An Ohio quit claim deed sample that will actually record follows the statutory form in Ohio Revised Code 5302.11: the grantor names themselves and their marital status, identifies the county, states that valuable consideration was paid, grants the described property to the grantee, and signs before a notary or other authorized official. The form transfers whatever interest the grantor has, with no promise the title is clean, so it works best between people who already trust each other — spouses, family members, divorcing couples, or an owner moving property into a trust. Getting the fields and the supporting paperwork right is what separates a deed that records from one the county sends back.1Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Ohio Revised Code 5302.11 – Quit-Claim Deed Form
What the Statutory Form Requires
You don’t have to copy the state’s form word-for-word, but any form you use must follow Section 5302.11 “in substance.” Gather every piece of information before you start writing; going back and forth to county offices for a missing field is the kind of avoidable frustration that derails most do-it-yourself transfers.
- Full legal names of the grantor (the person giving the interest) and grantee (the person receiving it), exactly as they appear on official documents. A middle-initial mismatch can cause problems at recording.
- The grantor’s marital status. The statutory form has a blank for this, and it is not optional filler.
- The county where the property sits.
- A consideration statement. Family transfers and gifts commonly list “ten dollars and other valuable consideration” rather than the actual market value. The phrasing satisfies the requirement that some consideration be stated while keeping the figures of a non-commercial transfer private.
- The full legal description of the property, from the most recent recorded deed. A street address is not enough; the description typically uses lot-and-block references from a recorded plat or metes-and-bounds language. The county recorder can give you a copy if you don’t have one.
- The permanent parcel number assigned by the county auditor. It appears on the property tax bill, and the auditor’s office can look it up.
- The prior instrument reference — the volume and page number where the previous deed was recorded. This preserves the chain of title.
- A tax-mailing address for the grantee, where tax correspondence will go after recording.1Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Ohio Revised Code 5302.11 – Quit-Claim Deed Form
Dower Release if the Grantor Is Married
Ohio still recognizes dower rights, which give a spouse a life estate in one-third of the other spouse’s real property acquired during the marriage. If the grantor is married, the statutory form includes a separate line where the spouse “releases all rights of dower therein,” and the spouse must sign the deed on that line. Skipping the dower release doesn’t void the deed, but it leaves the spouse’s dower interest intact, which clouds the title for anyone who later tries to sell or mortgage the property.2Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Ohio Revised Code 2103.02 – Dower
Signing and Acknowledgment
Under Ohio Revised Code 5301.01, the grantor signs the deed and then has that signature acknowledged before an authorized official. Most people use a notary public, but Ohio law also allows a judge, court clerk, county auditor, county engineer, or mayor to take the acknowledgment. The official certifies the acknowledgment and signs the certificate. Without this step, the county recorder will reject the deed.3Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Ohio Revised Code 5301.01 – Acknowledgment of Deed, Mortgage, Land Contract, Lease or Memorandum of Trust
Ohio does not require witnesses, just the acknowledgment. Every signature must match the name as it appears in the body of the document. If the grantor goes by “Robert” in daily life but the deed says “Robert James Smith,” the signature needs to say “Robert James Smith.”
The Auditor Form You Have to Attach
The signed, notarized deed alone is not enough to file. Ohio requires a supplemental form that tells the county auditor the transfer’s value and purpose so the auditor can update tax records. Which form you use depends on whether money is changing hands.
- DTE 100, the Real Property Conveyance Fee Statement of Value and Receipt, is used when consideration was paid. The conveyance fee is calculated from the amount reported.4Ohio Department of Taxation. DTE 100 – Real Property Conveyance Fee Statement of Value and Receipt
- DTE 100EX, the Statement of Reason for Exemption, is used when the transfer qualifies for a fee exemption. Most family quit claim deeds use this form. You select from a list of pre-defined exemption reasons, including gifts between spouses, between parent and child, and transfers into a revocable living trust where the grantor remains a beneficiary.5Ohio Department of Taxation. DTE 100EX – Statement of Reason for Exemption From Real Property Conveyance Fee
Both forms carry a warning that knowingly providing false information is a first-degree misdemeanor. The auditor can demand supporting documents like trust agreements, court orders, or closing statements to verify your exemption claim. If the information on the DTE form doesn’t match the deed, expect the auditor to send everything back.4Ohio Department of Taxation. DTE 100 – Real Property Conveyance Fee Statement of Value and Receipt
Where to File and What It Costs
Filing involves two offices in a specific order. Some counties handle the routing internally; in many, you carry the paperwork between offices yourself.
Start at the County Auditor. The auditor reviews the transfer, updates tax ownership records, and stamps the deed. If a conveyance fee applies, you pay it here. The mandatory state fee under Ohio Revised Code 319.54 is $1 per $1,000 of the sale price, with a $1 minimum.6Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Ohio Revised Code 319.54 – Fees and Charges of County Auditor Counties may add a permissive transfer tax of up to $3 per $1,000 under Ohio Revised Code 322.02, bringing the combined rate as high as $4 per $1,000 in some counties.7Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Ohio Revised Code 322.02 – Real Property Transfer Tax Exempt transfers filed with the DTE 100EX skip this fee entirely.
From there, take the stamped deed to the County Recorder for final recording. The recorder charges $34 for the first two pages and $8 for each additional page.8Ohio County Recorder. State of Ohio County Recorder Table of Fees You can file in person or mail the documents with the correct fees; some counties also accept electronic submissions, though availability varies. Once the recorder assigns an instrument number and indexes the deed, the original is returned to the grantee. Keep it. You will need it if you ever sell the property or need to prove ownership.
Before You Sign: Issues the Deed Won’t Fix
A properly completed quit claim deed transfers whatever interest the grantor has, and nothing more. Several things that people assume it handles, it doesn’t.
An existing mortgage stays in place. A quit claim deed does not remove anyone from the mortgage. The grantor remains personally liable for the payments unless the lender releases them or the grantee refinances the loan. Most residential mortgages also include a due-on-sale clause that lets the lender demand full repayment when the property changes hands without written consent, and a quit claim transfer can trigger it. Federal law under the Garn-St. Germain Act blocks that enforcement for certain family transfers, divorce-related transfers, transfers on the death of a joint owner, and transfers into a living trust where the borrower remains a beneficiary and occupant.9Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 12 U.S. Code 1701j-3 – Preemption of Due-on-Sale Prohibitions Transfers outside those categories, such as a deed to an LLC or an unrelated person, get no federal protection; contact the lender in writing first.
The grantee inherits the grantor’s tax basis, not a stepped-up one. When property is gifted during the giver’s lifetime, the recipient’s basis is the giver’s original basis.10Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 U.S. Code 1015 – Basis of Property Acquired by Gifts and Transfers in Trust Inherited property, by contrast, gets a basis equal to fair market value at the date of death. For families passing along a home, the difference can be tens of thousands of dollars in capital gains tax at a future sale, which is worth a conversation with a tax professional before signing. A gift above the annual exclusion also requires the grantor to file IRS Form 709, even if no tax is owed.11Internal Revenue Service. Frequently Asked Questions on Gift Taxes
Medicaid will see the transfer. Federal law requires Medicaid to review asset transfers made within the 60 months before an application for nursing home coverage. A transfer for less than fair market value during that window produces a penalty period during which the applicant cannot receive benefits, calculated by dividing the uncompensated value by the average monthly cost of nursing care in the state.12Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 42 U.S. Code 1396p – Liens, Adjustments and Recoveries, and Transfers of Assets Transfers to a spouse or a disabled child are exempt. If long-term care planning is any part of the reason for the deed, talk to an elder law attorney first.
There is no title insurance. A quit claim deed carries no covenants, and most title insurers will not issue a new policy based solely on a quit claim transfer. Liens, boundary disputes, and competing ownership claims that existed before the transfer carry forward to the grantee. For a high-value property, paying for a title search before accepting the deed is worth the cost, even between family members.