Cecil County Recorder Information

Land records in Cecil County are recorded by the Clerk of the Circuit Court. The office is held by Charlene M. Notarcola.

StatewideViewing deeds on MDLandRec is free but requires an account with the Maryland State Archives.

Plat images are available through PLATS.NET, the Maryland State Archives plat imaging application.

Checked October 2026 against official publications. Sources: Land Records | Maryland Courts · Circuit Court for Cecil County, MD - Clerk's Office · Records | Circuit Court for Cecil County

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

Other charges

Fee schedule effective September 2, 2026.

StatewideA 'page' for recording fees is one side of a leaf not larger than 8 1/2 by 14 inches. A printed instrument that does not meet the type, ink, and paper requirements is charged three times the normal recording charge (RP § 3-104(e)). No fee is collected for a restrictive covenant modification under RP § 3-112. Fees may not be charged to exempt entities under RP § 3-603 unless they consent. The recording fees shown are the Real Property 3-601 fee ($20 for 1 to 9 pages, $75 for 10 or more, $10 for a release of 9 pages or fewer) with the $40 land records surcharge (Courts and Judicial Proceedings 13-604) added in, which is how the clerks publish them.

Federal tax liens, releases or waivers: $3.00. Plats, minor subdivisions: $20.00 per set (3 copies of each page); major subdivisions: $5.00 per set (3 copies of each page). Request for notice of sale (foreclosure): $15.00.

Paying the office

Transfer tax

State transfer tax. 0.5% of the consideration payable for the instrument of writing; 0.25% for a sale of improved residential real property to a first-time Maryland home buyer who will occupy the property as a principal residence. The tax is collected when the document is recorded. (statewide, Md. Code, Tax-Prop. § 13-203)

StatewideRecordation tax: applied to each $500 or fraction of $500 of consideration payable or of the principal amount of the debt secured; Baltimore City or the governing body of a county may set the rate by law (Tax-Prop. § 12-103). County transfer taxes are set locally. Nonresident sellers: a deed for real property owned by a nonresident or nonresident entity may not be recorded unless a payment is made to the clerk equal to the rates set in Tax-Gen. § 10-912(c), unless an exception in § 10-912(d) applies.

Cecil County transfer fee: 0.5% of the consideration identified in the deed or other instrument, paid to Cecil County before recording any deed or other instrument involving the transfer of an interest in land (effective July 1, 2015). It does not apply to an instrument exempt from the State transfer tax under Tax-Prop. § 13-207. Recordation tax: $4.10 per $500, rounded up to the nearest $500, of the consideration paid or to be paid, or of the debt secured; collected by the Cecil County Department of Finance under the County Resolution of May 5, 2009. Finance charges a $25 processing fee for zero consideration deeds.

Checked October 2026 against official publications. Sources: Real Property § 3-601 · Summary of Charges, Costs, and Fees of the Clerks of the Circuit Court · Real Property § 3-104 · Tax-Property § 13-203 · Tax-Property § 12-103 · Records | Circuit Court for Cecil County · Recording Fees and Taxes | Circuit Court for Cecil County · Recordation & Transfer | Cecil County, MD

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

Statewide1-inch margins on the left and right sides of each page; no statewide bottom margin stated.

StatewideDeeds other than mortgages, deeds of trust, and assignments or releases of them must bear an attorney's certification of preparation or a party's certification that the party prepared the instrument. An instrument that cannot readily be scanned may be received only on payment of three times the normal charge and with an attached affidavit. Riders that obscure any part of an instrument are not received where instruments are scanned.

Forms filed along with a transfer

• State of Maryland Land Instrument Intake Sheet Statewide Administrative Office of the Courts
  Each deed or other instrument affecting property presented for recordation, except assignments and releases of mortgages or deeds of trust, substitutions of trustees, powers of attorney, financing statements, and § 3-112 covenant modifications
• IDOT affidavit Cecil County Department of Finance
  When recording an Indemnity Deed of Trust (IDOT)

Submitting documents

StatewideIn some counties, land records documents may be filed electronically.

The recordation tax and Cecil County transfer fee are paid to the Cecil County Department of Finance (200 Chesapeake Boulevard, Suite 1100, Elkton) before recording. Finance does not perform instant recordings; it forwards dropped-off documents to the Clerk of the Court. Properties with county sewer service require a final sewer bill with deed transfers. Property within a town needs the town stamp before submission.

Checked October 2026 against official publications. Sources: Land Records | Maryland Courts · Real Property § 3-601 · Real Property § 3-104 · Recording Fees and Taxes | Circuit Court for Cecil County · Recordation & Transfer | Cecil County, MD · Land Records eRecording Implementations