How to Complete DC ROD 1: Real Property Recordation and Transfer Tax

The DC ROD 1 form is the Real Property Recordation and Transfer Tax Return (Form FP-7/C) that you file with the District of Columbia every time a deed or other qualifying instrument is recorded against DC real property. You generate it through the MyTax.DC.gov portal, which calculates the recordation tax and the transfer tax owed on the transaction. The Recorder of Deeds will not accept your deed for recording without a completed ROD 1 and payment of the taxes it calculates.

When You Need to File a ROD 1

Any document that conveys an interest in DC real property triggers the filing requirement. That covers the everyday cases: a warranty deed or quitclaim deed transferring title between a seller and buyer, a deed between relatives, and a deed of trust securing a lender against the property. The District taxes the security instrument at recordation, so refinances and new loans need a ROD 1 too.¹

Two less obvious cases also require the form. Long-term leases with a term of 30 years or more (counting renewals) are treated like title transfers. And a transfer of a controlling interest in an entity that mainly holds DC real property is taxed as a property transfer, even though no deed changes hands.²

What to Have Ready Before You Start

The portal will ask for specific information in a specific order. Gather this before you log in:

The property’s Square, Suffix, and Lot numbers. These are DC’s unique parcel identifiers, and they appear on your tax assessment, your prior deed, or the DC property records database. Every field on the ROD 1 keys off them.
Legal names and mailing addresses for every grantor (seller) and grantee (buyer). These must match the deed exactly.
The consideration. That’s the purchase price on a sale, the loan amount on a deed of trust, or the fair market value if there’s no monetary consideration (a gift or trust transfer).
The original deed, signed and notarized, ready to submit with the form.
Supporting documents for any exemption you plan to claim, such as an affidavit of family relationship or documentation of a revocable trust.

Refinances and loan modifications need more paperwork: a letter from the lender stating the outstanding principal balance, copies of the previously recorded security instruments, the HUD-1 or closing disclosure, and the new security instrument with a recital of the prior instrument number on its face.³

Filling Out the Form in MyTax.DC.gov

You don’t download a blank PDF. The ROD 1 is generated inside the MyTax.DC.gov portal, and the system does the tax math for you once you enter the underlying facts.

Start by entering the Square, Suffix, and Lot numbers. The portal uses them to pull up the parcel record. Next, enter the grantor and grantee information. Then select the type of instrument you’re recording: deed of title, deed of trust, long-term lease, or economic interest transfer. The instrument type controls which tax rate the portal applies, so this choice matters.

Enter the consideration on the appropriate line. On a standard deed, that’s the purchase price. On a deed of trust, it’s the loan amount. If there’s no monetary consideration, enter the fair market value. The portal then calculates the recordation and transfer taxes automatically based on the instrument type, the consideration, and whether the $400,000 threshold applies.

If more parties signed the deed than the ROD 1 has room for, attach Form ROD 2, the Affidavit Addendum, for the extra signatures.³

The Tax the Form Will Calculate

The District imposes two taxes at recordation. The recordation tax falls on the buyer or the party recording a security instrument. The transfer tax falls on the seller. For a standard residential deed, both taxes use the same tiered rate:

1.1% of the consideration when the price is under $400,000.
1.45% of the entire consideration when the price is $400,000 or more (the base 1.1% plus a 0.35% surcharge).

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Deeds of trust follow the same 1.1% base rate, plus the 0.35% surcharge when applicable, applied to the total debt secured. Transfers of an economic interest are taxed at a flat 2.9% of the consideration allocable to the real property, except co-op transfers under $400,000, which are taxed at 2.2%.¹

So on a typical residential sale, the combined tax bill is 2.2% (under $400,000) or 2.9% ($400,000 and above), split evenly between the buyer’s recordation tax and the seller’s transfer tax. On a $500,000 home, that’s $14,500 total, $7,250 from each side.

Claiming an Exemption or the First-Time Homebuyer Rate

If your transaction qualifies for an exemption, select the correct exemption code inside the portal and attach Form ROD 4 as a supplemental filing. Picking the wrong code, or forgetting the ROD 4, is one of the most common reasons filings get rejected. Recognized exemption categories include:

Government transfers: deeds to property acquired by the United States or the District.
Family transfers without consideration: deeds between spouses, parent and child, grandparent and grandchild, or domestic partners.
Revocable trust transfers: deeds conveying bare legal title to the trustee of a revocable trust where the transferor is the beneficiary, and deeds transferring property to a beneficiary after the grantor’s death.
Special needs trusts: transfers of residential property to or from a special needs trust for a beneficiary with a qualifying disability.

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Qualified first-time DC homebuyers pay a reduced recordation tax rate of 0.725% on the deed of title. The purchase price cannot exceed $753,000, and household income must fall within published limits (for example, $194,940 for a single-person household, scaling up to $367,740 for an eight-person household). The seller’s transfer tax is unchanged. To claim the reduced rate, attach Form ROD 11 to your ROD 1 filing.⁶³

Submitting the Completed Form

Once the ROD 1 is generated, you have two submission paths.

Electronic Recording

Most filings go through one of three e-recording vendors authorized by the DC Recorder of Deeds: CSC/Ingeo, Simplifile, or ePN.⁷ Title companies and settlement agents typically handle this for their clients. You submit the completed ROD 1, the deed, and payment together, and the package routes to the Recorder of Deeds for review. Payment of both the recordation tax and the transfer tax must clear at the time of submission.

In Person

You can also file in person at the Recorder of Deeds office at 1101 4th Street SW, Suite 500, Washington, DC 20024. Recordings are accepted from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., and other services run until 4:00 p.m. Bring the original signed and notarized deed, the ROD 1 generated through MyTax.DC.gov, any supplemental forms, and payment for the taxes plus a $30.00 recording fee.⁸

After You File

The Recorder of Deeds compares the deed against the information on your ROD 1. Once verified and payment clears, the document receives a timestamp and an instrument number. That instrument number is your proof the transaction is part of the permanent public land records. Most electronically submitted documents are recorded within one to three business days, though volume can affect timing.

If the filing is rejected, the Recorder of Deeds notifies you or your settlement agent of the deficiency. The recurring reasons are mismatched names between the deed and the ROD 1, an incorrect or missing exemption code, a missing supplemental form like the ROD 4, and math errors in the tax calculation. Fix the identified issue and resubmit. There is no separate penalty for a rejected filing, but the delay can hold up your closing or your lender’s disbursement.

Late Filing and Underpayment Penalties

If you don’t file the ROD 1 or pay the full tax by the required date, the District adds 5% of the unpaid tax for each month or partial month the failure continues, up to a maximum of 25%. The 5%-per-month structure applies separately to failure to file and failure to pay, though the filing penalty is reduced by any concurrent payment penalty. You can avoid the penalty by demonstrating reasonable cause, but not knowing about the form rarely qualifies.⁹

1
D.C. Law Library. District of Columbia Code 42-1103 – Imposition of Tax; Rate; Return; Contents; Liability for Tax
2
D.C. Law Library. District of Columbia Code 42-1102.02 – Transfer of Economic Interest Defined
3
DC Office of Tax and Revenue. ROD 1 – Real Property Recordation and Transfer Tax Form FP 7C
4
Office of the Chief Financial Officer. Tax Rates and Revenues, Property Taxes
5
DC Office of Tax and Revenue. Exemptions from Recordation Tax
6
DC Office of Tax and Revenue. Reduced Recordation Tax Rate for First-Time Homebuyers FY 2025
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DC Office of Tax and Revenue. Electronic Recording
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DC Office of Tax and Revenue. ROD FAQs
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D.C. Law Library. District of Columbia Code 47-4213 – Failure to File Return or to Pay Tax