What Is a Quitclaim Deed — in Plain Words

The words, in plain words

• Deed. The BLM guide defines a deed as a legal document that conveys an estate or interest in real property. It transfers ownership of the property from the former owner to the new owner.
• Grantor. The party giving the property. That is how the Los Angeles County Department of Consumer and Business Affairs page explains the word on a sample quitclaim deed, and the BLM guide uses the word the same way.
• Grantee. The party receiving the property.
• Interest. In this setting, a person’s ownership rights, or share of ownership rights, in the property.
• Title. The ownership of the property, as shown in the records.
• Cloud on title. The BLM guide defines this as an outstanding claim or encumbrance that, if valid, would affect or impair the title to a particular property. It also calls this “clouded title.”
• Encumbrance. The BLM guide defines this as an interest in real property, held by someone other than the present owner, that affects the title to the property.

What a quitclaim deed does

The Sacramento County Public Law Library guide, a California example, says a quitclaim deed is used when someone gives up — waives or disclaims — ownership rights in favor of another person. The grantor may or may not be on the current deed. In that guide’s words, the grantor is giving up their own rights, if any, but not promising anything else.

The Los Angeles County page, also a California example, looks at the words on a sample quitclaim deed. It says the conveyance language “quitclaims to” shows a reason to transfer interest in the property, and that a quitclaim transfers any interest, known or unknown. It also says a quitclaim deed differs from a grant deed in that way.

The BLM guide puts the result plainly: a person conveying property by a quitclaim deed may be conveying nothing or everything. If the grantor has an interest, that interest is what passes. If the grantor has no interest, there is no interest in that deed to pass.

What a quitclaim deed does not promise

The BLM guide says a quitclaim deed contains no warranty of title and in no way obligates the grantor to defend the title to the land. Its short definition says a quitclaim deed conveys a grantor’s complete interest or claim in certain real property, but neither warrants nor professes that the title is valid.

The California County Law Libraries guide for Alameda County, a California example, says it in a different way: the rights in the property may be potential rights, and no other legal claims about the property are being made by this deed.

That lack of a promise is the main point of this kind of deed. The deed transfers an interest. It does not, by itself, prove that the grantor owned the property, and it does not guarantee that the title is clear.

How a warranty deed is different, as the BLM guide explains it

This contrast is the one in the BLM federal training guide. The BLM guide says the two most commonly used types of property deeds are warranty deeds and quitclaim deeds.

• Warranty deed. In a warranty deed, the owner guarantees that they hold clear title to the property and have the right to convey it. The BLM guide says a warranty deed expressly guarantees the grantor’s good and marketable title to the property, and offers the best protection for the buyer.
• Warranty deed guarantees. The BLM guide says the guarantees in a warranty deed are called warranties of title, or covenants of title, and usually include: that the grantor has clear title to the land; that there are no encumbrances on the land except as disclosed in the deed; that the grantee will have quiet enjoyment of the property; and that the grantor will defend the title.
• Quitclaim deed. A quitclaim deed has no warranty of title like that, as described above. The BLM guide’s knowledge check states the point directly: quitclaim deeds do not provide the best protection.

California example: how a grant deed is different

This is California only, as the California county law library guides state it. The Sacramento County Public Law Library guide says California mainly uses two types of deeds: the “grant deed” and the “quitclaim deed.” It says a grant deed is used when a person who is on the current deed transfers ownership or adds a name to a deed, and the grantor or grantors promise that they currently own the property and that there are no hidden liens or mortgages.

The same Sacramento guide says that, in a warranty deed, the grantor promises to pay for any lawsuits or damages due to undisclosed ownership disputes, and that in California, title insurance usually covers such disputes. Do not treat the California grant deed description as the rule in other states. Other states use their own deed types and their own names.

Uses the sources name

The sources read for this page name these uses. This is a list of uses those sources describe. It is not advice to use a quitclaim deed for your own transfer.

• Clearing a possible claim. The BLM guide says a quitclaim deed is frequently used to acquire outstanding interests which may be clouding the title to a piece of property, or may be used when there is a question of whether the landowner has good and marketable title to the property. Its worked example describes a previous owner issuing a quitclaim deed to the United States in order to clear the title, after a title search found an old contract that might be a cloud on the title.
• Divorce, in the California examples. The Sacramento guide says a quitclaim deed is often used in divorces, when a spouse gives up any potential rights to real estate. The Alameda County guide lists, for a quitclaim: with a divorce, to transfer property entirely into one spouse’s name.
• Inheritance, in the California examples. The Sacramento guide says a quitclaim deed is often used in inheritance situations, when an heir gives up any potential rights to real estate. The Alameda County guide lists waiving inheritance rights as a quitclaim purpose.
• Giving up rights in property. Both California guides describe a quitclaim deed as a way a person gives up, waives, or disclaims ownership rights in favor of another person. The Alameda County guide lists waiving or giving up rights in property as a quitclaim purpose.

Signing and recording, as the sources describe it

Recording in general, as the BLM guide describes it. The BLM guide says: once the deed has been signed, it must be recorded at the local county courthouse or recorder’s office where the property is physically located, generally in the Recorder or Register of Deeds Office. By recording the deed in accordance with the law, all persons are considered on constructive notice of the contents of the deed, and thus are on notice of the change in property ownership. If the deed is not recorded, there is no legal presumption that persons are on notice of the change in ownership. The BLM guide also warns: “Recording statutes vary, so check your state laws for details.”

California example — the Sacramento steps. The Sacramento County Public Law Library guide says any time owners make a change to the title of real estate, they must record a deed with the County Recorder. In its step list, the grantor or grantors sign in front of a notary, and the new owners do not need to sign. A later step is to record the deed at the Recorder’s Office, together with a Preliminary Change of Ownership Report, which that guide says is required when property changes hands in that setting, to update the tax records.

California example — parts shown on a Los Angeles County sample. The Los Angeles County page lists parts of a sample quitclaim deed. It says the document is typically dated when it is actually signed by the grantor; the signature shown is the signature of the party giving the property, and the grantee does not have to sign; and a notary seal is the seal of the notary public or authorized official who verified the identity of the signing party. Those are descriptions of a sample deed in Los Angeles County, not a national signing rule.

States and counties differ on deed steps and forms. That is why this page routes a reader’s own transfer to a real estate attorney or the county recorder where the property is located, instead of giving steps for that reader’s own deed.

A question this page does not answer

The official sources read in full for this page did not state, in so many words, what a quitclaim deed does to a mortgage debt. So this page does not answer that question, and it does not present claims about mortgage debt that were found only in commercial pages or in search-result snippets. If a mortgage is part of your situation, that is a question for a real estate attorney, and for the lender named in your own loan papers.