Vermont Quitclaim Deed
A Vermont quitclaim deed (or quit claim deed) transfers your interest with no warranty. Notarize it and record with the town clerk. Attorney review available.
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 Vermont the person giving up the interest is the grantor and the person receiving it is the grantee. To be effective against anyone but the grantor, a Vermont deed must be signed by the grantor, acknowledged before a notary public, and recorded at length in the clerk's office of the town where the land lies (27 V.S.A. Section 341). Vermont keeps land records at the town level, not the county level. When you record, you also deliver a Vermont Property Transfer Tax Return and pay the Property Transfer Tax plus the Clean Water Surcharge. 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 (the person receiving it) 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 town clerk. Vermont keeps its land records at the town or city level, not the county level. A quitclaim deed is recorded at length in the clerk's office of the town where the land lies (27 V.S.A. Sections 341 and 342), and the recording fee is $15.00 per page (32 V.S.A. Section 1671).
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You must sign before a notary. To be recordable and effective against later parties, a Vermont quitclaim deed must be signed by the grantor and acknowledged (notarized) before a notary public (27 V.S.A. Section 341). Acknowledgment means the grantor confirms to the notary that the signature is genuine.
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No witnesses are required. Vermont's current execution statute (27 V.S.A. Section 341) calls only for the grantor's signature and a notary acknowledgment, so a notarized quitclaim deed is recordable without any subscribing witnesses.
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Pay the Property Transfer Tax and file the return. Vermont taxes transfers of title by deed under 32 V.S.A. Section 9602 (generally 1.25 percent of value; a principal residence is 0.5 percent on the first $200,000 and 1.25 percent above that), plus a 0.22 percent Clean Water Surcharge under Section 9602a. A Property Transfer Tax Return (Form PTT-172) is delivered to the town clerk with the deed (Section 9606).
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There is no Vermont quitclaim form to fill in. Vermont statutes set out how a deed must be executed (27 V.S.A. Section 341) but prescribe no statutory short-form quitclaim deed. A Vermont quitclaim uses standard remise, release, and quitclaim words, which convey only the grantor's interest with no warranty of title.
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Homestead property needs both spouses. If the grantor is married and the property is homestead property, the spouse must join in the deed's execution and acknowledgment (27 V.S.A. Section 141). 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 Vermont, 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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Vermont Requirements for Quitclaim Deed
To be effective against anyone but the grantor, a Vermont quitclaim deed must be signed by the grantor and acknowledged before a notary public (27 V.S.A. Section 341). The notary acknowledgment is what lets the town clerk record the deed; without it the conveyance is not effectual against later parties under 27 V.S.A. Section 342.
Vermont does not require witnesses to sign a deed. The current execution statute (27 V.S.A. Section 341) calls for the grantor's signature and a notary acknowledgment only, so a notarized quitclaim deed is recordable without any subscribing witnesses.
Record the signed, notarized deed with the clerk of the town where the land lies (27 V.S.A. Sections 341 and 342). Vermont keeps land records at the town or city level, not the county level, and the recording fee is $15.00 per page (32 V.S.A. Section 1671).
Vermont imposes a Property Transfer Tax on transfers of title by deed (32 V.S.A. Section 9602). The general rate is 1.25 percent of value; a principal residence is taxed at 0.5 percent of the first $200,000 and 1.25 percent of value above that. A separate Clean Water Surcharge of 0.22 percent also applies under 32 V.S.A. Section 9602a.
A Vermont Property Transfer Tax Return (Form PTT-172) must be delivered to the town clerk at the same time the deed is delivered for recording (32 V.S.A. Section 9606). The return reports the value transferred and computes the Property Transfer Tax and Clean Water Surcharge due.
Some quitclaim transfers are exempt from the Property Transfer Tax. Transfers between spouses, or between parent and child, without actual consideration are exempt under 32 V.S.A. Section 9603(5), and transfers under a court judgment dividing marital real estate in a divorce are exempt under Section 9603(19). You still file the return and claim the exemption.
If the grantor is married and the property is homestead property, the grantor cannot convey it unless the spouse joins in both the execution and acknowledgment of the deed (27 V.S.A. Section 141). A quitclaim of homestead property signed by only one married spouse may fail to convey the homestead interest.
Vermont statutes prescribe how a deed must be executed (27 V.S.A. Section 341) but do not provide a statutory short-form quitclaim deed. A Vermont quitclaim uses standard remise, release, and quitclaim language, which conveys only the grantor's interest and carries no warranty of title.
Frequently Asked Questions
A quitclaim deed is a deed that transfers whatever interest you have in Vermont 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. A Vermont warranty deed includes covenants promising 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 uses release-and-quitclaim language and includes no such covenants, so it conveys only whatever interest the grantor actually holds, with no warranty of title.
Yes. To be recorded and effective against later parties, a Vermont quitclaim deed must be signed by the grantor and acknowledged before a notary public (27 V.S.A. Section 341). Vermont does not require witnesses. Without the notary acknowledgment the town clerk will not record it, and it is not effectual against anyone but the grantor under Section 342.
You record it with the clerk of the town or city where the land lies. Vermont keeps land records at the town level, not the county level (27 V.S.A. Sections 341 and 342). The recording fee is $15.00 per page (32 V.S.A. Section 1671), and you deliver the Property Transfer Tax Return with the deed when you record.
Vermont charges a Property Transfer Tax under 32 V.S.A. Section 9602, generally 1.25 percent of value, or 0.5 percent on the first $200,000 for a principal residence and 1.25 percent above that, plus a 0.22 percent Clean Water Surcharge (Section 9602a). Transfers between spouses or under a divorce judgment can be exempt under Section 9603, but you still file the return.
No. In Vermont the deed is recorded in the clerk's office of the town where the land lies (27 V.S.A. Section 341), and recording passes your interest to the grantee but does nothing to the lender's lien. The mortgage is a separate contract, so if your name is on the note you stay liable even after signing your interest away. Getting off the loan takes a refinance or a written release from the lender.
Yes, and it is common. One spouse can quitclaim their interest to the other to carry out a divorce settlement. A transfer under a divorce judgment dividing marital real estate is exempt from the Property Transfer Tax under 32 V.S.A. Section 9603(19). If the property is homestead property, the spouse must still join in the deed (27 V.S.A. Section 141) unless the transfer is between the two spouses.
No. A quitclaim releases only whatever interest the grantor holds, with no covenants of title. Vermont has no statutory quitclaim form, so that no-warranty effect comes from the deed's release language rather than any promise about title. Recording at the town clerk's office makes the conveyance effectual against later claimants (27 V.S.A. Section 342), but it does not erase liens already attached or prove the chain of title. A title search and title insurance give the protection a quitclaim cannot.