Indiana Quitclaim Deed
An Indiana quitclaim deed (or quit claim deed) transfers your interest with no warranty. Record it with the county recorder; Indiana charges no transfer 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 Indiana the person giving up the interest is the grantor and the person receiving it is the grantee. Indiana codifies a statutory quitclaim short form at IC 32-21-1-15, and the deed must be signed, sealed, and acknowledged before a notary to be recorded (IC 32-21-2-3). No subscribing witnesses are required. You record it with the county recorder in the county where the land is located (IC 32-21-4-1). Indiana charges no state transfer tax, but before recording the parties must file a Sales Disclosure Form with the county auditor (IC 6-1.1-5.5). 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 county recorder. Under IC 32-21-4-1 an Indiana conveyance is recorded in the recorder's office in the county where the land is located. Recording protects the grantee against a later good-faith buyer under Indiana's race-notice priority rule.
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Sign, seal, and acknowledge before a notary. Indiana requires the deed to be subscribed, sealed, and acknowledged by the grantor (IC 32-21-1-13), and any instrument to be recorded must carry a notarial acknowledgment or proof (IC 32-21-2-3). The notary acknowledgment (a signed statement confirming who signed) is the operative formality.
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No witnesses are required. When the deed is acknowledged before a notary, Indiana does not require a subscribing witness. IC 32-21-2-3 asks for one of two notarial acts, an acknowledgment or a proof, not both. A 2020 change briefly appeared to require a witness proof on recorded instruments, but that was rolled back; a notarized acknowledgment alone is enough to record.
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Indiana has no state transfer tax, but a Sales Disclosure Form is required. Indiana levies no state real estate transfer or documentary-stamp tax. Instead, for a conveyance for valuable consideration the parties must file a Sales Disclosure Form (State Form 46021) with the county auditor, and the county recorder cannot record the deed without evidence the form was filed (IC 6-1.1-5.5-6).
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There is an Indiana statutory quitclaim short form. IC 32-21-1-15 codifies a short form worded in substance as the grantor quitclaims to the grantee for a stated sum. A deed following that form is a good and sufficient conveyance in quitclaim; it carries no covenants or warranty of title, unlike an Indiana warranty deed under IC 32-21-1-14.
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Common uses include divorce and estate planning. People use an Indiana quitclaim deed to add or remove a spouse after a marriage or divorce, to move a home into a living trust, or to fix a clouded title. Because it carries no warranty, it is not the right tool for an arm's length purchase where you want title protection.
Key decisions before you file
Before you file a Quitclaim Deed in Indiana, 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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Indiana Requirements for Quitclaim Deed
An Indiana quitclaim deed must be signed, sealed, and acknowledged by the grantor (IC 32-21-1-13). Any instrument to be recorded must carry a notarial act, either an acknowledgment or a proof (IC 32-21-2-3). In practice the grantor signs before a notary, who completes the acknowledgment, and that is what makes the deed recordable.
When the deed is acknowledged before a notary, Indiana does not require a subscribing witness. IC 32-21-2-3 asks for one of two notarial acts, an acknowledgment or a proof, not both. A 2020 change briefly appeared to require a witness proof on recorded instruments, but it was rolled back, so a notarized acknowledgment alone is enough to record.
Record the signed, notarized deed in the recorder's office in the county where the land is located (IC 32-21-4-1). Recording protects the grantee against a later good-faith buyer under Indiana's race-notice priority rule, so a properly recorded deed takes priority over one recorded later.
For a conveyance for valuable consideration, the parties must file a Sales Disclosure Form (State Form 46021) with the county auditor under IC 6-1.1-5.5. The county recorder cannot record the deed without evidence that the form was filed (IC 6-1.1-5.5-6). Whether a no-consideration gift deed is exempt depends on the form's conveyance-type rules.
Indiana levies no state real estate transfer, documentary-stamp, or deed tax on a quitclaim deed. The state instead requires the Sales Disclosure Form described above. You still pay county recording fees and a county auditor endorsement (transfer) fee, and those amounts vary by county.
Indiana codifies a statutory quitclaim short form at IC 32-21-1-15, worded in substance as the grantor quitclaims to the grantee for a stated sum. A deed following that form is a good and sufficient conveyance in quitclaim of whatever interest the grantor holds.
An Indiana quitclaim deed transfers only whatever interest the grantor actually holds and makes no promise about the title. It carries no covenants or warranty, unlike a warranty deed under IC 32-21-1-14. The grantee cannot sue the grantor for a title defect, so a quitclaim is best used between parties who trust each other.
To be recorded, an Indiana deed must meet the format rules in IC 36-2-11-16.5: at least a 2-inch top and bottom margin and 1/2-inch side margins on the first and last pages, on white paper of at least 20-pound weight, pages no larger than 8.5 by 14 inches, and typed or computer-generated in black ink in at least 10-point type. Indiana also authorizes electronic recording under IC 32-21-2.5.
Frequently Asked Questions
A quitclaim deed is a deed that transfers whatever interest you have in Indiana 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. Indiana codifies the short form at IC 32-21-1-15; it simply passes along the interest you hold, if any.
The difference is the promise about title. An Indiana warranty deed (IC 32-21-1-14) guarantees that the grantor owns the property and that the title is clear, and the grantee can sue if that turns out to be false. A quitclaim deed under IC 32-21-1-15 makes no such promise. It is a good and sufficient conveyance in quitclaim of whatever interest the grantor holds, but it carries no covenants or warranty of title.
Yes. To record a quitclaim deed in Indiana it must be signed, sealed, and acknowledged by the grantor (IC 32-21-1-13), and any instrument to be recorded must carry a notarial acknowledgment or proof (IC 32-21-2-3). In practice you sign before a notary, who completes the acknowledgment. Without that notarial act the county recorder will not record the deed.
You record it with the county recorder in the county where the land is located, as IC 32-21-4-1 requires. Recording gives public notice and protects the grantee against a later good-faith buyer under Indiana's race-notice priority rule. Before the recorder will accept the deed, you generally must have filed a Sales Disclosure Form with the county auditor (IC 6-1.1-5.5).
No. Indiana levies no state real estate transfer or documentary-stamp tax on a deed. What Indiana requires instead is a Sales Disclosure Form (State Form 46021) filed with the county auditor for a conveyance for valuable consideration, and the county recorder cannot record without evidence that form was filed (IC 6-1.1-5.5-6). You still pay county recording and auditor endorsement fees, which vary by county.
No. Recording the deed with the county recorder where the land sits (IC 32-21-4-1) transfers your interest to the grantee, but it never reaches the lender's lien. The mortgage is a separate contract, so if your name is on the note you stay liable even after you quitclaim your interest away. Only the lender can release you, usually by refinancing the loan or signing a formal release of the mortgage.
No. When the deed is acknowledged before a notary, Indiana does not require a separate subscribing witness. IC 32-21-2-3 calls for one of two notarial acts, an acknowledgment or a proof, not both. A 2020 law briefly seemed to require a witness proof on recorded instruments, but that was rolled back, so a notarized acknowledgment alone is enough to record.
No. Under Indiana's statutory quitclaim short form (IC 32-21-1-15), an 'A.B. quitclaims to C.D.' deed passes only the interest the grantor holds and carries no warranty of title, so it cannot wipe out liens, mortgages, or other claims already on record. Indiana is a race-notice state (IC 32-21-4-1), meaning recording protects priority, not ownership. A title search and title insurance give the assurance a quitclaim withholds, which is why it suits transfers between parties who already trust each other.