Recording Services

Documents must have the name and address of the person the original document will be returned to.

All deeds and deeds of trust must have the name of the drafter on the front page of the document. All conveyances of land must have the tax ID number and grantee address on the front page. The tax ID number can be obtained from the Land Records section of the New Hanover County Tax Department. Please call the Tax Department at 910-798-7300 for tax ID numbers. Check the fee schedule page for recording fees and excise tax information.

All instruments presented for registration on paper must meet all of the following requirements:

  • Printed on paper eight and one-half by eleven inches and eight and one-half by fourteen inches.
  • Have a blank margin of three inches at the top of the first page and a blank margin of one-half inches on the remaining sides of the first page and on all sides of subsequent pages.
  • Typed or printed in black on white paper in a legible font.
  • A font size no smaller than 9 points will be considered legible. Blanks in an instrument may be completed in pen. Corrections to an instrument may be made in pen using black ink only.
  • Text must be typed or printed on one side of a page only.
  • State the type of instrument at the top of the first page, but not in the blank margin.

If an instrument does not meet these requirements, the Register of Deeds will register the instrument after collecting a fee of $25.00 for nonstandard documents as required by GS 161-10(a)(19), in addition to all other applicable recording fees.

Exemptions

The following are exempt from the above requirements:

  • Cancellation of deeds of trust or mortgages (all forms), and Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) filings.

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