A quitclaim deed in Georgia is a document that transfers whatever interest the signer currently holds in a piece of real estate, with no promise that the interest is valid, complete, or free of other claims. If the signer owns the property outright, you get full ownership. If the signer owns a half interest, you get a half interest. If the signer turns out to own nothing, you get nothing, and you have no legal claim against them for it.
That is the trade. Speed and simplicity in exchange for no safety net. It is why these deeds work well for family transfers and divorces and poorly for buying a house from a stranger.
When Georgians Use a Quitclaim Deed
Quitclaim deeds show up most often in situations where the parties already know each other and the risk of a hidden title problem is low:
- A parent deeding property to a child, or siblings redistributing inherited real estate among themselves.
- One spouse transferring their interest to the other as part of a divorce. Georgia’s transfer tax statute specifically exempts these.
- Adding a new spouse to the title, or removing an ex-spouse after a divorce is final.
- Clearing a title defect, like a misspelled name on a prior deed or a former owner’s interest that was never formally released.
- Moving property into a revocable living trust for estate planning.
What ties these together: no stranger is paying market price. When real money changes hands between unrelated parties, the standard tools are a warranty deed and title insurance, because a warranty deed includes the grantor’s promise that the title is clean and the grantor’s agreement to defend it. A quitclaim deed includes neither. Most title insurance companies will not issue a policy on a transfer done by quitclaim, which makes these deeds impractical for a conventional purchase.
What Makes a Georgia Quitclaim Deed Valid
The deed must be in writing and must include the full legal names and mailing addresses of both the grantor (the person signing) and the grantee (the person receiving). It needs a legal description of the property. A street address is not enough. The legal description is the boundary description that appears on the existing deed or on a survey.
Georgia deeds also recite a statement of consideration. Even when nothing is being paid, the deed typically says something like “$10 and other good and valuable consideration.”
The grantor signs, and the signature must be attested by two witnesses. One of those witnesses can be a notary public who also acknowledges the signature and applies a seal.1Justia Law. Georgia Code 44-2-21 – Recording Instrument Executed A deed without two attesting witnesses or without notarization will not be accepted for recording. The deed should also identify who prepared it and give a return address for the recorded original.
Recording the Deed
Once signed and notarized, the deed is recorded with the Clerk of Superior Court in the county where the property sits.2Justia Law. Georgia Code 44-2-1 Recording matters. Under Georgia law, an unrecorded deed loses priority to a later recorded deed from the same grantor if the later buyer had no knowledge of the earlier transfer. Skip recording and you create a real risk that someone else can claim the property.
As of January 1, 2025, Georgia’s HB 1292 requires self-filers to submit real estate documents electronically. A self-filer is anyone who is not an attorney, title insurance agent, bank or credit union agent, mortgage lender, land surveyor, or public official. If you are handling the filing yourself, you will need to use one of the approved eRecording platforms rather than walking the deed into the clerk’s office.
The statewide statutory filing fee for recording a deed is $25.3Justia Law. Georgia Code 15-6-77 – Fees
The PT-61 Form and Transfer Tax
Before the clerk will accept your deed, you must file a Real Estate Transfer Tax Declaration (Form PT-61) with the Georgia Superior Court Clerks’ Cooperative Authority.4Georgia Department of Revenue. Real Estate Transfer Tax The PT-61 is filed electronically.
Georgia imposes a transfer tax on deeds where property changes hands for more than $100 in consideration. The rate is $1.00 for the first $1,000 of value, then $0.10 for each additional $100.5Justia Law. Georgia Code 48-6-1 – Transfer Tax Rate Many quitclaim transfers are exempt from paying this tax even though the PT-61 form still has to be filed. Georgia exempts deeds of gift, transfers between spouses in a divorce, and transfers to or from a fiduciary without valuable consideration, among others.6Justia Law. Georgia Code 48-6-2 – Exemption of Certain Instruments One narrow situation skips the form entirely: a quitclaim deed used solely to release a security interest.7Georgia Superior Court Clerks’ Cooperative Authority. PT-61 E-Filing Help – Information for New Users
Tax Traps to Know Before You Sign
The Gift Tax Filing
When you transfer property by quitclaim deed without receiving fair market value in return, the IRS treats the transfer as a gift. The 2026 federal annual gift tax exclusion is $19,000 per recipient, or $38,000 if a married couple elects gift-splitting.8Internal Revenue Service. Frequently Asked Questions on Gift Taxes Any Georgia property transfer will almost certainly exceed that, so you will need to file IRS Form 709 to report the gift.
Filing Form 709 does not necessarily mean you owe tax. The amount over the annual exclusion simply reduces the lifetime gift and estate tax exemption, which for 2026 is $15,000,000.9Internal Revenue Service. What’s New – Estate and Gift Tax Most people never cross that line, but the reporting requirement still applies.
Carryover Basis vs. Stepped-Up Basis
This is the quitclaim tax trap that catches families off guard. When you gift property during your lifetime, the recipient inherits your original tax basis. If you bought a house for $80,000 and it is now worth $400,000, your child receives the $80,000 basis. When they sell, they owe capital gains tax on up to $320,000 in appreciation.
Compare that to inheriting the same property after your death, which gives the heir a stepped-up basis equal to the fair market value at the date of death. The heir could sell for $400,000 and owe nothing in capital gains. The difference can run tens of thousands of dollars, so transferring property by quitclaim to avoid probate sometimes costs the family far more than probate ever would. Talk to a tax professional before signing.
The Mortgage Stays With You
Transferring property by quitclaim deed does not remove or affect an existing mortgage. This is one of the most common misunderstandings. If your name is on the mortgage, signing a quitclaim deed to hand the property to someone else still leaves you personally responsible for the loan. The lender does not care whose name is on the deed. The lender cares whose name is on the note.
Most mortgages also contain a due-on-sale clause, which lets the lender demand full repayment when ownership changes. Federal law carves out specific exceptions. A lender cannot enforce a due-on-sale clause when the transfer is to a spouse or child of the borrower, when ownership changes because of a divorce or legal separation, when the property passes to a relative after the borrower’s death, or when the property moves into a living trust where the borrower remains a beneficiary.10Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 12 USC 1701j-3 – Preemption of Due-on-Sale Prohibitions These exceptions cover most of the situations where people use quitclaim deeds, but a transfer to a friend or unrelated party could trigger the clause.
Check for Liens Before Accepting the Deed
Because the deed comes with no promises about clear title, you take the property with whatever liens, judgments, or encumbrances are attached to it. Unpaid property taxes, contractor liens, and federal tax liens all survive the transfer.
Georgia makes basic lien searches available through the Georgia Superior Court Clerks’ Cooperative Authority, which maintains a statewide lien index searchable by name, instrument type, and county.11Georgia Superior Court Clerks’ Cooperative Authority. Lien Search A search there will flag federal tax liens, mechanic’s liens, lis pendens filings, and other recorded claims. For a more thorough check, a title company or real estate attorney can examine the full chain of ownership and catch problems a lien-only search can miss.
Even in low-risk family transfers, running at least a basic lien search is worth the few minutes it takes. A property that looks clean can carry liens the grantor genuinely did not know about.