FAQ

Many office supply stores, stationery stores, or business forms outlets have 'fill in the blank' forms available for nominal fee. These may be limited in variety, however, i.e. Quit Claim Deeds, Lien forms, simple Mortgage or Trust Deed forms. Caution must be taken to assure that the forms available from national chain firms meet Utah State law requirements for such documents. More complex forms such as Affidavits, Boundary Agreements, etc., are not available in a standard format. The office of County Recorder does not have blank forms available.

Commercially purchased forms prepared by patrons must meet all recording requirements before being submitted for recording. We recommend patrons seek professional assistance for such operations.

'Title' is ownership. There is no official form or certificate of title that can be traded or endorsed to a new owner, as with a vehicle title. Title is created by legal document duly signed, sealed, and delivered by legal holders of the estate, to a person, persons, or other legal entity. Once recorded, the legal document itself has no intrinsic value except as prima facie evidence that a conveyance was concluded. Its being recorded gives public notice of claim of ownership interest or 'title'. Official county records reflect title in real property created as a result of the last duly recorded and properly executed conveyance document.

Definitions

• "Tenancy" refers to the way in which two or more owners hold title to real property. Tenancy is created when a deed or other conveyance document between parties is recorded. The most common forms of tenancy are "Joint Tenancy" or "Tenants in common", although there are other less frequently used forms also. Each version has certain tax ramifications. We recommend our patrons seek competent legal and financial advice when considering a change in tenancy.
• "Joint Tenancy" creates a survivorship circumstance between owners of the property. When title to real property is held in joint tenancy and upon the death of one of the owners, the deceased party's interest becomes the interest of the surviving party, in the case of one other party, or is divided equally among other surviving parties, if more than one. It is most commonly used in the case of a husband/wife ownership, or between family members.
• "Tenants in common" creates an undivided interest in each of the Grantees, either in specific percentages or fractions, or in the absence of such declaration, in equal parts. In the event of the death of one of the parties, the deceased's interest becomes the property of the estate of the deceased. Utah Probate laws govern the distribution of such an interest.

The legal profession has been very active and creative in developing a variety of different Trust structures. Applying signatures to Trust Agreements may alter the legal status of personal holdings, but real property must be conveyed to a Trustee or Trustees of the Trust by legal document duly recorded in order for it to be properly identified in the tax rolls of the county as Trust property.

Real property held in trust is subject to the same requirements for real property taxation, transfer, or disposition as with any other real property. Questions regarding the status of real property held in trust should be directed to legal counsel.

Building permits are issued by the governing authority where the property is located, either in the municipalities, or through Davis County Planning and Zoning department. The proper execution, delivery and recording of deeds do not imply nor grant any specific right to any kind of permit for any particular purpose.

Any time real property is conveyed to either a municipality or the county, the deed of conveyance must contain the signatures and seals of the appropriate legislative authorities of the entity receiving the property, indicating their acceptance of the property (whether it's a purchase, trade, or gift). Real property cannot be conveyed to a non-taxed municipality or political subdivision (county) without such evidence of approval and acceptance.

We recommend that anyone filing a lien on real property for materials or labor be fully conversant with Utah lien laws governing such an action. The law establishes criteria under which liens may be filed, and specifically details circumstances under which liens are considered fraudulent or inappropriately filed. All forms presented for recording must meet the recording requirements established by Utah Code Annotated as Amended. See GENERAL RECORDING REQUIREMENTS. Recording of liens in the office of County Recorder does not validate any claims made under the lien, nor does it guarantee the payments of any sums claimed to be due under the lien. All enforcement measures are the responsibility of the party asserting the claim. CAUTION: There are rigorous penalties for anyone convicted of fraudulently or maliciously filing unfounded claims or liens against the property of another.

The combination of contiguous parcels for the convenience of receiving a single tax notice, or for other taxing purposes such as Greenbelt Application, occurs at the request from the property owner when a conveyance document such as a Quit Claim Deed is executed and duly recorded in the Office of County Recorder. The request for combination of parcels should be stated on the document, along with the legal descriptions to be combined. The parcels to be combined must meet certain criteria:

• The parcels must be contiguous to each other.
• They must have identical ownership and vesting.
• They must be located within the same county taxing unit.
• All owners must agree to such a combination.

All parcels must be current as to taxing status, as certified by the Office of County Treasurer.