To fill out and record a Missouri general warranty deed, you draft the document with the grantor and grantee information, the legal description, and the words “grant, bargain and sell”; sign it before a notary (with the spouse signing if the grantor is married); then file it with the Recorder of Deeds in the county where the property sits. Recording costs $24 for the first page and $3 for each additional page, and Missouri charges no state or local real estate transfer tax.
What To Gather Before You Draft
Collect every piece of information below before you open a template. A missing item can stall recording or create a title defect that only surfaces years later when the grantee tries to sell or refinance.
- Full legal names of each grantor and grantee, matching current title records exactly. Nicknames and abbreviations that don’t match raise flags at the recorder’s office.
- Marital status of every individual grantor. Missouri law requires the deed to state whether each grantor is married or unmarried.1Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 442.130 – Execution of Deeds and Other Conveyances, Marital Status of Grantor Required on Written Instruments
- Mailing addresses for all grantors and at least one grantee. These are used for tax assessment notices.
- Consideration — the purchase price or other value exchanged. For gifts or interfamily transfers, the standard practice is to recite “love and affection” or a nominal sum such as ten dollars.
- The full legal description of the property. A street address is not accepted. Copy the metes-and-bounds description or lot-and-block reference from a prior deed, title commitment, or recorded plat exactly; even a minor discrepancy from the earlier recorded document can create a defect.2Recorders’ Association of Missouri. Formatting Standards
- Prior recording references — the book and page number or instrument number of the previous deed in the chain of title, where applicable.
Most people pull the legal description from the existing deed or the title commitment issued at purchase. If neither is available, the county Recorder of Deeds can look up prior instruments, but staff will not draft your deed or give legal advice.
Drafting the Deed
The granting clause is the sentence that actually moves ownership. Using the words “grant, bargain and sell” automatically pulls in three statutory covenants: that the grantor held the property in fee simple, that it was free of encumbrances caused by the grantor or anyone the grantor claims through, and that the grantor and their heirs will take any further steps needed to perfect the grantee’s title.3Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 442.420 – Covenants Implied by Grant, Bargain and Sell Those promises apply in full unless the deed expressly carves out an exception, so a known easement or existing lien should be named in the deed itself to limit the grantor’s exposure.
Missouri law also dictates what must appear on page one of any recorded document. Below the required top margin, the first page needs the document title (“Warranty Deed”), the date, every grantor’s name and marital status, every grantee’s name, the required addresses, and the legal description. If the information won’t fit, note the page where it continues.4Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 59.310 – Documents for Recording
Templates are available through local title companies and some county recorder websites, though many counties explicitly state they cannot prepare legal documents. Having an attorney draft or review the deed is worth the cost for anything beyond a routine transfer.
Formatting Requirements That Avoid the $25 Surcharge
A deed that fails Missouri’s formatting standards gets recorded, but with a $25 non-standard surcharge on top of the regular per-page fees.5Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 59.310 – Documents for Recording The specifics:
- At least three inches of clear vertical space across the top of page one for the recorder’s certification stamp.2Recorders’ Association of Missouri. Formatting Standards
- All other margins — sides, bottom, and every margin on subsequent pages — at least three-fourths of an inch.5Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 59.310 – Documents for Recording
- White or light-colored paper, at least 20-pound weight, 8½ × 11 inches, no watermarks or logos.
- Black or dark ink throughout, minimum eight-point type, with each signer’s name typed or printed directly below the signature.
- Single-sided pages only, not permanently bound. Staples are fine.
A small portion of a notary seal extending into a margin won’t trigger rejection, but text or signature lines straying outside the margins will. If any part of the deed is hard to read, the recorder can require a typed copy attached as additional pages, which adds to the per-page fees.
Signing and Notarization
The grantor signs in front of a notary public or another officer authorized under Missouri law to take acknowledgments.6Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 442.150 – Proof or Acknowledgment, by Whom Taken The notary verifies identity either through personal knowledge or through two credible witnesses, then completes the acknowledgment certificate.7Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 442.210 – Certificate of Acknowledgment, Contents The grantee does not sign.
Before leaving the notary’s desk, confirm that the names in the acknowledgment match the names in the body of the deed exactly, including middle initials and suffixes. The acknowledgment date should match the signing date, and the notary’s seal and commission expiration must be present. Mismatches between the acknowledgment and the deed body are a common reason recorders flag documents.
When the Grantor Is Married
If the grantor is married, the non-owner spouse generally has to sign too. Missouri abolished dower and curtesy,8Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 474-110 – Curtesy and Dower Abolished but spouses still hold marital rights in real property, and property held as tenants by the entirety requires both spouses to convey. A joint deed from husband and wife binds both to the covenants.9Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 442.030 – Conveyance of Property of Spouse, Covenants Skipping the spouse’s signature is one of the quickest ways to create a title defect that nobody notices until the next sale.
When an Entity Is the Grantor
If a corporation, LLC, or trust is conveying the property, the signer must identify their representative capacity, for example “Jane Smith, Manager of XYZ Holdings LLC.” Where a corporation’s bylaws require a corporate seal, the seal must appear on the deed, and if the notary acknowledgment references the seal, it must actually be affixed.10Stone County, Missouri. Requirements for Recording Real Estate Documents All signatures on the recorded deed must be originals; the recorder will not accept photocopies unless they are certified copies.
Recording the Deed
File the signed, notarized deed with the Recorder of Deeds in the county where the property is located. You can submit in person, by certified mail with payment, or through an approved e-recording vendor in counties that offer it. The recorder stamps the deed with an instrument number and book-and-page reference, which becomes the public record of the transfer.
Fees follow a statewide schedule:
- First page: $24.00
- Each additional page: $3.00
- Non-standard document surcharge: $25.00 if the deed fails the RSMo § 59.310 formatting standards11Greene County Recorder. Formatting Requirements
Missouri imposes no state or local transfer tax, so nothing is owed based on the sale price. One point worth understanding: the transfer itself is effective when the signed deed is delivered to and accepted by the grantee, not when it is recorded. Recording creates the public record that protects the grantee against later claims by third parties, and in informal family transfers delivery is the step people most often overlook. If you mail the deed to the recorder, include a self-addressed stamped envelope so the recorded original comes back to the grantee.
When a Different Deed Fits Better
A general warranty deed is the right instrument when the grantor is willing to stand behind the entire chain of title, which is the norm for a standard home sale. If an old lien, a decades-old boundary dispute, or a forged deed somewhere in the property’s history surfaces later, the grantee can hold the grantor responsible under the statutory covenants.3Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 442.420 – Covenants Implied by Grant, Bargain and Sell
A special warranty deed covers only defects that arose during the grantor’s own ownership and is common in commercial deals and bank-owned sales. A quitclaim deed transfers whatever interest the grantor holds with no promises at all, and shows up most often in divorce settlements and transfers between family members who already know the state of the title. If your situation calls for one of those instead, the drafting and recording steps above still apply, but the granting language and warranties will differ.