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What is the Recorder's
Office?
The Recorder of Deeds Office is a place where all
transactions having to do with land, including attachments, sales
of property, Deeds of Trust, and Quit Claim Deeds are recorded and
kept in a permanent file. This is where land records are kept.
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What is a Deed of Trust?
A Deed of Trust is a lien on the property to insure
payment of the money due to the lender.
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How do I know if my Deed of
Trust has been recorded as paid?
The lender (Grantee) must give the borrower (Grantor) a) The note
marked "PAID" and signed by all persons who have been a party to
the lenders; b) The original Deed of Trust; and c) A Deed of
Release which must have the Grantees signatures notarized. This
is on Deeds of Trust made before January 1, 1986. After January
1, 1986, a Deed of Release will suffice to get the document marked
paid or satisfied. If a document (note) made before January 1,
1986, is lost or destroyed and cannot be found, a Release with
Affidavits of Lost Notes must be filed.
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Can I locate the mortgage
on my property?
Yes, the mortgage normally follows the filing of your
Warranty Deed as to document number and date. It is listed as to
book and page number. In this group, you are the Grantor and the
lender is the Grantee. If more than one Deed of Trust is listed
against the property, it can be identified as a "second" mortgage
or such but the first filed mortgage, unless subordinated, has
first call on proceeds if the property is foreclosed.
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What is a Warranty Deed?
A Warranty Deed is an instrument by which the buyer
obtains title to the piece of property being sold. A deed comes
in many forms. The most common source of passing title is the
Warranty deed. The seller warrants that he has not encumbered the
title and guarantees that his predecessors have not encumbered the
title.
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What if I have lost my
Deed?
The primary evidence of ownership of land is not so much
as to the deed itself as to the recording of the deed. Once
recorded, the deed is returned to the new owner who usually
deposits it in a safe place with his or her important papers.
However, if misplaced or lost, a copy may be obtained from the
Recorder's Office and certified with the Recorder's signature and
official stamp or seal. This will suffice for the original deed.
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How do I find the Deed if I
don't recall when the house was purchased?
The Recorder maintains a computer printout of the
ownership of all property in the county sorted alphabetically. By
simply looking up the owner's name, the deeds can be located. If
the owner's name is not known, it becomes much more difficult to
look up a property by street address, but it can be accomplished.
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How do I know my Warranty
Deed has been recorded?
The Recorder of Deeds office clocks the instrument with
the date and time. It is then given a Book and Page number and a
certificate is added with all of this information on the front
page before the document is signed by the Recorder or a Deputy.
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What else is the Recorder
of Deeds Office responsible for?
Marriage Licenses - The Recorder of Deeds office
takes Marriage License applications, issues Marriage Licenses,
files the license after the marriage, and maintains a permanent
record, alphabetically, of both male and female and the date of
the marriage.
Surveys & Plats - The Recorders office also receives
Surveys and Plats of Subdivisions which are put on record as to
date and time. They are microfilmed for public use and the plat
is kept in the Recorders office.
Armed Forces document - The Recorder also files Armed
Forces Document (D.D. 214) which provides a free service for all
Veterans who have resided in Franklin County.
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What happens to a document that is brought
into the Recorders Office?
A document goes through a number of steps before the
document is returned to the patron.
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The document is checked for dates, signatures, spelling of
names, complete acknowledgments, and, depending on the type of
instrument, any other information that is needed before
recording.
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If all information is correct, the document is accepted and
priced according to the number of pages it contains.
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The document is then clocked with the date and time, given a
Book and Page number, and then certified on the top of the first
page.
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The document is microfilmed. One copy is made from the original
card and one original and one copy is kept in the Recorder's
Office. The copy is for public use.
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The document is listed on the daily fee book as to the type of
document recorded, the name of the Grantor and Grantee, the book
and page information, and the charges received for recording.
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The document is then indexed into the computer system by Grantor
and Grantee name.
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The document is then checked again to see that it was correctly
entered into the computer system and then the document is
returned to the proper address.
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Can I make my own Deed(s)?
Yes, you can, but the recorder always recommends the
retention of an attorney or Title Company for this important
process. The Recorders Office is a recording agency and is
prohibited by state law from making out deeds or answering those
questions which pertain to legal matters.
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How do I find the deed to
my property?
There is a computerized index of Grantor and Grantee
information that is available in the Recorder's vault for public
use. Grantor means the seller and Grantee means the buyer. In
order to locate a copy of your deed, you would search for your
name as the Grantee since you are the one that last bought the
property. Once you ascertain the year that you purchased the
property, you will utilize either the computer index (1984 through
the present) or the Grantee Book (1819 through 1983) to further
look up your deed. Within these indexes, you will find your full
name arranged alphabetically, which will refer you to a book and
page number.
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How far back do the
recordings go?
The county was established in November of 1821. Our
records go back to 1819. All records pertaining to Franklin
County is on file in our vault. All Deeds of Trust, all
Marriages, the date that licenses were purchased, and any other
recording made in Franklin County is on file or film in our
offices.
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Can you record property
located elsewhere in the Franklin County Recorder of Deeds office?
No, property must be recorded in the county in which it
is located.
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Are the Recorder's records
current?
Yes, the documents are put into the computer within a
24-hour period after being recorded. They are timed and Grantee
and Grantor are listed as well as the book and page. Printouts of
daily work are completed by the next morning to compare for
completeness and accuracy. The computer can call up information
immediately after being put into the records.
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How long will it take for
a Deed to be returned to the patron?
There are a number of functions that take place when a
document is filed. It must be date and time stamped, checked for
errors, and put into the computer. It must be filmed, carded and
either mailed back to the patron or made available for pick up.
As a result, the amount of time required to complete this process
varies greatly.
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What fees are charged regarding the
documents and services provided by the Recorder of Deeds office?
The State Legislature sets the fees that we are allowed
to charge for recording documents. The fees charged go, in part,
to the State Land Survey Office to update the state surveys and to
keep vital land records and surveys. The State Land Survey Office
also police the registered surveyors.
Please click here for a current list of fees.
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