Sample Deed for Severing Joint Tenancy in California

A sample deed for severing joint tenancy in California is typically a one-page quitclaim or grant deed in which you name yourself as both grantor and grantee, transferring your undivided interest from yourself as a joint tenant to yourself as a tenant in common, describing the property by its full legal description and assessor’s parcel number, and stating on the face of the deed that the conveyance changes only the manner of holding title. California Civil Code Section 683.2 also lets you accomplish the same thing with a written declaration that avoids the language of transfer entirely. Whichever form you use, the document must be notarized and recorded with the county recorder before you die, or it does nothing.¹

Three Documents That Will Do the Job

Civil Code Section 683.2 recognizes three ways for one joint tenant to sever their interest without any other co-tenant’s signature or knowledge:¹

A deed transferring your interest to a third party, who then holds as a tenant in common.
A deed naming yourself as both grantor and grantee, changing only the character of your ownership.
A written declaration stating that, as to your interest, the joint tenancy is severed.

For most people severing on their own, the second or third option is the direct route. The old workaround of deeding to a friend and having them deed the property back is still valid but no longer needed.

Grant Deed, Quitclaim Deed, or Written Declaration

A grant deed carries implied warranties: you promise you haven’t already transferred the interest and that you haven’t created undisclosed encumbrances.² A quitclaim deed makes no such warranties and simply passes whatever interest you have. For a severance where you are transferring to yourself, either works. A quitclaim is common because you have no reason to warrant title to yourself; a grant deed keeps the chain of title consistent with earlier conveyances. The written declaration is the shortest option because it doesn’t frame anything as a transfer. All three must be notarized and recorded.

Pull the Current Deed Before You Draft

Get a copy of the current deed from the county recorder in the county where the property sits. You need three pieces of information from it, and they need to appear on your new document exactly as they appear on the old one:

The full legal name of every joint tenant as it appears on the recorded deed. Nicknames or shortened names can get the document rejected or create title questions later.
The Assessor’s Parcel Number (APN), which you can also find through your county assessor’s parcel search.
The full legal description of the property, which is usually a lot and block reference to a recorded subdivision map or a metes-and-bounds description. Copy it verbatim.

If you use a deed, you are both grantor and grantee. If you use a written declaration, there is no grantor or grantee because nothing is being transferred; you are simply declaring the severance.

Sample Language

Section 683.2 does not prescribe magic words, but your intent to sever must be unambiguous. Vague wording is exactly where a surviving co-owner’s later challenge finds traction.

For a quitclaim deed severing joint tenancy, the operative sentence can read:

“I, [Full Legal Name], hereby quitclaim to [Full Legal Name] all of my undivided interest in the following described real property, currently held as joint tenants, to be held hereafter as a tenant in common: [full legal description and APN].”

For a written declaration:

“I, [Full Legal Name], hereby declare that, as to my undivided interest in the following described real property, the joint tenancy is severed, and my interest shall hereafter be held as a tenancy in common: [full legal description and APN].”

Add the Documentary Transfer Tax Exemption Line

California charges a documentary transfer tax of $1.10 per $1,000 of value on recorded conveyances.³ A severance in which you transfer to yourself qualifies for an exemption because the grantor and grantee are the same and the proportional interests do not change. Include a statement on the face of the deed such as: “This conveyance changes the manner in which title is held. Grantor(s) and grantee(s) remain the same and continue to hold the same proportionate interest. R&T 11911.”⁴ Without it, you can end up paying tax you don’t owe or having the document held up.

Notarizing, Filing, and Recording

Sign the document in front of a notary public. The notary confirms your identity and attaches the certificate of acknowledgment required by Civil Code Section 1189.⁵ The notary does not review whether the content is accurate or legally sound. That is on you.

Once notarized, submit the document to the county recorder in the county where the property is located, in person or by certified mail. You must file a Preliminary Change of Ownership Report (PCOR) with the deed under Revenue and Taxation Code Section 480.3. Recording without a PCOR can add a $20 charge.⁶

The base recording fee is $14 for the first page and $3 for each additional page. Layered on top are surcharges: a real estate fraud prevention fee of up to $10 per title under Government Code Section 27388,⁷ and in many counties a Building Homes and Jobs Act (SB2) fee of $75 per document. A standard one-page severance deed typically runs $75 to $100 or more depending on county. Check your county recorder’s fee schedule before you mail anything.⁸

The Deadline That Voids Everything If You Miss It

A severance does not terminate the right of survivorship unless the document is recorded in the county where the property is located before the severing joint tenant dies.¹ A signed, notarized deed in a desk drawer does nothing. The surviving joint tenant takes the entire property by operation of law.

There is one narrow exception. If you sign and notarize the document within three days before your death, it can be recorded up to seven days after your death and still be effective.¹ The window is exact: three days before to seven days after. A deed signed four days before death and recorded after death is too late. The safe move is to record promptly after signing. The effective date is the date you submit the document, not the date the county finishes processing it.

What You Are Giving Up by Filing This Deed

The mechanics are simple. The consequences are not, and they catch people who file a severance without thinking past the title change.

You Lose the Right of Survivorship

Under joint tenancy, the survivor automatically takes the deceased owner’s share without court involvement. Once you sever, that automatic transfer is gone. Your share becomes part of your estate at death and generally passes through probate, which in California means court supervision, attorney fees, and months of delay. California allows a simplified transfer for small estates valued at $208,850 or less as of April 2025, but most real property interests exceed that threshold.⁹ If you sever without also setting up a trust or other estate plan for your share, you have traded automatic transfer for probate. That is sometimes the right trade; it should be a deliberate one.

Tax Basis on a Later Sale

Under 26 U.S.C. Section 1014, property included in a decedent’s gross estate takes a stepped-up basis to fair market value at date of death.¹⁰ For joint tenancy between non-spouses, only the decedent’s half receives the step-up; the survivor’s half keeps its original cost basis. Community property, available to married couples in California, can receive a full basis step-up on both halves at the first spouse’s death. For a married couple, converting from joint tenancy to community property with right of survivorship often produces a better tax result than a plain severance into tenancy in common. Talk this through with a tax advisor before you record anything.

The Mortgage on the Property

If the property carries a mortgage, most loans include a due-on-sale clause allowing the lender to call the balance if ownership is transferred without consent.¹¹ Federal regulations exempt several categories from that clause, including transfers to a spouse, transfers into a living trust where the borrower remains beneficiary, and transfers on the death of a joint tenant.¹² A voluntary severance among existing co-owners is not on the exempt list. In practice, lenders rarely act on a severance that adds no new parties and involves no sale, but “unlikely” is not “prohibited.” Read the loan documents before you record.

Property Tax Reassessment

A severance that does not change the proportional interests generally does not trigger reassessment. The PCOR filed with the deed lets the assessor evaluate the transaction, and the transfer-tax exemption line on the face of the deed reinforces that the ownership percentages are unchanged. Interspousal transfers are separately excluded from reassessment.

1
California Legislative Information. California Code, Civil Code CIV 683.2 – Severance of Joint Tenancy
2
California Department of Tax and Fee Administration. Property Ownership and Deed Recording
3
Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk. Documentary Transfer Taxes General Info
4
Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk. Notice of Exempt Transactions Under the Documentary Transfer Tax
5
California Legislative Information. California Code CIV 1189 – Proof and Acknowledgment of Instruments
6
California Legislative Information. California Code, Revenue and Taxation Code RTC 480.3
7
California Legislative Information. California Code, Government Code GOV 27388
8
San Mateo County Assessor-County Clerk-Recorder. Recording Fees
9
California Courts. Check if You Can Use a Simple Process to Transfer Property
10
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 1014 – Basis of Property Acquired From a Decedent
11
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 12 USC 1701j-3 – Preemption of Due-on-Sale Prohibitions
12
eCFR. 12 CFR 191.5 – Limitation on Exercise of Due-on-Sale Clauses