Free Indiana Quitclaim Deed Form

Everything You Need to Know About the Quitclaim Deed in Indiana

Would you like to transfer your interests on a property to a trust or a living trust, or have a family member who would use the gift of an apartment at no cost? Wouldn’t you want to make sure that the transfer is as legal as possible? Well, we know exactly what you need, a quitclaim deed. It is also called a quitclaim deed, a quitclaim, or a non-warranty deed.

What is it?

A quitclaim deed refers to a legally binding legal instrument that facilitates the conveyance of interests or rights to property from a grantor (transferor) to the grantee (recipient). The only catch is that this legal transfer of property rights or interests comes without any warranties to the title. So, in the event of title defects, the grantee is exposed, and they could easily lose the rights to the same property.

Since there are no warranties on the title, terming the quitclaim, a non-warranty deed is befitting. This legal instrument is not, however, called a quick claim deed, despite how it fast-tracks the transfer of property between parties.

Why use it?

With title defects like a recording error in the public records, boundary disputes, an undiscovered will, missing heirs, undiscovered encumbrances, forgery, or unknown liens threatening the grantees right to conveyed property, why is this document used?

• Well, the document speeds up the transfer of rights to real property. Above that, it works well between people who trust each other. The circumstances that warrant the use of a quitclaim include:

• • The transfer of rights to property to a family member

  • The transfer of your interests in property to a trust. Note, however, that you cannot use the quitclaim to transfer real property from a trust. You would need a Trustee Deed from the trustee to transfer rights to property from a trust.

  • To facilitate the transfer of rights to property to your spouse, or to remove a named spouse from a title deed. The only catch in using the deed to remove an ex-spouse from a property, say a homestead, is that if the property is mortgaged, the debt situation doesn’t change and you both remain responsible for the debt unless you come to a different understanding during a divorce.

  • You could also use the deed to facilitate a government transfer of property, in the event of a foreclosure on the property.

What can you use when you need warranties on the real property being conveyed to you, and when you are willing to pay for the property?

When in need of a warranty of title, you could either use a general warranty deed form or a special/ limited warranty deed form.

With the general warranty deed, the deed provides full warranty for the title with the grantor taking up full responsibility for any and all title issues, even the ones that arose prior to the grantor taking up ownership for the property.

The special warranty deed, on the other hand, will only provide a warranty of title limited to the time that the grantor owned the property in question. In this regard, the grantor has to defend their title to the property from actions that take place while they own the property. Thanks to the limited nature of this warranty, the grantor does not bear responsibility for anything reported to have taken place before they gained ownership of the property.

What makes a valid quitclaim deed in Indiana?

For legality and recording of the property ownership transfer in the public records of the county that the real property is located, you need to make sure that the conveyance deed meets all statutory requirements. Fortunately, there are various templates of the quitclaim, and you could look through them before you download and fill your printable PDF. We recommend that you download a free Indiana quitclaim deed form online to get started.

• Requirements for the validity of the quitclaim

• • First, the state regards the quitclaim as the instrument through which a piece of real estate passes from a grantor to a grantee.

  • The document must be in writing

  • It should have the signature of the grantor or their authorized agent

  • The deed must have the names and the mailing addresses of both the grantor(s) and the grantee (s). And the names of the grantor and the grantee must remain unchanged throughout the document

  • If there is a consideration paid, the type and the amount of the consideration must be included in the deed.

  • The deed must bear a complete legal description of the property in question – the location, name, block/ plot number/size.

  • The signatures on the deed should be original signatures which should be notarized/ acknowledged by the notary public. There should be a printed or typed name of every party signing the deed immediately below their signatures.

  • The space at the deed’s end must have the return address of the grantee since the grantee is the one who received the recorded deed, as well as tax bills.

  • The deed should also have the full legal name and the social security number, as well as the statement of the person preparing the deed.

Recording the quitclaim

• For recording purposes, the requirements of section 32-21-3-3 should be adhered to. Also, specific formatting requirements should be followed.

• • For recording, there should be an endorsement from the county auditor

  • The deed must be printed on white sheets of paper not exceeding 20lbs, on a paper not larger than 8”x14” which is the legal size paper. At the same time, there shouldn’t be any sheets connected or attached.

  • The print should be computer generated or typed, in permanent black ink, minimum 10-point type.

  • Every page should have 1” margins around, save for the first and the last page which should have a margin space of at least 2” at the top and the bottom, with a 1” margin on each side.

Note: quitclaim recordation in the state follows the ‘race-notice’ statute for recording. What this means is that the deed should be recorded within the county the property is located. And upon the county recorder’s acceptance, it should be stamped with the time and the date of the filing, then entered in the public record. This ensures issuance of constructive notice to any parties interested, as well as the preservation of the chain of title. The time and date help with the ranking of the deed in order of priority should there be other claims on the property.

In short, the recording and time/ date stamping ensure that the deed has priority against any bona fide purchasers in future.

If the document is not recorded correctly and the grantor sells the property to a bona fide buyer, the initial grantee loses ownership for the property.

Interested in preparing, signing, and recording a quitclaim in Indianapolis, Evansville, Bloomington, Fort Wayne, Gary, South Bend or any other city in Indiana, for residential or any other purposes? Get started with our free PDF downloads of the quitclaim deed form today.