Wyoming life estate deed
A life estate deed passes your Wyoming property to the people you name without probate, while you keep the right to live in it for life. Unlike a transfer-on-death deed, it cannot be undone once it is signed and delivered. Here is exactly what Wyoming requires, what it costs, and where to file it.
- Recording office
- County Clerk
- Witnesses
- Notary only
- Transfer tax
- None
- First-page margin
- 3″ top
- Recording fee
- $12 first page
- E-recording
- Approved submitters
What a life estate deed does in Wyoming
A traditional life estate deed splits ownership across time. You, the life tenant, keep the right to live in and use the property for the rest of your life. The remaindermen you name own everything after that, and their interest vests the moment the deed is delivered; recording protects it against later buyers and creditors. Because their interest is real and present, you can't sell, refinance, or undo the deed without their signatures. That permanence is the whole difference between this and a lady bird deed.
The Wyoming law behind this deed
Wyoming has no section written specifically for life estate deeds. The instrument runs on the general conveyancing and recording statutes below, which is why the requirements here look like those for any other deed in the state.
| What it governs | Citation |
|---|---|
| Execution and acknowledgment of deeds | Wyo. Stat. §§ 34-1-106, 34-1-113 |
| Recording with the County Clerk | Wyo. Stat. §§ 34-1-118, 34-1-119, 18-3-402 |
| Unrecorded deeds and later buyers | Wyo. Stat. § 34-1-120 |
| Homestead and spousal consent | Wyo. Stat. § 34-2-121 |
Less common in Wyoming
Life estate deeds are valid here but used less often than in other states. Read the limitations below carefully before choosing one.
When Wyoming property owners use a life estate deed
- Pass a home to children while reserving the right to live there for life
- Start the Medicaid look-back clock on a transfer (state rules vary)
- Avoid probate on the property with a simple, long-established instrument
- Provide for a surviving spouse or partner with the remainder going to your own children
What Wyoming requires on the deed
These are the execution and formatting rules county clerks enforce. Getting any of them wrong is the usual reason a deed comes back in the mail.
| Requirement | What Wyoming says |
|---|---|
| Recording office | County Clerk |
| Notarization | Required. Each signer must appear before the notary and acknowledge the signature. Signing in front of the notary is the safest practice. |
| Witnesses | None required. A notarial acknowledgment is enough. |
| Legal description | Required, copied exactly from the prior recorded deed. A street address is not sufficient. |
| Grantee's address | Must appear on the face of the deed. |
| Return address | Include a 'when recorded, return to' block so the original comes back to you. Deedly always prints one. |
| Preparer statement | Not required, but customary. |
| Prior deed reference | Not required, though it keeps the chain of title clean. |
| Page setup | 8.5 × 11 in, 3-inch clear space at the top of page one, 1-inch margins elsewhere, nothing under 12pt. This is the profile Deedly applies. |
| Accompanying form | Statement of Consideration (Wyo. Stat. § 34-1-142): a confidential form the grantee signs under oath and hands to the County Clerk with the deed |
| Timing | Takes effect when signed and delivered. Record it promptly: an unrecorded deed does not protect the people you named against a later buyer, lender, or creditor. |
In Wyoming your spouse must sign a deed of your home
In Wyoming the home an owner and family live in is a homestead without any filing (Wyo. Stat. §§ 1-20-101, 1-20-102). A deed of it must release homestead rights and be signed and acknowledged by the owner and the owner's spouse, even a spouse who is not on the title (Wyo. Stat. § 34-2-121). This does not apply when one spouse deeds the property directly to the other. On a life estate deed, list your spouse as a second grantor if you both want a life estate: a spouse who only joins in the deed keeps none.
How to complete and record it in Wyoming
- Find your current deedYou need the legal description from it, word for word. If you can't find your copy, the County Clerk can provide one, usually for a few dollars.
- Identify everyone by full legal nameNames must match the current deed and government ID exactly, middle names included. A mismatch creates a gap in the chain of title that shows up years later at closing.
- Complete the deedDeedly builds it with the wording, notary certificate, and 3-inch first-page margin used for Wyoming deeds.
- Sign in front of a notaryBring photo ID. Wait to sign until you are in front of the notary: you have to appear before the notary anyway, and signing there leaves no question about who signed.
- Have the grantee sign the Statement of ConsiderationThe County Clerk will not record a deed that transfers title without a Statement of Consideration, which the grantee (the person receiving the property) or the grantee's agent signs under oath. It goes to the clerk with the deed, and the clerk passes it to the county assessor. It is confidential and never becomes public record (Wyo. Stat. §§ 34-1-142, 34-1-143). For a gift, a transfer between spouses or between parent and child for a nominal amount, or a correction deed, you may leave out the price and terms, but the form still goes with the deed (§ 34-1-142(c)). Your filing packet explains what the form asks for.
- Record it with the County ClerkFile in the county where the property is located and pay the recording fee. Many offices in this state also accept e-recording, but usually only from approved submitters such as title companies. Keep the stamped receipt. It fixes your priority date.
- Tell the people you named where it isAt your death they record a certified death certificate, and in some states an affidavit, to show that your life estate has ended. Ask your insurer whether they should be added to the policy now.
What it costs in Wyoming
| Cost | Typical amount |
|---|---|
| Recording fee | $12 for the first page and $3 per additional page |
| Transfer tax | None in this state |
| Notary | A Wyoming notary may charge up to $10 per notarial act, or up to $10 for each signer when more than one person signs the same document, plus a travel or remote-technology fee only if you agree to it in advance (Wyo. Stat. § 32-3-126(b)). |
| Deedly | $49, one time (launch price, regular $69) |
| Attorney (for comparison) | $150–$700 for the same statutory document |
Wyoming imposes no state real estate transfer tax, so the recording fee is normally your only cost beyond notarization.
Where to record it in Wyoming
Wyoming deeds are recorded with the County Clerk in the county where the property sits, not where you live. There are 23 counties in Wyoming.
Many Wyoming recording offices accept e-recording through vendors such as Simplifile, CSC, or ePN. E-recording is generally open only to approved submitters such as title companies, attorneys, and lenders, so if you prepared the deed yourself, plan to record in person or by mail. Some offices accept filings from the public through those vendors; your county's website will say.
Recording offices we cover in Wyoming: Laramie, Natrona, Campbell, Sweetwater, Fremont, Albany. See all Wyoming recording offices.
What a life estate deed does NOT do
Being honest about the limits is more useful than a sales pitch. Every one of these catches somebody out.
- It is not revocable. Once recorded, you can't sell or mortgage the property without every remainderman signing.
- A remainderman's divorce, bankruptcy, or judgment creditor can attach their interest in your home while you're still living in it.
- Because you keep the right to live there for life, the full value is still counted in your estate for federal tax purposes (26 U.S.C. § 2036). That generally gives the remaindermen a stepped-up basis at your death, but it also means the deed does not shrink a taxable estate.
- It is usually treated as a divestment for Medicaid purposes. Get advice before using it for that purpose.
Quirks of Wyoming law that catch people out
- Wyoming Statutes Title 39 (Taxation and Revenue) has no real estate transfer tax.
- The County Clerk will not record a deed that transfers title unless it comes with a Statement of Consideration, a form the grantee (the person receiving the property) or the grantee's agent signs under oath. The clerk passes it to the county assessor. It is confidential and never becomes public record (Wyo. Stat. §§ 34-1-142, 34-1-143).
- A married owner's home is a homestead without any filing. A deed of it must state that it releases homestead rights and be signed and acknowledged by both spouses, even a spouse who is not on the title, unless one spouse deeds it directly to the other (Wyo. Stat. §§ 1-20-102, 34-2-121). Deedly prints the release on every Wyoming deed it prepares.
- Wyoming recognizes transfer on death deeds under its Nontestamentary Transfer of Real Property on Death Act (Wyo. Stat. §§ 2-18-101 to 2-18-106). It is not the uniform act, and its rules differ: its form asks the owner to choose what happens if a beneficiary dies first, and after the owner's death the beneficiaries must record an affidavit with a Department of Health certificate of clearance (Wyo. Stat. §§ 2-18-103(n), 2-18-104).
- Married couples can hold title as tenants by the entirety. A deed that names them as husband and wife or spouses, and does not say otherwise, makes them tenants by the entirety (Wyo. Stat. § 34-1-140).
$49, one time. Your finished deed appears in full before you pay, with Wyoming's witness rules, margins, and recording instructions already applied.
Common questions
No. Wyoming has no requirement that an attorney prepare a deed. What matters is the correct statutory language, an accurate legal description, proper notarization, and recording with the County Clerk. Deedly produces all of that for $49, versus roughly $150–$700 for an attorney to draft the same document. If ownership is disputed, the current owner has died without probate, or the transfer is tax-sensitive, use an attorney.
Expect $12 for the first page and $3 per additional page. Wyoming has no state real estate transfer tax, so the recording fee is normally the whole cost. Set by state law for every Wyoming county: $12 for the first page and $3 for each additional page (Wyo. Stat. § 18-3-402(a)(xvi)). A deed with more than five grantors and grantees of different surnames costs $1 more for each extra name.
No. Wyoming requires only that the grantor's signature be acknowledged before a notary public. Forms that show witness lines are usually generic templates borrowed from another state.
With the County Clerk in the county where the property is located, not where you live, and not where the buyer lives. Wyoming has 23 counties. Many offices in this state also accept e-recording, but usually only from approved submitters such as title companies.
No. Once a life estate deed is signed and delivered, the remaindermen hold a present interest and you can't sell, mortgage, or undo it without every one of them signing. If you want to keep control, look at a transfer-on-death deed instead.
Yes, for this property. On your death the property passes directly to the people you named, outside probate. They then record proof of your death with the County Clerk so the public record shows the change. It doesn't avoid probate for anything else you own, it doesn't clear the mortgage, and it doesn't protect the property from your creditors.
Often, yes. In Wyoming the home an owner and family live in is a homestead without any filing (Wyo. Stat. §§ 1-20-101, 1-20-102). A deed of it must release homestead rights and be signed and acknowledged by the owner and the owner's spouse, even a spouse who is not on the title (Wyo. Stat. § 34-2-121). This does not apply when one spouse deeds the property directly to the other. That surprises people, because the spouse is not becoming an owner. They are releasing rights the law gives them automatically. Deedly adds a joinder block for the signature when it applies.
Keep reading
- Wyoming quitclaim deedTransfers whatever interest you have in a property, with no promises about the title.
- Wyoming general warranty deedTransfers ownership with the strongest title guarantees the law allows.
- Wyoming special warranty deedTransfers ownership, but only guarantees the title for the period you owned it.
- Wyoming transfer-on-death deedNames who inherits your property, skips probate, and changes nothing while you're alive.
- All deed rules for WyomingRecording offices, transfer tax, witness rules, and fees.
- Wyoming recording officesWhere to file in each county.
Deedly is not a law firm
Its software and documents are not a substitute for the advice of an attorney. We provide self-help software and state-specific deed forms; you make your own decisions about your property. Using Deedly does not create an attorney-client relationship, and nothing here is legal advice. If your situation is complex or contested, talk to a licensed attorney in your state.