Kent County Recorder Information

Land records in Kent County are recorded by the Recorder of Deeds. The office is held by Eugenia Thornton.

Electronic records can be searched online as far back as January 30, 1874; for records before that date, the books are in the Deeds office. Researching and viewing are free, but downloading or printing incurs a charge: $2.00 per page, or $75 for a 30-day unlimited download subscription. Public access computers are available in the Deeds office at 555 Bay Road, Dover, where clerks print pages for $1.00 each.

Verified September 2026 against official publications. Sources: Delaware Code Online - Title 25, Chapter 1, Subchapter V. Electronic Recording · Recorder of Deeds fact sheet - Explore Property Records From Anywhere, Free

These government fees are separate from any Deeds.com service fees. Confirm current charges with the recorder's office.

Added at recording

Other charges

Fee schedule effective October 28, 2025.

StatewideRecording fees are set by county ordinance rather than by a statewide schedule: the fees of the Recorders of Deeds in New Castle and Sussex Counties shall be established by ordinance, and the fees of the Recorder of Deeds in Kent County shall be established by ordinance. The $5.00 Housing Development Fund surcharge and the $25 Delaware Cultural Access Fund fee are collected for each document or paper recorded or filed and are included in the assessment fee collected by each county in accordance with § 103(c)(6) of Title 8. If a county, by ordinance, waives county recording fees for common interest communities or civic associations, the recorder for that county does not collect the $5.00 surcharge or the $25 fee for any document or paper recorded or filed by a common interest community or civic association.

Recording fees have been determined by Levy Court Commissioners (Ord. Chapter 128-44). Per 9 Del. C. 9605 (g) Deeds cannot be recorded until the correct fees and taxes have been collected. A $20 rejection fee may be attached.

Paying the office

For electronic filings, fees must be paid by Automated Clearing House (ACH) transactions or wire transfer on the same day that the documents are electronically filed.

Transfer tax

Realty Transfer Tax. A realty transfer tax at the rate of 3 percent of the value of the property represented by such document, unless the municipality or county where the property is located has enacted the full 1½ percent realty transfer tax authorized by § 1601 of Title 22 or § 8102 of Title 9, in which case 2½ percent. The tax is collected when the document is recorded. (statewide, 30 Del. C. § 5402(a))

StatewideRecording is conditioned on proof of payment: no document upon which the tax is imposed is to be recorded in the office of any recorder of deeds of any county of this State unless proof of payment of the realty transfer tax appears on the document as provided in 30 Del. C. § 5405(a). Every document lodged with or presented to any Recorder of Deeds for recording is to set forth the true, full and complete value, or be accompanied by an affidavit setting forth that value and the reason, if any, why the document is not subject to tax. A transfer on death deed authorized under Chapter 2 of Title 25 does not require a transfer-tax affidavit under § 5409 to be recorded with or accepted by a Recorder of Deeds to be effective.

The Kent County Recorder of Deeds fee ordinance lists a County Transfer Tax of 1.5% of the consideration value collected in accordance with Ordinance 98-16.

Verified September 2026 against official publications. Sources: Delaware Code Online - Title 9, Chapter 96. Recorders · Delaware Code Online - Title 30, Chapter 54. Realty Transfer Tax · Recorder of Deeds Fees Schedule – Effective October 28, 2025 (KCROD-12.0) · Fee Schedule Kent County Levy Court · Kent County Recorder of Deeds Office Electronic Filing Agreement · Ordinance LC24-07 – Deeds Fee Schedule Update (Kent County Levy Court)

Confirm current requirements with the recorder's office before submitting documents.

Top of first page – minimum 1.5” to 3” maximum; all other margins, at least 1”. Succeeding pages – at least 1” all the way around.

StatewideFormatting standards are county-level in Delaware: the recorder is authorized to issue regulations concerning the format and size of instruments to be accepted for recordation including, but not limited to the map scale, type size, paper size, margins and requirements for open areas within an instrument to assure that the document is in a form proper for micrographic or electronic reproduction. Statewide document-content rules in Title 9, Chapter 96 include the parcel identification number, the "prepared by" name and address on the first page, and, for a document containing a certificate of a notarial act, identification of the name and title of the notarial officer who executed the certificate in a legible manner which is suitable for micrographic or electronic reproduction. Where real property in an unincorporated suburban community has road frontage on a private road or street not maintained by the State, the recorder shall not record such deed unless the deed contains a statement that such private street or road is not maintained by the State.

The office publishes its own Standards for Recording (KCROD-15.0, 2/17/2026), which states it conforms with Delaware Law and Property Records Industry Association (PRIA). For notary public and attorney signatures, names, titles, and notary expiration dates must be typed, stamped, or legibly printed in dark ink (black ink is recommended) near the signatures, and “Notorial Officer” is not a title and will not be accepted.

Forms filed along with a transfer

• RTT-TAX – Realty Transfer Tax Return and Affidavit of Gain and Value Statewide Delaware Division of Revenue
  Every document when lodged with, or presented to, any Recorder of Deeds in this State for recording shall set forth the true, full and complete value thereof, or shall be accompanied by an affidavit setting forth such value and the reason, if any, why such document is not subject to tax (30 Del. C. § 5409).
• REW-EST – Real Estate Tax Return – Declaration of Estimated Income Tax Statewide Delaware Division of Revenue
  Before the recorder shall record a deed conveying title in Delaware real estate by a nonresident individual, a nonresident pass-through entity, or a nonresident corporation, the recorder shall receive the tax return or report, and collect the estimated income tax reported due, if any (9 Del. C. § 9607(e)(1)).

Submitting documents

StatewideDelaware has adopted the Uniform Real Property Electronic Recording Act at 25 Del. C. §§ 180-184. An electronic recording commission, consisting of the recorder for each county of the State and 2 members at large appointed by the Secretary of State, adopts standards to implement the subchapter, and a recorder who implements any of the functions described in § 183 shall do so in compliance with those standards. A recorder who accepts electronic documents for recording shall continue to accept paper documents and shall place entries for both types of documents in the same index. Any fee or tax that a recorder is authorized to collect may be collected electronically. Whether a given office accepts electronic documents, and through which submitters, is set by that office.

Verified September 2026 against official publications. Sources: Delaware Code Online - Title 9, Chapter 96. Recorders · Delaware Code Online - Title 25, Chapter 1, Subchapter V. Electronic Recording · Kent County Recorder of Deeds Office Electronic Filing Agreement · Ordinance LC24-07 – Deeds Fee Schedule Update (Kent County Levy Court) · Standards for Recording (Kent County Recorder of Deeds, KCROD-15.0; 2/17/2026) · Business Tax Forms 2025-2026 - Division of Revenue - State of Delaware