How to File a Quit Claim Deed in Miami-Dade County

To file a quit claim deed in Miami-Dade County, you prepare a deed that meets Florida’s formatting rules, sign it in front of two witnesses and a notary, calculate the documentary stamp tax and recording fees, and submit the document to the Miami-Dade County Clerk of the Court in person, by mail, or through an approved e-recording vendor. The clerk enforces the technical requirements strictly, and a single missing signature or miscalculated fee will send the deed back unrecorded. Get each step right the first time and the transfer typically records within a couple of business days.

What the Deed Must Contain

Florida law dictates how the document has to look on the page. The first page needs a blank three-inch by three-inch space in the upper right corner for the clerk’s recording stamps, and every additional page needs a one-inch by three-inch blank space in the same position.¹ Skip that space and the clerk will reject the filing.

The body of the deed must include the full legal names and mailing addresses of both the grantor (the person giving up the interest) and the grantee (the person receiving it), with each name printed or typed beneath the corresponding signature. The person who prepared the deed must also have their name and address printed on the document.¹

The property itself needs a full legal description, not just a street address. A mailing address alone will not create a valid conveyance in Florida. Include the 13-digit Miami-Dade Property Folio Number as well, formatted as 99-9999-999-9999.² You can pull both the legal description and the folio number from the Miami-Dade Property Appraiser’s website using the property address.

Signing, Witnesses, and Notarization

Florida requires two subscribing witnesses to be present when the grantor signs any deed transferring real property.³ Both witnesses sign the deed, and their names must be printed legibly beneath their signatures.¹ A notary public then verifies the grantor’s identity, applies an official seal, and completes an acknowledgment on the document. The notary’s printed name has to appear beneath the seal.

Only the grantor needs to sign. The grantee does not sign a quit claim deed to receive the property interest, though they should obviously know the transfer is happening.

A missing witness signature, an illegible printed name, or an incomplete notary acknowledgment are all grounds for rejection at the counter. Check each signature block against the requirements before you leave the notary’s office.

Documentary Stamp Tax and Recording Fees

Florida charges a documentary stamp tax on deeds based on the consideration paid for the property interest. The statewide rate is $0.70 for every $100 (or fraction of $100) of the purchase price, which includes any mortgage or other debt the grantee takes on as part of the transfer.⁴ Transferring for a nominal amount like ten dollars with no mortgage involved keeps the tax minimal. If the grantee assumes a $300,000 mortgage, though, the tax is calculated on that full amount.

Miami-Dade adds a wrinkle that trips people up. For any property that is not a single-family residence, the county imposes an additional surtax of $0.45 per $100 of consideration on top of the standard rate.⁵ A condo, duplex, or commercial property transfer in Miami-Dade is therefore taxed at a combined rate of $1.15 per $100. Single-family homes pay only the $0.70 rate. On a $400,000 condo, the difference between the two rates works out to $1,800, so identifying the property type correctly matters.

Recording fees are separate from the tax. The first page of the deed costs $10.00 to record, and each additional page costs $8.50.⁶ Additional charges may apply if more than four names need to be indexed. A standard two-page deed between two parties typically costs $18.50 in recording fees plus the applicable documentary stamp tax. You can pay by check or money order when filing in person, or electronically through an e-recording vendor.

How to Submit the Deed to the Clerk

There are three ways to get a completed quit claim deed on record in Miami-Dade County.

The most direct option is walking it into the County Recorder Office at 20 NW 1st Avenue, Suite 5.246, Miami, Florida 33128.⁷ Filing in person lets you confirm at the counter that your paperwork and payment are accepted.

You can also mail the notarized deed to the same address along with a check or money order covering the recording fees and documentary stamp tax. Include a self-addressed stamped envelope if you want the recorded copy returned. Recalculate the fees before you seal the envelope, since an underpayment will hold up processing.

The third option is electronic recording through one of the county’s approved e-recording vendors. You upload a scanned copy of the signed original to the vendor’s portal and pay the fees electronically. The recorded image is typically available within 36 to 48 hours.⁶ You also keep possession of the original document, which is a real advantage over mailing it in. Once recording is complete, the clerk assigns an official recording number that becomes the public record of the ownership change.

Before You Record: Mortgage, Title Insurance, and Gift Tax Checks

Filing the deed is straightforward. The consequences of filing it are where people get hurt, so run through these before you record.

The mortgage doesn’t transfer. If there’s a loan on the property, transferring ownership with a quit claim deed does not remove the original borrower’s obligation to pay. The mortgage stays with the person who signed the note. Most mortgages also include a due-on-sale clause that lets the lender demand full repayment if the property changes hands without the lender’s consent. Federal law under the Garn-St. Germain Act blocks the lender from calling the loan in certain family and trust situations, including transfers to a spouse or child, transfers to a relative on the borrower’s death, and transfers into a living trust where the borrower remains a beneficiary and continues to occupy the property.⁸ If your transfer doesn’t fit one of those categories, the lender can legally demand the entire balance. Check with the lender before recording.

Existing title insurance may end. Most title insurance policies stay in force only while the insured party retains liability through warranties in the deed. A quit claim deed contains no warranties, so the grantor’s policy generally terminates at the moment of transfer, and the grantee receives no title insurance protection through the quit claim deed itself. A new policy requires a fresh title search. For family transfers where everyone knows the title history, many people accept that risk. For anything else, budget for new coverage.

The IRS may treat it as a gift. When property changes hands for little or no money, the IRS can treat the transfer as a taxable gift. If the fair market value of the interest transferred to any one person in a single year exceeds the annual gift tax exclusion, the grantor must file IRS Form 709.⁹ Filing doesn’t necessarily mean owing tax. Most people apply the transfer against their lifetime estate and gift tax exemption, which for 2026 is $15 million per individual, or $30 million combined for married couples. Transfers between spouses who are both U.S. citizens generally qualify for the unlimited marital deduction, and transfers into your own revocable living trust are not treated as gifts.

The tax issue that hits families hardest is cost basis. A recipient of gifted property inherits the donor’s original cost basis rather than getting a stepped-up basis to current market value. A parent who bought a house for $80,000 and quit-claims it to a child when it’s worth $500,000 passes on that $80,000 basis. If the child sells for $500,000, the taxable gain is $420,000. Had the property transferred at death instead, the basis would have stepped up to the fair market value on the date of death. Talk to a tax professional before recording anything.

Fixing Rejections and Post-Recording Errors

The most common reasons the clerk sends a deed back are minor: a misspelled name, a missing witness signature, a notary who forgot to print their name beneath the seal, or a legal description that doesn’t match county records. Before submitting, compare every name on the deed against the parties’ government-issued IDs and verify the legal description against the Property Appraiser’s records.

Errors caught after recording are harder. A misspelled name or transposed lot number creates a cloud on title that can cause problems when the property is later sold or refinanced. The usual fix is recording a corrective deed that references the original recording information and corrects the specific error. For very minor mistakes, an affidavit of correction may be enough. If the parties disagree about what the deed should have said, or one party is uncooperative, a court action for reformation may be needed, which requires clear and convincing evidence that the recorded deed doesn’t reflect what the parties actually intended.

The Miami-Dade Clerk’s office cannot provide legal advice about preparing your deed or calculating your taxes. If you’re unsure about the tax treatment of the transfer or its effect on an existing mortgage, paying a Florida real estate attorney to review the deed before recording is far cheaper than unwinding a problem after the fact.

1
The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 695.26 – Requirements for Recording Instruments Affecting Real Property
2
Miami-Dade County Property Appraiser. Folio Numbers
3
The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 689.01 – How Real Estate Conveyed
4
The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 201.02 – Tax on Deeds and Other Instruments Relating to Real Property or Interests in Real Property
5
Florida Department of Revenue. Documentary Stamp Tax
6
Miami-Dade County Clerk of the Court and Comptroller. Official Records – Section: Record a Document
7
Miami-Dade County Clerk of the Court and Comptroller. Contact Clerk of the Court and Comptroller – Section: County Recorder Office
8
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 12 USC 1701j-3 – Preemption of Due-on-Sale Prohibitions
9
Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 709