The Brooke County Clerk’s office records deeds and other property documents, issues marriage licenses, provides certified copies of birth, death, and marriage records, opens probate estates, and runs elections and voter registration for Brooke County, West Virginia. It sits in the Brooke County Courthouse at 632 Main Street, Suite 201, Wellsburg, WV 26070, and is open Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.1Brooke County Government. Brooke County Clerk One detail worth knowing before you go: the office does not accept personal checks. Payment must be cash or money order.2Brooke County Clerk. Fee Schedule
Where to Find the Office and How to Pay
The clerk’s office is on the second floor of the courthouse at 632 Main Street in Wellsburg. Weekday hours are 9 to 5. If what you need doesn’t require showing up in person, you can mail documents in; include a self-addressed stamped envelope if you want anything mailed back.
Bring cash or a money order for any fee or tax. Personal checks are refused, and that matters most when you are recording a deed and owe transfer tax on top of the recording fee, since the combined amount can run into the hundreds of dollars. Showing up with a personal check means a wasted trip.
Recording a Deed or Other Property Document
Recording creates the permanent public record of who owns a parcel and what liens attach to it. Before the clerk will accept a deed, the signer’s signature has to be acknowledged, which West Virginia Code § 39-1-2 allows either before the clerk or through two witnesses.3West Virginia Legislature. West Virginia Code 39-1-2 – Conditions Under Which County Clerk Shall Admit Deeds to Record In practice a notary handles this before you arrive.
The document must identify the person or agency that prepared it, printed or typed at the end.4West Virginia Legislature. West Virginia Code 39-1-2A – Other Requirements for Admission to Record of Certain Instruments A deed of trust or mortgage has to name the beneficial owner of the secured debt and that person’s residence.5West Virginia Legislature. West Virginia Code 39-1-2 – Conditions Under Which County Clerk Shall Admit Deeds to Record A competent preparer will also include a full legal description, the grantor and grantee names, and the consideration paid.
Recording Fees
Base fees come from West Virginia Code § 59-1-10. A deed of conveyance is $30, with or without a plat. A trustee’s report of sale is $40. Most other instruments, including financing statements and standalone plats, are $10. Documents over five pages add $1 for each extra page. The Brooke County Clerk adds a $2 surcharge for documents under 20 pages, plus $1 for every additional 10 pages beyond that.6Brooke County Clerk. Recording
Transfer Tax
When a deed transfers ownership, the clerk collects an excise tax at the time of recording. The state portion is $1.10 per $500 of value or fraction of it, and the county adds $0.55 per $500, for a combined $1.65 per $500.7West Virginia Legislature. West Virginia Code 11-22-2 – Excise Tax on Privilege of Transferring Real Property On a $200,000 home, that is $660. The tax is the grantor’s responsibility; if the grantor doesn’t pay, the grantee who accepts the deed owes it. The clerk will not record the deed until the tax is paid.
Getting a Marriage License
Every marriage in West Virginia has to be performed under a license issued by a county clerk. A ceremony without one produces a void marriage with no legal standing.8West Virginia Legislature. West Virginia Code 48-2-101 – Necessity of Marriage License
Both applicants fill out the application with their full names, Social Security numbers, dates of birth, places of birth, and residential addresses.9West Virginia Legislature. West Virginia Code 48-2-104 – Contents of the Application for a Marriage License A legal alien without a Social Security number substitutes a visa number or equivalent. You will also need proof of age. The statute accepts a certified birth certificate, a driver’s license, a voter registration card, an affidavit from both parents or a legal guardian, or other sufficient evidence.10West Virginia Legislature. West Virginia Code 48-2-106 – Proof of Age Photo ID is not specifically required; a birth certificate alone will do.
The age of consent for marriage is 18. Applicants 16 or 17 may get a license with written parental or guardian consent, and only if the other party is no more than four years older.
The fee is $55. It drops to $35 if both applicants show a certificate proving they completed a premarital education course within the past year.
Ordering a Birth, Death, or Marriage Certificate
A certified copy from the county clerk costs $5. The same copy ordered from the West Virginia Vital Registration Office at the state level costs $12, and that fee buys a three-year search covering the year you specify plus the year before and after.11West Virginia DHHR. Obtaining West Virginia Birth and Death Certificates County is cheaper; the state office may hold older records the local clerk does not.
Access is restricted. Generally you can request your own certificate, one for a family member, or one for someone you are legally authorized to represent. If you need a death certificate to open probate, the clerk can usually provide it as part of that process.
Opening a Probate Estate
Probate in Brooke County begins at the clerk’s office, whether the decedent left a will or not. Bring the original will if one exists, a certified death certificate, and your own identification. Staff can walk you through the forms. Expect to post a bond, notify creditors, and eventually file an accounting of what the estate held and where it went.
Executors should know one trap before distributing anything. You can become personally liable for a decedent’s unpaid federal taxes if you pay out estate assets before settling the tax debt. Federal law puts the IRS ahead of state and local tax obligations and ahead of most other creditors. If you know, or should know, about an outstanding federal tax liability and distribute anyway, the IRS can pursue you personally for the amount wrongly distributed. Funeral costs, administrative expenses, and certain family allowances can be paid first; almost everything else waits.
Voter Registration and Elections
The clerk maintains the voter rolls and administers polling places in Brooke County. Federal law under the National Voter Registration Act limits why and how a voter can be removed from the list: at the voter’s own request, because of a felony conviction, because of mental incapacity, or because the voter has moved out of the jurisdiction. Moving triggers a specific notice-and-wait process involving a confirmation mailing and a waiting period spanning two federal general elections before removal is permitted.
The Help America Vote Act requires the clerk’s records to coordinate with state databases so that deaths and felony convictions are reflected on the rolls. Federal law prohibits removing anyone from the rolls solely for not voting.
Searching Records Online
The clerk offers a free online document inquiry system that lets you search recorded property documents from anywhere. It is useful for preliminary title research or confirming that a document has been indexed. The office cautions that the online data is informational only, may contain errors or omissions, and carries no official status.12Brooke County Government. Document Inquiry System For a certified copy you can use in a closing or court proceeding, you still have to come to the courthouse during business hours.