taxes, a statement and/or appropriate Revenue and Taxation code should be stated on the face of the exempt document. For a list of exemptions, visit the Imperial County Recorder's webpage.