Alabama Quitclaim Deed
An Alabama quit claim deed transfers your interest with no warranty. Record it with the office of the judge of probate and pay a $0.50 per $500 recording tax.
Introduction
A quitclaim deed is a document that transfers whatever ownership interest you have in a piece of real estate to someone else, with no promise that your title is good or even that you own anything at all. That is the key difference from a warranty deed, which does promise clear title and lets the grantee sue if the title turns out to be flawed. A quitclaim simply passes along whatever interest you hold, so people use it for lower-risk transfers between people who already trust each other: adding or removing a spouse after a marriage or divorce, moving a home into a living trust, or clearing up a possible claim on a title. In Alabama the person giving up the interest is the grantor and the person receiving it is the grantee. Alabama has no codified quitclaim form; a quitclaim uses words like remise, release, and quitclaim and avoids the words grant, bargain, and sell, which by Ala. Code Section 35-4-271 imply warranty covenants. You sign the deed and have it acknowledged before a notary, which under Ala. Code Section 35-4-23 removes the need for a separate witness, then record it with the office of the judge of probate in the county where the land lies. Attorney review is available as an option before you sign.
Key Things to Know
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A quitclaim deed, often typed as a quit claim deed, transfers only the interest you actually have. It passes whatever ownership you hold in the property to the grantee and makes no promise that the title is clear, or even that you own anything. A warranty deed, by contrast, guarantees the title, which is why a quitclaim is used mainly between people who trust each other.
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Record it with the office of the judge of probate. Under Ala. Code Section 35-4-50 a conveyance required by law to be recorded is recorded in the office of the judge of probate, and Section 35-4-51 admits it to record in the county where the land lies; filing it for record constitutes notice of its contents.
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You must sign and acknowledge it. Ala. Code Section 35-4-20 requires the deed to be in writing and signed at its foot by the grantor, and Section 35-4-23 lets an acknowledgment (notarization) before an authorized officer satisfy the law's witness requirement.
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No witnesses are needed if you notarize. Section 35-4-20 allows a deed to be attested by one witness, but Section 35-4-23 makes a notary acknowledgment an accepted substitute, so a standard notarized quitclaim deed needs no separate witness. Alabama does not require the two-witness execution some states use.
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Pay the recording (deed) tax. Alabama charges a recordation privilege tax of $0.50 for each $500 of value, or fraction of it, in the property conveyed (Ala. Code Section 40-22-1), which works out to about $1.00 per $1,000. A deed for a nominal consideration to perfect the title can be exempt.
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There is no Alabama quitclaim form to fill in. The Alabama Code sets execution and recording rules but prescribes no quitclaim template, so the deed just has to use quitclaim language and meet the Section 35-4-20 signing rules.
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Both spouses must sign to convey a homestead. Ala. Code Section 6-10-3 voids a married person's conveyance of the homestead without the other spouse's voluntary signature and assent, shown by acknowledgment. Common quitclaim uses include divorce transfers, adding or removing a spouse, and moving a home into a living trust.
Key decisions before you file
Before you file a Quitclaim Deed in Alabama, a few decisions shape the document: which option to choose and what each one means. The Quitclaim Deed guide walks through them.
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Alabama Requirements for Quitclaim Deed
To record an Alabama quitclaim deed you should acknowledge it before a notary public. Ala. Code Section 35-4-20 requires the grantor to sign at the foot of the deed, and Section 35-4-23 lets that acknowledgment satisfy the law's witness requirement, so notarizing is the standard way to make the deed recordable.
Alabama gives two execution paths. Ala. Code Section 35-4-20 lets a deed be attested by one witness, but Section 35-4-23 makes a notary acknowledgment an accepted substitute. A standard notarized quitclaim deed therefore needs no separate witness, and Alabama does not require the two-witness execution some states use.
Record the signed, notarized deed with the office of the judge of probate in the county where the land lies (Ala. Code Section 35-4-50). Under Section 35-4-51 filing the instrument for record constitutes notice of its contents, which protects the grantee against later purchasers, mortgagees, and judgment creditors without notice (Section 35-4-90).
The instrument must have endorsed on it a printed, typewritten, or stamped statement showing the name and address of the individual who prepared it. Ala. Code Section 35-4-110 directs the judge of probate not to record any deed conveying an interest in real property unless it carries that preparer statement.
Alabama charges a recordation privilege tax on the deed. Ala. Code Section 40-22-1 sets it at $0.50 for each $500, or fraction of it, of the value of the property conveyed, which is about $1.00 per $1,000. The value of the property conveyed, not just the stated price, determines the tax due.
Some instruments are exempt from the recordation tax under Ala. Code Section 40-22-1, including a deed made for a nominal consideration to perfect the title to real estate, a transfer of a mortgage on which the mortgage tax was already paid, and a re-recorded corrected deed executed to perfect title. Confirm any exemption before you claim it.
Alabama has no codified statutory short-form quitclaim deed. The Alabama Code sets the execution rules in Ala. Code Section 35-4-20 and the recording rules in Sections 35-4-50 and 35-4-110, but prescribes no quitclaim template. The deed only needs to use quitclaim language and meet those signing and recording rules.
Ala. Code Section 6-10-3 voids a married person's mortgage, deed, or other conveyance of the homestead without the voluntary signature and assent of the other spouse, shown by that spouse's acknowledgment before an authorized officer. A quitclaim of homestead property signed by only the owner-spouse can be invalid, so both spouses should sign.
Frequently Asked Questions
A quitclaim deed is a deed that transfers whatever interest you have in Alabama real estate to someone else, without any warranty that the title is good. It is often typed as a quit claim deed. Unlike a warranty deed, it makes no promise that you own the property or that the title is free of other claims. It simply passes along the interest you hold, if any.
The difference is the promise about title. An Alabama warranty deed uses words like grant, bargain, or sell, which under Ala. Code Section 35-4-271 are construed as covenants that the grantor holds an indefeasible fee simple free from encumbrances, and the grantee can sue if that turns out to be false. A quitclaim deed avoids those words and makes no such promise, so it conveys only whatever present interest the grantor has, with no warranty.
To be recorded it must be either acknowledged before a notary or attested by a witness. Ala. Code Section 35-4-20 lets a deed be attested by one witness, but Section 35-4-23 makes a notary acknowledgment satisfy that requirement, so in practice a notarized quitclaim deed needs no separate witness. Notarizing is the usual route because the judge of probate can then record it.
You record it with the office of the judge of probate in the county where the land lies, as Ala. Code Section 35-4-50 requires. Section 35-4-51 provides that filing the instrument for record constitutes notice of its contents. The deed must also show the name and address of the person who prepared it, or the judge of probate will not record it (Section 35-4-110).
You pay the judge of probate's recording fee plus the recordation privilege tax. Ala. Code Section 40-22-1 sets that tax at $0.50 for each $500 of value, or fraction of it, in the property conveyed, which is about $1.00 per $1,000. A deed made for a nominal consideration to perfect the title, and some other instruments, can be exempt.
No. Recording your quitclaim with the office of the judge of probate transfers your interest in the land, but it does not reach the lender's lien or the promissory note you signed. If your name is on the loan, you stay liable even after you quitclaim the property away. To come off the mortgage you generally need the lender to refinance the loan or sign a release removing you.
Yes, and it is common. One spouse can quitclaim their interest to the other to carry out a divorce settlement. Watch the homestead rule: Ala. Code Section 6-10-3 voids a married person's conveyance of the homestead unless the other spouse also signs voluntarily and that assent is shown by acknowledgment. A deed missing that spousal signature can be invalid.
No. Because a quitclaim omits the grant, bargain, and sell words that Ala. Code Section 35-4-271 turns into title covenants, it clears no liens or mortgages and promises nothing about ownership; you take only the interest the grantor holds, if any. Alabama is a notice, race-notice recording state under Section 35-4-90, so priority turns on recording and notice. A title search and title insurance, not a quitclaim, give the protection you want.