Is a quit claim deed legal on the date it is signed and notorized or does it have to be recorded before it is legal?
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Is a quit claim deed legal on the date it is signed and notorized or does it have to be recorded before it is legal?
Asked on October 13, 2015 under Real Estate Law, Illinois
Answers:
M.D., Member, California and New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 9 years ago | Contributor
The date that a deed is executed is the legally opertative date a deed does not have to be recorded in order to be a valid. However, there are practical reasons for recording. A deed does not take effect as to creditors and subsequent purchasers who have no notice of the conveyance until the deed is recorded. Accordingly, unrecorded deeds are void as to all subsequent creditors and subsequent purchasers without notice until they are filed for record. Another way of putting this is that, recording a deed places subsequent purchasers on "constructive notice" that the property has been conveyed. Consequently, subsequent creditors and purchasers are deemed to have actual knowledge of any recorded instrument.
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