Free Quitclaim Deed Form

A quitclaim deed (also written as quit claim deed) is an essential legal document that can be used to transfer or amend a title on a real estate property. These forms are sometimes known as non-warranty deeds as they provide no guarantees that the current owner (also known as a grantor) possesses full rights to the property when it is transferred to its new owner (or the grantee). 

Because property laws vary in each state, every jurisdiction has its own legislation on how these deeds may be used. It is therefore crucial that your document meets your local statutory rules in order to be effective.

Despite offering no guarantees on ownership rights, quitclaim deeds are practical for a number of purposes. They can reduce the time and paperwork necessary if you need to release ownership of a property to someone you trust or to make corrections to the title of the real estate. 

There are many situations where a quitclaim deed can prove useful for real estate owners looking to make changes to their property’s title. Below we’ve detailed some of the most important reasons you should consider using a quitclaim deed.

Transfer Property Between Family Members

One of the most common reasons to use a quitclaim deed is to transfer property between members of the same family. This allows you to easily transfer your ownership rights to your children, a sibling, or another close member of your family if necessary. 

Add or Remove a Spouse from the Title

Quitclaim deeds can be utilized to add or remove names on a property’s title. This can make them a very effective tool to use following a marriage or divorce to update the information on the title. This can be very important if homestead rights exist in your state and you require the consent of your spouse to sell or transfer the property. 

Correct a Title Defect

If there is a defect in your title a quitclaim deed can be used to correct it. This is useful to save time and costly fees on the legal processes necessary to update and adjust the recorded data on your property.

Change the Owner Name on a Title

If the owner’s name changes for any reason a quitclaim deed can be used to make the adjustments on it. This might be due to personal circumstances or (if the property is owned by a business or LLC) to make sure it is up to date with the current name of the entity that owns the property. 

Transfer Ownership to a Trust

A quitclaim deed is highly practical for estate planning purposes and it can be used to transfer ownership into a trust for tax or personal reasons. This is useful for both corporate owners of properties and those planning to pass on their assets to their heirs.

It is easy to fill out a quitclaim deed online from home. Using our online contract builder all you need to do is enter your information as instructed for your state and it will be entered into the appropriate template. This can then be downloaded and printed ready for signing.

Once a quitclaim deed has been completed and signed, it must be filed so the property title can be officially updated and changed. To do this you will need to visit your local recording office or county clerk. 

When you visit the office you must bring the quitclaim deed and a blank check to pay the filing fee. Once this process is complete the grantee(s) named on the deed will become the new official owner of the property.

The big difference between quitclaim deeds and most other deeds is that they provide no official guarantees that the grantor holds the title. Warranty deeds on the other hand do provide these assurances.

Warranty deeds are more commonly used for conventional real estate sales between strangers due to the protections they offer from fraud. However, this comes with additional legal processes and complications attached. 

Additionally, it is important to remember that many other types of ownership transfer documents such as grant deeds, bargain and sale deeds, and lady bird deeds either provide or can be designed to provide no warranties.

Fortunately, when writing a quitclaim deed it isn’t necessary to create the whole document from scratch. It is possible to use an online template or a form template acquired from your county recording office. 

Alternatively, the documents can be drawn up by a lawyer. This however isn’t usually necessary and could end up costing more time and money than it saves. 

Before starting your own quitclaim deed it is wise to first look over an example template to get a better idea of what is required. Use our deed sample below to get a much clearer view of what you will need to include on your final form.