Oklahoma Quitclaim Deed
An Oklahoma quitclaim deed (or quit claim deed) transfers your interest with no warranty. Oklahoma requires no witnesses; sign before a notary and file with the county clerk. Attorney review available.
Introduction
Oklahoma files deeds with the county clerk, not a register or recorder of deeds, and it is one of the states whose law expressly says no subscribing witness is necessary to a deed (16 O.S. Section 2). 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 Oklahoma the person giving up the interest is the grantor and the person receiving it is the grantee. Oklahoma has a statutory quitclaim form at 16 O.S. Section 41, built by taking the warranty-deed form in 16 O.S. Section 40 and swapping in the operative words do hereby quitclaim, grant, bargain, sell and convey while dropping and warrant the title to the same. To be recorded the deed must be signed by the grantor and acknowledged before a notary (16 O.S. Sections 4 and 26). You then file it with the county clerk of the county where the property sits, where the documentary stamp tax of $0.75 for each $500 of value over $100 is collected (68 O.S. Section 3201). Attorney review is available as an option before you sign.
Key Things to Know
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A quitclaim 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 quit claim deed is used mainly between people who trust each other.
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File it with the county clerk. Under 16 O.S. Section 15 an unrecorded conveyance is not valid against third persons, so the signed, acknowledged deed is filed with the county clerk of the county where the property sits, and from filing it is constructive notice to later purchasers, mortgagees, and creditors (16 O.S. Section 16). Oklahoma also allows electronic recording under its Uniform Real Property Electronic Recording Act (16 O.S. Section 28), and the document must meet the 19 O.S. Section 298 format rules, including a top margin of at least 2 inches and other margins of at least 1 inch.
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You must sign before a notary. To be received for record, an Oklahoma deed must be executed and acknowledged in substantial compliance with the law (16 O.S. Section 26). The grantor subscribes the deed (16 O.S. Section 4) and acknowledges that signature before a notary public, which is the operative execution formality.
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No subscribing witnesses are required. 16 O.S. Section 2 states that no subscribing witness shall be necessary to the validity of any deed, mortgage, contract, lease, bond, or other instrument relating to real estate, so notarial acknowledgment alone makes the deed recordable.
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Pay the documentary stamp tax. Oklahoma imposes a documentary stamp tax of $0.75 for each $500 of the consideration, or fractional part, when the value conveyed exceeds $100 (68 O.S. Section 3201). Certain transfers are exempt under 68 O.S. Section 3202, such as a deed between spouses without actual consideration; when you claim an exemption you note the reason on the face of the deed.
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Oklahoma has a statutory quitclaim form. 16 O.S. Section 41 builds the form from the warranty-deed form in 16 O.S. Section 40, substituting the operative words do hereby quitclaim, grant, bargain, sell and convey and omitting and warrant the title to the same. Under 16 O.S. Section 18 the deed conveys all the grantor's right, title, and interest, and nothing more.
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Both spouses must sign a homestead deed. Under 16 O.S. Section 4(A) a deed affecting the homestead is not valid unless subscribed by both husband and wife, if both are living and not divorced or legally separated, even if only one spouse holds title. Common quitclaim uses include divorce transfers and moving a home into a living trust.
Key decisions before you file
Before you file a Quitclaim Deed in Oklahoma, 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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Oklahoma Requirements for Quitclaim Deed
To be received for record, an Oklahoma deed must be executed and acknowledged in substantial compliance with the law (16 O.S. Section 26). The grantor signs the deed (16 O.S. Section 4) and acknowledges that signature before a notary public. An instrument not so acknowledged is not effective for recording purposes.
Oklahoma does not require subscribing witnesses for a deed. 16 O.S. Section 2 provides that no subscribing witness shall be necessary to the validity of any deed, mortgage, contract, lease, bond, or other instrument relating to real estate. Notarial acknowledgment, not witnesses, is what allows the deed to be recorded.
Record the signed, notarized deed with the county clerk of the county where the property is located. Under 16 O.S. Section 15 an unrecorded conveyance is not valid against third persons, and 16 O.S. Section 16 makes a recorded deed constructive notice to later purchasers, mortgagees, and creditors.
Oklahoma imposes a documentary stamp tax of $0.75 for each $500 of the consideration or value conveyed, or any fractional part, when the value exceeds $100 (68 O.S. Section 3201). The stamps are affixed at the county clerk's office, and the deed must leave space free of printing to accommodate them.
Some transfers are exempt from the documentary stamp tax under 68 O.S. Section 3202. These include a deed between spouses, or between parent and child, or persons related within the second degree, without actual consideration; a deed that secures a debt; a deed that corrects or confirms a prior deed without added consideration; and deeds to which the State of Oklahoma or the United States is a party.
Oklahoma provides a statutory quitclaim form at 16 O.S. Section 41, defined by reference to the warranty-deed form in 16 O.S. Section 40. It uses the words do hereby quitclaim, grant, bargain, sell and convey and omits the words and warrant the title to the same. Under 16 O.S. Section 18 the deed conveys all the grantor's right, title, and interest with no warranty.
Under 16 O.S. Section 4(A) a deed affecting the homestead is not valid unless subscribed by both husband and wife, if both are living and not divorced or legally separated, even when only one spouse holds title. A homestead quitclaim signed by one spouse alone may be invalid unless a limited statutory exception applies.
The deed must meet the recording format rules in 19 O.S. Section 298. Documents must be legible in dark ink, no larger than 8 1/2 by 14 inches, with a top margin of at least 2 inches and all other margins at least 1 inch, and must leave space free of printing for the documentary stamps and the county clerk's recording information. Each instrument must include the grantee's mailing address.
Frequently Asked Questions
A quitclaim deed is a deed that transfers whatever interest you have in Oklahoma real estate to someone else, without any warranty that the title is good. It is often typed as a quit claim deed. Under 16 O.S. Section 18 it conveys all the right, title, and interest the grantor has in the property, and nothing more. It makes no promise that you own the property or that the title is free of other claims.
The difference is the promise about title. An Oklahoma warranty deed uses the words grant, bargain, sell and convey and warrant the title to the same, so the grantor guarantees clear title and the grantee can sue if that is false. A quitclaim deed uses the statutory form at 16 O.S. Section 41, which omits the words and warrant the title to the same, so it conveys only whatever interest the grantor holds with no warranty.
Yes. To be received for record, an Oklahoma deed must be executed and acknowledged in substantial compliance with the law (16 O.S. Section 26). The grantor signs the deed and acknowledges that signature before a notary public. Without that acknowledgment the county clerk will not record the deed, and an unrecorded deed is not valid against third persons under 16 O.S. Section 15.
No. Oklahoma does not require subscribing witnesses for a deed. 16 O.S. Section 2 states that no subscribing witness shall be necessary to the validity of any deed, mortgage, contract, lease, bond, or other instrument relating to real estate. Execution is by the grantor's signature acknowledged before a notary public, so a notary alone is enough to make the deed recordable.
You record it with the county clerk of the county where the property is located. Under 16 O.S. Section 15 an unrecorded conveyance is not valid against third persons, and 16 O.S. Section 16 makes a recorded deed constructive notice to later buyers. The deed must meet the recording format rules in 19 O.S. Section 298, including margin and legibility standards and the grantee's mailing address.
Oklahoma charges a documentary stamp tax of $0.75 for each $500 of the consideration or value conveyed, or any fractional part, when the value exceeds $100 (68 O.S. Section 3201). The stamps are affixed at the county clerk's office. Some transfers are exempt under 68 O.S. Section 3202, including a deed between spouses or between parent and child without actual consideration.
Yes. Oklahoma has adopted the Uniform Real Property Electronic Recording Act (16 O.S. Section 28), which lets the county clerk accept and record deeds electronically, and 19 O.S. Section 298.1 supports county electronic recording systems. The deed still has to be signed by the grantor and acknowledged before a notary (16 O.S. Sections 4 and 26) and meet the format rules in 19 O.S. Section 298. Whether e-recording is offered depends on the county clerk where the property is located.
Yes. Under 19 O.S. Section 298 a deed must be legible in dark ink and no larger than 8 1/2 by 14 inches, with a top margin of at least 2 inches and all other margins at least 1 inch, and it must leave space free of printing for the documentary stamps and the county clerk's recording information. Each instrument must also include the grantee's mailing address. A document that does not conform may be recorded only on payment of an additional fee.