Ward County Recorder Information

About Ward County Recorder

The recorder is responsible for recording and maintaining records related to real property situated in Ward County.

Recording Fees

$20.00 -documents with 1 to 6 pages. (excluding Plats)
$65.00 -documents with 7 to 25 pages. (excluding Plats)
$3.00 per page over 25 pages.
$10.00 margin fee if there is not at least one inch margin on one side of each page.
$3.00 for each related document listed AFTER the first 10 documents.
$1.00 for each section listed AFTER the first 10 listed sections.

Please note: The top 3 inches of ALL documents MUST be blank and free of any lines, return addresses, or ANYTHING else. If 3 inches are not available on the top of the first page, the recorder SHALL add a page to the end of the recording and charge accordingly, if necessary.

The fee to make certified copies of a recorded instrument or a filed non-central indexing instrument is $5 for the first page and $2 for each additional page.

Contact the recorder at (701) 857-6410 if you have questions about fees or taxes due upon recording.

Document Formatting Requirements

Margin requirements: At least 3 inch margin on top of first page for ALL documents.
1 inch margin on at least one side of each page or $10 margin fee charged.
Font size required: "must be considered legible by the recorder and must have a font size equal to or larger than 10 (ten) point.
Document page size not to exceed 8-1/2 inch wide x 14 inch long. (Plats have different size and fee requirements)

* Submit an original or a certified copy of an original to be recorded. Signatures should also be original and handwritten.

* An adequate legal description of the real property must be included in the document. The following should appear after a metes and bounds legal description: "This legal description was prepared by (name and address)," or a statement that reads "The legal description was obtained from a previously recorded document."

* Each grantee named in the deed must have an address listed on the instrument.

* All persons named in the document are the signatories and should also be named in the acknowledgment. The North Dakota notary seal should be surrounded by a border. If it is not, an embossed seal can be used instead.

* A recorder will refuse any deed or other instrument that changes the current property description unless there is a certificate from the county auditor showing that a transfer of the lands described in the instrument has been entered and that the delinquent and current taxes and special assessments have been paid or that the instrument is entitled to record without regard to taxes.

STATEMENT OF CONSIDERATION

A statement of full consideration should be filed with the state board of equalization or with the recorder when a document is presented for recording. A grantee (or grantee's agent) who presents a deed in the county recorder's office shall certify one of the following on the face of the deed:

a. A statement that the grantee has filed a report of the full consideration paid for the property conveyed with the state board of equalization or with the county recorder.

b. A statement of the full consideration paid for the property conveyed.

c. A statement designating one of the exemptions which the grantee believes applies to the transaction.

Exempt transactions are listed in the North Dakota Code Chapter 11-18-02-2.

North Dakota has a race-notice recording statute. Under this statute, a later buyer who pays fair value, does not have any notice of any earlier conflicting interests, and records first, wins and will have priority over later recordings.