In order to comply with national standards, Iowa has adopted Document Formatting Standards. Senate File 371, effective July 1, 2005, states that all documents presented for recording must meet certain requirements. Below are some of the basic guidelines.
Documents are taken for recording daily up until 4:00 p.m. Anything recieved after 3:00 p.m. will not be uploaded until the following business day. Documents can either be submitted over the counter or via online E-Submission.
For help filing or preparing legal documents, or finding a template for a specific form, we recommend contacting an attorney or title company. The Recorder's Office does not practice law and as such we are limited in our capacity to assist with the preparation of legal documents.
The Recorder's Office is happy to help search for documents but if you require a thorough title search, we suggest you reach out to a title company who specializes in these property record searches.
- Name, address and phone number of preparer
- Name of taxpayer and complete address
- Return address
- Title of document
- Grantor's name and grantee's name
- Legal description (if the space on the first page doesn't allow for the necessary information, the page where it is located must be noted)
On or after July 1, 2005, a document that does not conform to the document formatting standards shall not be recorded except upon payment of an additional recording fee of ten dollars per document or instrument.
In addition to the above, DEEDS require the following:
- Revenue tax affixed to represent the full sale price over $500.00. If exempt from revenue tax, exemption must be so stated on the face of the document. Exemptions are listed in Code of Iowa Chapter 428A.2.
- All deeds must be accompanied by a declaration of value form unless exempt (see above Chapter 428A.2). This applies also to any documents of conveyance; Contracts and assignments of contracts on Quit Claim Deeds. Certain documents are exempt from the Declaration of Value.
- Each Declaration of Value submitted to the Recorder must ALSO have a Groundwater Hazard Statement submitted with it or a disclaimer contained within the transfering document.( Code of Iowa Sec. 558.69)
- Groundwater Hazard Statements are exempt on all conveyances that are exempt of Declaration of Value.
- Groundwater Hazard Form
- Groundwater Hazard Statement Form - Attachment #1
The following documents are exempt from document formatting requirements:
- A document that was signed before July 1, 2005
- A military separation document
- A document that executed outside of the United States
- A certified copy of a document issued by a government agency, including a vital record
- A document where one of the original parties is deceased or otherwise incapacitated
- A document formatted to meet court requirements
- A federal tax lien
- A filing under the uniform commercial code, chapter 554
- A plat or survey or a drawing related to a plat or survey
| Type |
First Page |
Each Add'l Page |
| Affidavits (Non Transfer) |
$7.00 |
$5.00 |
| Assignments of Mortgage |
$7.00 |
$5.00 |
| Assignments of Contract |
$12.00 |
$5.00 |
| Change of Title |
$12.00 |
$5.00 |
| Contracts |
$12.00 |
$5.00 |
| Deeds |
$12.00 |
$5.00 |
| Leases |
$7.00 |
$5.00 |
| Mortgages |
$7.00 |
$5.00 |
| Plats/Surveys/Corner Cert |
$7.00 |
$5.00 |
| Releases |
$7.00 |
$5.00 |
| Trade Names |
$7.00 |
$5.00 |
Included in the $12.00 fee for Deeds, Change of Name, Condemnations and Contracts is a $5.00 transfer fee for each separate parcel of real estate involved. Add $5.00 to the first page fee for each additional parcel ($50.00 maximum fee for additional parcels).
A document that contains more than one transaction will be charged an additional $7.00 per transaction.
A page longer than 14 inches and any attached piece will be considered an additional page. (Exception of Surveys)
On or after July 1, 2005, a document that does not conform to the document formatting standards shall not be recorded except upon payment of an additional recording fee of $10.00 per document or instrument.
