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The County Clerk-Recorder is responsible for maintaining records for real property located in Santa Clara County.
Recording Fees
STANDARD FEES:
$25.00 for the first page (this fee includes the $10.00 Real Estate Fraud Prevention Fee per GC 27388)
+ $3.00 for each additional page
+ any applicable Additional Fees
EXCEPTIONS TO THE STANDARD FEE INCLUDE:
state, county, and municipal lien releases, maps, builder's contracts (filed)
preliminary 20 day notices (filed)
ADDITIONAL FEES:
----Combined Documents: Two or more documents incorporated into one physical document are recorded and charged as two or more separate documents; e.g.
----Substitution of Trustee AND Reconveyance, Deed of Trust AND Assignment of Rents AND Fixture Filing
----Fees: $15.00 for each additional document (not subject to Real Estate Instrument Fee)
Or $25.00 for each additional document subject to the Real Estate Instrument Fee as shown below
----Conformed Copy: For the return of a conformed copy...........................................$5.00
---- Real Estate Fraud Fee Per Instrument (Govt. Code 27388)...................................$10.00
---- Affordable Housing and Jobs Act Fee (Senate Bill 2) All documents except exempt...............$75.00
---- Lien Notice Fee (Involuntary liens)................................................ $4.00 for each named defendant or lienee
(husband and wife with a common address count as one)
---- Page Size Penalty: Documents with any pages that are smaller or larger than 8 1/2" by 11" (Over 14" long not accepted)
..................... $3.00 for each page of the document (not just the off-size pages)
---- Preliminary Change of Ownership (PCOR): Any document presented with an INCOMPLETE or MISSING PCOR report that it is required to have one by law.........$20.00
---- Survey Monument Preservation Fund: Grant deeds with a property description that refers to a portion of a lot created by a recorded Tract Map, a lot or parcel created by recording of a Survey or Parcel Map, U.S. Government Survey (Township and Range), Metes and Bounds, or street address.........................................$10.00
---- Previous Document Reference: Documents referring to more than one previously recorded document, if the reference requires indexing...................... $1.00 for each reference after the first
----Penalty Print: Documents containing printing which is spaced with more than 9 lines per vertical inch or more than 22 characters and spaces per horizontal inch, for not less than 3 inches in one sentence...................... $1.00 for each page containing penalty print
----Additional Indexing Fee: Documents requiring indexing of more than 10 names in order to give the required notice
................................ $1.00 for each 10 names after the first 10
----County Transfer Tax: Property transfers anywhere in the county
........................... 0.55 per $500.00 (computed on equity or full value of transfer)
----Conveyance Tax: Property transfers within the cities of San Jose, Mountain View, and Palo Alto
............................................................ $1.65 per $500.00 (computed on full value)
EXCEPTIONS TO STANDARD FEES
---- Government Lien Release Recording Fee: State, county, and municipal lien releases (Federal lien releases are subject to the standard recording fee.)........... $23.00 (includes REI)
----Map Filing Fee: Subdivision, parcel, survey, assessment and cemetery maps.......... $8.00 first page +$2.00 each additional page
----Filing Fee: Builder's Contracts................................................$15.00
---- Preliminary 20-day Notice Fee: Preliminary 20-day notices (Notices are only filed for private work)..............................................................$50.00
----UCC Filing Fee: Uniform Commercial Code Fillings................................................. $20.00 for 1-2 pages - $30.00 for 3 or more pages (includes REI)
HOW TO CALCULATE FEES FOR DOCUMENTS SUBJECT TO THE STANDARD FEES
* Calculate the standard fee of $25.00 (this fee includes the $10.00 Real Estate Fraud Prevention Fee per GC 27388) for the first page and $3.00 for each additional fee.
* Review the Additional Fees to determine which additional fees and taxes apply.
* Add the amount for each and every applicable additional fee to the standard fee.
For example, you are recording a 2-page grant deed. You determine that it is subject to the Survey Monument Preservation Fund and that it is subject to county transfer tax of $30.25 and San Jose city conveyance tax of $90.75. The pricing would be:
Standard fee for 2 pages:............................................$25.00
SMPF fee:......................................................................$10.00
County Transfer Tax: ...................................................$30.25
San Jose Conveyance Tax:..........................................$90.75
Total owed:....................................................................$149.00
If you record a document in person, the Clerk-Recorder's Office will compute all fees for you. If you record by mail and are unsure of the total amount owed, you may send a check with a not to exceed amount (NTE $) amount on the memo line. The Clerk-Recorder's Office will enter the correct amount owed and process the payment.
If you wish to record a document by mail, mail your document and payment to this address:
Clerk-Recorder's Office
110 West Tasman Drive
San Jose, CA 95134
ATTN: Recording-First floor
County recording fees are subject to change without notice. For the most current fees and further information, contact the local recorder directly.
On January 1, 2018, California Senate Bill 2, a.k.a., the "Building Homes and Jobs Act," goes into effect and may increase recording fees for real estate instruments. The fee will address homelessness and housing shortages, and help to increase the rate of home ownership within the State by creating a Building Homes and Jobs Trust Fund to which the additional fee will be remitted.
Upon taking effect, the recorder's office will impose a fee of $75.00 to be paid when recording every real estate instrument, paper, or notice required or permitted by law to be recorded, per each single transaction per single parcel of real property, not to exceed $225.00.
Transfers subject to the documentary transfer tax as defined in Section 11911 of the Revenue and Taxation Code or on any real estate instrument, paper, or notice recorded in connection with a transfer of real property that is a residential dwelling to an owner-occupier are exempt from this fee.
If you have any questions about how the Building Homes and Jobs Act affects your recording fees, please speak with a clerk with the Recorder's Office or a licensed attorney within the state.
Document Formatting Requirements
In order for a real estate deed document to be recorded, the document must:
Be a document that is authorized or required by law to be recorded.
Meet statutory requirements for that document.
Have original signatures or be a certified copy from the court or other government agency.
Have a 2 1/2" top margin on the first page.
Contain the name and return address in the upper left corner of the first page (or cover page).
List the title (or titles) of your document on the first page.
Not have any page with dimensions larger than 8 1/2" by 14".
Note that the standard size for a recorded page is 8 1/2" by 11". Any page that is not standard size (and still does not exceed the 8 1/2" by 14" maximum) triggers a page size penalty, which is applied to ALL pages of the document. Any page that is larger than 8 1/2" by 14" is NOT accepted at all.
By recording a real estate deed document, the document becomes part of the public records of the Santa Clara County Recorder. Many types of documents are recorded to provide the public with notice of chain of title or other interest in real property. You may only record documents that are authorized or required by law to be recorded.