Brown County Recorder Information

Land records in Brown County are recorded by the Register of Deeds.

Land records date back to the early 1870's.

Checked October 2026 against official publications. Sources: SDCL 7-9-15 Fees--Real estate documents to conform to format standards--Exception · Recording Real Estate Documents | Brown County

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

Other charges

StatewideEasements filed by entities created by chapter 34A-5, 46A-3A, or 46A-9, rural water nonprofits, and Department of Transportation right-of-way documents: twenty dollars for the first three pages plus two dollars for each additional page. Certified copies: five dollars for the first page plus one dollar for each additional page. Fees for uncertified copies to licensed abstracters are fixed by resolution of the board of county commissioners. No fee may be charged for filing any satisfaction or termination of a bill of sale, seed grain lien, or thresher's lien, or for discharging or canceling any personal property lien.

Plat: $60.00. Land Corner Record: $10.00. Federal Tax Lien and Release of Federal Tax Lien: $20.00 each. State Tax Lien, Unemployment Lien and their releases: no charge. Hospital Lien: $30.00; Release of Hospital Lien: no charge. Mechanics Lien Satisfaction: no charge.

Paying the office

Recording fees for eRecorded documents must be paid by ACH through the delivery agent. The county does not accept recording fee or transfer tax payments directly from e-recording submitters.

Transfer tax

Real estate transfer fee. Fifty cents for each five hundred dollars of value or fraction thereof. The tax is collected when the document is recorded. (statewide, SDCL 43-4-21)

StatewideThe register collects the fee based upon the value declared when a deed is offered for recordation and indicates the amount on the face of the deed (SDCL 43-4-24). SDCL 43-4-22 lists transfers to which the fee does not apply. Each transfer not subject to the fee shall have the words "exempt from transfer fee" stated thereon and indicate the applicable subdivision of SDCL 43-4-22 (SDCL 43-4-23).

Checked October 2026 against official publications. Sources: SDCL 7-9-15 Fees--Real estate documents to conform to format standards--Exception · SDCL 43-4-21 Imposition and amount of real estate transfer fee · SDCL 43-4-24 Collection of real estate transfer fee by register · Recording Fees | Brown County · E-Recording | Brown County

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

StatewideIn the top blank space of the first page, the right half is used by the register of deeds for recording information and the left half by the document preparer as required by SDCL 7-9-1.

StatewideA title must be prominently displayed at the top of the first page below the blank space. No sheet may be attached or affixed to a page so as to cover information on the document. A nonconforming document may not be rejected unless it is not sufficiently legible or cannot be reproduced as a readable copy, and has the same effect as conforming documents for recording purposes. Plats, affidavits of publication, corner records, surveys, certified court or governmental documents, UCC forms, and documents prepared and executed before July 1, 2002 are exempt from the format standards. Deeds must include a legal description; mortgages must include the amount of the mortgage and when it is due.

White-out is not allowed.

Forms filed along with a transfer

• Certificate of Real Estate Value (PT 56) Statewide South Dakota Department of Revenue
  Must be filed with any deed or contract for deed; transfer on death deeds and State highway right-of-way conveyances are exempt; not needed with divorce decrees, probate decrees, easements

Submitting documents

E-packages may be submitted at any time but are received for recording only between 8:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. Central Time. Documents are received but not recorded on the last business day of each month. eRecording does not accept UCC filings, mechanic's lien documents, federal, state or hospital lien filings, business name filings, plats and corner records, or documents that require an original certified copy to be attached. eRecorded images must be scanned in black and white at 300 dpi in TIFF format. No document may contain more than one mortgage, or more than one mortgage or other instrument being assigned, partially released or satisfied.

Checked September 2026 against official publications. Sources: SDCL 43-28-23 Format standards for real estate documents · SDCL 7-9-1 Duty to keep records of instruments · SDCL 7-9-7 Names, addresses, and descriptions required in recorded instruments · Register of Deeds | South Dakota Department of Revenue · E-Recording | Brown County · Document Format Standards | Brown County