Minnesota Quitclaim Deed
A Minnesota quit claim deed transfers your interest with no warranty. Notarize it, then record with the county recorder or registrar of titles by county.
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 Minnesota the person giving up the interest is the grantor and the person receiving it is the grantee. Minnesota codifies a statutory quitclaim deed form at Minn. Stat. Section 507.07, which uses the words conveys and quitclaims and passes only the grantor's present interest. To record the deed you must sign it before a notary under Minn. Stat. Section 507.24; no witnesses are required. You then record it with the county recorder if the land is abstract, or file it with the registrar of titles if the land is registered Torrens property. Attorney review is available as an option before you sign.
Key Things to Know
- 1
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.
- 2
Minnesota has a statutory quitclaim form. Minn. Stat. Section 507.07 sets out a short quitclaim deed form using the words conveys and quitclaims. It transfers all the grantor's right, title, and interest in the property, but it does not pass after-acquired title (title the grantor gains later) unless the deed says so expressly.
- 3
Record it with the county recorder or the registrar of titles. Minnesota runs a dual land system. Abstract (unregistered) land is recorded with the county recorder, while registered Torrens land under Minn. Stat. chapter 508 is filed with the registrar of titles, who examines the deed and issues an updated certificate of title. Record in the county where the land lies (Minn. Stat. Section 507.24).
- 4
You must sign before a notary; no witnesses are required. To be recordable, a Minnesota deed must be executed and acknowledged before a notary, with original signatures of the parties and the notary (Minn. Stat. Section 507.24). Minnesota does not require attesting witnesses, and the statutory deed form has no witness line.
- 5
Pay the state deed tax and file a Certificate of Real Estate Value if needed. Minnesota imposes a state deed tax on the transfer (Minn. Stat. Section 287.21): the tax is $1.65 when the consideration is $3,000 or less, and .0033 of the net consideration when it exceeds $3,000. When consideration is over $3,000 you must also file a Certificate of Real Estate Value, filed electronically as an eCRV, before the deed can be recorded (Minn. Stat. Section 272.115).
- 6
Both spouses must sign to convey a homestead. If the property is the marital homestead, Minn. Stat. Section 507.02 requires both spouses to sign the deed even when only one spouse is on title. A homestead conveyance missing a spouse's signature is void, so this signature cannot be skipped. Narrow exceptions exist for a purchase-money mortgage and certain interspousal transfers.
- 7
Common uses include divorce, adding or removing a spouse, and transfers into a trust. Minnesota quitclaim deeds are used to carry out a divorce settlement, to put a home into a living trust, or to clear a possible claim on title. The deed must also meet Minnesota's recording format rules, including a three-inch blank space at the top of the first page (Minn. Stat. Section 507.093).
Key decisions before you file
Before you file a Quitclaim Deed in Minnesota, a few decisions shape the document: which option to choose and what each one means. The Quitclaim Deed guide walks through them.
Open the Quitclaim Deed guideCustomize your Quitclaim Deed Template with DocDraft
Minnesota Requirements for Quitclaim Deed
To record a Minnesota quitclaim deed it must be executed and acknowledged before a notary public or other officer authorized to take acknowledgments. Minn. Stat. Section 507.24 requires the recorded instrument to carry the original signatures of the parties and of the notary, so notarization is what makes the deed recordable.
Minnesota does not require attesting witnesses on a deed. Minn. Stat. Section 507.24 makes a deed recordable on execution plus a certified acknowledgment, and the statutory quitclaim form in Section 507.07 contains no witness line. A certified notarial acknowledgment, not witnesses, is the operative formality.
Minnesota runs a dual land system. Record the signed, notarized deed with the county recorder if the land is abstract (unregistered), or file it with the registrar of titles if the land is registered Torrens property under chapter 508, in the county where the land lies (Minn. Stat. Section 507.24). Recording protects the grantee against a later good-faith buyer under Minnesota's notice statute (Minn. Stat. Section 507.34).
Minnesota imposes a state deed tax on the transfer (Minn. Stat. Section 287.21). The tax is $1.65 when there is no consideration or the consideration is $3,000 or less, and .0033 of the net consideration when it exceeds $3,000. The tax is due when the deed is presented for recording. Hennepin and Ramsey counties may impose an additional deed tax.
When real estate is transferred for consideration over $3,000, Minn. Stat. Section 272.115 requires a Certificate of Real Estate Value to be filed with the county auditor when the deed is presented. It is filed electronically as an eCRV on the Department of Revenue system, and the county cannot record the deed until the eCRV is submitted or the transfer is exempt.
Minnesota codifies a statutory quitclaim deed form at Minn. Stat. Section 507.07 using the operative words conveys and quitclaims. It conveys all of the grantor's right, title, and interest and carries no covenants of warranty. It does not pass after-acquired title (title the grantor gains later) unless words expressing that intention are added to the deed.
If the property is the marital homestead, Minn. Stat. Section 507.02 requires both spouses to sign the deed even when only one spouse is on title. A homestead conveyance missing a spouse's signature is void, not merely voidable, so this signature cannot be skipped. Narrow exceptions apply, such as a purchase-money mortgage and certain conveyances between spouses.
A Minnesota deed must meet the recording format standards in Minn. Stat. Section 507.093: sheets no larger than 8.5 by 14 inches, black ink of at least 8-point type on white paper of at least 20-pound weight, a half-inch border on pages after the first, and a three-inch blank space at the top of the first page for filing information. Nonconforming documents may still be recorded on payment of an extra fee.
Frequently Asked Questions
A quitclaim deed is a deed that transfers whatever interest you have in Minnesota real estate to someone else, without any warranty that the title is good. It is often typed as a quit claim deed or quick claim deed. Minnesota codifies a statutory quitclaim form at Minn. Stat. Section 507.07 using the words conveys and quitclaims. It passes only the interest you actually hold, if any, and makes no promise that you own the property or that the title is free of other claims.
The difference is the promise about title. A Minnesota warranty deed 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 makes no such promise. Both forms appear at Minn. Stat. Section 507.07, but the quitclaim form carries no covenants of warranty; it conveys only the grantor's present right, title, and interest and does not even pass after-acquired title unless the deed says so.
Yes. To record a quitclaim deed in Minnesota you must sign it and have your signature acknowledged before a notary public (or another officer authorized to take acknowledgments). Minn. Stat. Section 507.24 requires the deed to be executed and acknowledged, with the original signatures of the parties and the notary, before the county recorder or registrar of titles will record it. No witnesses are required.
It depends on the type of land. Minnesota runs a dual system. If the property is abstract (unregistered) land, you record the deed with the county recorder in the county where the land lies. If it is registered Torrens land under Minn. Stat. chapter 508, you file it with the registrar of titles, who updates the certificate of title. Recording under Minnesota's notice statute (Minn. Stat. Section 507.34) also protects the grantee against a later good-faith buyer who records first.
You pay the recording office fee plus the state deed tax. Under Minn. Stat. Section 287.21 the deed tax is $1.65 when the consideration is $3,000 or less, and .0033 of the net consideration when it is more than $3,000. The tax is due when the deed is presented for recording. Hennepin and Ramsey counties may add an extra deed tax. When consideration exceeds $3,000 you must also file a Certificate of Real Estate Value (eCRV) first.
If the property is the marital homestead, yes. Minn. Stat. Section 507.02 requires both spouses to sign any conveyance of the homestead, even if only one spouse is named on the title. A homestead deed signed by only one spouse is void, not merely voidable. There are narrow exceptions, such as a purchase-money mortgage and certain conveyances between spouses, but for an ordinary quitclaim of a homestead both signatures are required.
No. Recording the deed with the county recorder, or the registrar of titles if the land is registered Torrens property, transfers your ownership interest, but it never reaches the lender's lien. The mortgage is a separate contract, so if your name is on the loan you stay liable even after you quitclaim the property away. To be released you need the lender to refinance the loan or sign a formal release. Ownership and the debt move independently.
No. Minnesota's statutory quitclaim form under Minn. Stat. Section 507.07 conveys and quitclaims only the grantor's present right, title, and interest, with no covenant against liens or encumbrances, so it cannot wipe out an existing mortgage or judgment lien. Because Minnesota is a notice state under Section 507.34, a title search and title insurance are what actually protect a buyer, not the deed. Use a quitclaim only where you already trust the grantor, not for an arm's length purchase.