Cuyahoga County Recorder Information

About Cuyahoga County Recorder

They are responsible for the transfer and conveyance of all documents conveying interest in land, minerals or mineral rights, such as Deeds, Affidavits, Certificates of Transfer, and Certified Copies of Court Judgment Entries. They are also responsible for the collection of all fees and revenues associated with said transfers. The other primary function of the office is tracking the chain of title for all properties in Cuyahoga County as to accurately reflect ownership for tax purposes.

Recording Fees

Instruments:
Basic recording fees (8.5x14 or smaller size)
First two pages-$39.00
Each additional page-$8.00

No. of Pages....Total Fee
1 & 2...................$34.00
3............................$42.00
4............................$50.00
5............................$58.00
6............................$66.00
7............................$74.00
8............................$82.00
9............................$90.00
10...........................$98.00
11...........................$106.00
12...........................$114.00
13...........................$122.00
14...........................$130.00
15...........................$138.00 ETC.

Separate release, partial release, or assignment
First two pages-$34.00
Each additional page-$8.00

If a document does not meet the requirements, it can be recorded for an additional $20.

Living Will and Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care:
Documents with one or two pages-$34.00
Documents with three pages-$36.00
Documents with four or more pages-$40.00 max

Copy of recorded instrument, per page-$2.00
Certified copy, add-$2.00

Include a self-addressed stamped envelope with the proper amount of postage.

County recording fees are subject to change without notice. For the most current fees and further information, contact the local office directly.

Document Formatting Requirements

From Ohio Revised Code:
317.114 Standard format of instruments to be recorded.

(A) Except as otherwise provided in divisions (B) and (C) of this section, an instrument or document presented for recording to the county recorder shall have been prepared in accordance with all of the following requirements:
(1) Legible print: size not smaller than a computer font size of ten;
(2) Minimum paper size of 8.5 x 11 inches;
(3) Maximum paper size of 8.5 x 14 inches;
(4) Black or blue ink only;
(5) No use of highlighting;
(6) Margins of one-inch width on each side of each page of the instrument or document;
(7) A margin of one-inch width across the bottom of each page of the instrument or document;
(8) A three-inch margin of blank space across the top of the first page of each instrument or document to accommodate any certification or endorsement of the county engineer, county auditor, or county recorder, as may be required by law, with the right half of that margin being reserved for the endorsement of the county recorder required by section 317.12 of the Revised Code; and
(9) A one and one-half-inch margin of blank space across the top of each of the remaining pages of the instrument or document to accommodate any certification or endorsement of the county engineer, county auditor, or county recorder, as may be required by law.

(B)(1) Except as otherwise provided in division (B)(2) of this section, the county recorder shall accept for recording an instrument or document that does not conform to the requirements set forth in division (A) of this section but shall charge and collect the following additional fees for each such instrument or document: an additional base fee for the recorder's services of ten dollars and a housing trust fund fee of ten dollars, which shall be collected pursuant to section 317.36 of the Revised Code.
(2) The county recorder shall accept for recording an instrument or document that does not conform to the requirements set forth in division (A) of this section but shall not charge and collect the additional fees specified in division (B)(1) of this section for page numbers, hand-written, typed, or printed initials, bar codes, copyright information, trailing portions of signatures, plat description of any oil and gas well location or drilling unit or lease, or any other incidental information that is not essential to the recording process or to the legal validity of the instrument or document and that may appear in either of the side margins or in the bottom margin. In addition, notary stamps and seals and any signatures and initials that may appear within the instrument or document need not satisfy the font size requirement and no additional fees may be charged or collected by the county recorder for such a nonconformance.

(C)This section does not apply to any of the following:
(1) Any document that originates with any court or taxing authority;
(2) Any document authorized to be recorded under section 317.24 of the Revised Code;
(3) Any plat, as defined in section 711.001 of the Revised Code, that is required or authorized by the Revised Code to be recorded;
(4) Any document authorized to be recorded that originates from any state or federal agency;
(5) Any document executed before July 1, 2009.

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS

The grantor must sign the document and acknowledge it before a clerk of court or another person authorized to take acknowledgments.

A recorded grant should include a reference by volume and page to the record of the deed or other recorded instrument under which the grantor claims title, but the omission of the reference will not affect the validity.

Include a legal description of the real property.

State the amount of consideration paid for the real property.

List the marital status of grantors.

Until a document is recorded, it is fraudulent insofar as it relates to a subsequent bona fide purchaser of the same real estate having, at the time of purchase, no knowledge of the existence of the former deed.