Mono County Recorder

The recorder is responsible for maintaining records for real property located in Mono County.

Letter-sized document (8.5 x 11):
$14.00 - first page, $3.00 for each add. page
$17.00 - Legal Size document with more than one title, $6.00 for each add. page

$21.00 - document with more than one title, $6.00 for each add. page
Note: If even one page of a document is legal sized, all pages will be charged at the legal-size fee rate.

$1.00 - additional indexing to more than one previously recorded document, per reference

Power of Attorney GC26855.1-$12.00
Each additional name listed GC26855.1-$6.00

$20.00 - missing Preliminary Change of Ownership Report

$1.00 - per page containing penalty print (spaced more than 9 lines per vertical inch or more than 22 characters and spaces per horizontal inch)

A copy or a scanned document is $0.09 per page. Certification of a document is $1.75, in addition to regular copy charges.

Clerk's acknowledgment of a signature, in lieu of a notary public, is $2.25 per name.

Checks can be sent in with a "not to exceed amount" written below the dollar amount line.

*Foreign Language Documents: If a document is submitted in part or in whole in a language other than English, the recorder may not accept it for recording. An English translation of the instrument may be presented to the recorder for verification that the translation was performed by a certified or registered court interpreter or by an accredited translator registered with the American Translators Association. Such translation shall be accompanied by a notarized declaration by the interpreter or translator that the translation is true and accurate and should include the certification, qualification, or registration of the interpreter or translator.

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.

* Documents should be submitted with a cover page. On the top right of the cover page, provide a blank area of 2.5 inches down and 5 inches across for the recording stamp. The left hand side, two inches down from the top of the page, should list the name of the person requesting the recording. Below that information, provide the name and address of the person to whom the document will be mailed to after recording. Next, centered on the page, provide a document title. The recorder is required to index only the title or titles captioned on the first page below the space reserved for the recorder. If an instrument is submitted without a title, the recorder will determine the manner of indexing.

* Use white 8.5 x 11 inch paper to avoid penalty fees. Attached exhibits should be on a separate page and clearly marked.

* The grantor must sign the deed and have his signature acknowledged. All signatures must be original.

* The names of the parties that are required to be indexed shall be legibly printed, typed, or signed before the county recorder will accept the instrument. Additionally, the names of all persons executing or witnessing the instrument shall be legibly signed or shall be typed or printed to the side of or below the signature.

* Any ordinance which imposes the documentary transfer tax may require that each deed, instrument, or writing by which land, tenements, or other realty is sold, granted, assigned, transferred, or otherwise conveyed shall have the tax roll parcel number noted on it. This number is used only for administrative and procedural purposes and is not proof of title. In the event of any conflict, the legal description stated on the document will govern. The following documents now require an APN, per the Revenue and Taxation Code 11911.11: an affidavit of death, all deeds and deeds of trust, a notice of default, notice of a trustee's sale, a trustee's deed upon sale, and a notice of recession of notice of default.

* If a document effects or evidences a transfer or encumbrance of an interest in real property, the name(s) in which the interest appears of record shall show the name(s) of the assessed owners as they appear on the latest assessment roll.

* If a document is releasing or terminating any interest, right, or encumbrance, it shall contain all the names of 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 interest, right, or encumbrance.

* If a document is subject to the two prior points listed above, it will not be recorded or indexed in the official records unless it contains the required information.

* A completed Preliminary Change of Ownership form is required to be submitted with any transfer document. A Preliminary Change of Ownership form is available on the Mono County Clerk's website.

Every conveyance of real property that is acknowledged or proved and certified and recorded as prescribed by law is, from the time it is recorded, constructive notice of the contents thereof to subsequent purchasers and mortgagees.

A conveyance of real property is void against any subsequent purchaser or mortgagee of the same property, or any part thereof, in good faith and for valuable consideration, whose conveyance is first duly recorded, and as against any judgment affecting the title, unless the conveyance shall have been duly recorded prior to the record of notice of action.

An unrecorded instrument is valid as between the parties to it and those who have notice of it.