New Hampshire special warranty deed
Here is what New Hampshire actually requires on a special warranty deed. The witness rules, the notary block, the margins, the forms that have to travel with it, and where to record it, plus what the deed does and does not do.
- Recording office
- Register of Deeds
- Witnesses
- Notary only
- Transfer tax
- $0.75 per $100
- First-page margin
- 3″ top
- Recording fee
- ~$12 first page
- E-recording
- Approved submitters
What a special warranty deed does in New Hampshire
A special warranty deed, also called a limited warranty deed or a covenant deed in some states and a grant deed in California, sits between a quitclaim and a general warranty deed. The grantor promises they did nothing during their own ownership to damage the title, and nothing more. Anything that happened before they bought the property is the buyer's risk. Estates, trustees, banks, and builders commonly use it.
The New Hampshire law behind this deed
Start with the warranty deed statute, N.H. Rev. Stat. § 477:27. A special warranty deed narrows its promise to the time the grantor owned the property. The table below lists the main statutes behind the rules on this page.
| What it governs | Citation |
|---|---|
| Warranty deeds (the form a special warranty deed narrows) | N.H. Rev. Stat. § 477:27 |
| Conveyances generally | N.H. Rev. Stat. §§ 477:1 and 477:3 |
| Recording with the Register of Deeds | N.H. Rev. Stat. §§ 477:3-a and 478:4-a |
| Homestead and spousal consent | N.H. Rev. Stat. §§ 480:3-a and 480:5-a |
| Transfer tax | N.H. Rev. Stat. § 78-B:1 |
When New Hampshire property owners use a special warranty deed
- Sell a property you inherited or hold as trustee
- Convey a property you have owned only briefly
- Transfer commercial or investment property
- Give a buyer more protection than a quitclaim without accepting unlimited exposure
What New Hampshire requires on the deed
These are the execution and formatting rules registers of deeds enforce. Getting any of them wrong is the usual reason a deed comes back in the mail.
| Requirement | What New Hampshire says |
|---|---|
| Recording office | Register of Deeds |
| 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 11pt. This is the profile Deedly applies. |
| Accompanying form | None. The Register of Deeds takes no tax form with the deed. |
| Exemption statement | Required on the face of an exempt deed, or the Register charges transfer tax (RSA 78-B:6). Deedly prints it when your answers show the exemption. |
| Forms filed after recording | Forms CD-57-P (buyer) and CD-57-S (seller), the Declarations of Consideration, and Form PA-34 (Inventory of Property Transfer), filed with the NH Department of Revenue Administration within 30 days after recording |
A spouse may have to sign even if they are not an owner
A married owner's spouse must sign and acknowledge a deed of the home to release the homestead right, even if the spouse is not on title (RSA 480:5-a). Without that signature the spouse keeps a right to live in the home, for life if the spouse outlives the owner (RSA 480:3-a). A deed to the owner's own revocable trust keeps the homestead right of the people who sign it unless it expressly releases it (RSA 480:9).
How to complete and record it in New Hampshire
- Find your current deedYou need the legal description from it, word for word. If you can't find your copy, the Register of Deeds 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 New Hampshire 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.
- Record it with the Register of DeedsFile 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.
- File the transfer tax forms after recordingWithin 30 days after the deed is recorded, the grantee files Form CD-57-P and the grantor files Form CD-57-S with the New Hampshire Department of Revenue Administration, online through Granite Tax Connect or by mail. They are required for every taxable transfer and every gift; most other exempt transfers need no declaration (RSA 78-B:10). The grantee also files Form PA-34 with the Department and gives a copy to the town or city assessor. None of these forms goes to the Register of Deeds, and a late form does not affect your title.
- Update insurance and tax recordsA change of ownership can affect your homeowner's policy, your homestead or senior exemption, and in some states the assessed value. Do this within a few weeks.
What it costs in New Hampshire
| Cost | Typical amount |
|---|---|
| Recording fee | About $12 for the first page and roughly $4 per additional page |
| Transfer tax | Real estate transfer tax: $0.75 per $100 (or part of $100) of the price from EACH party, buyer and seller, for a combined 1.5% |
| Notary | A New Hampshire notary may charge up to $10 for each notarial act, or $25 for an act performed for you remotely by video (RSA 455:11). |
| Deedly | $49, one time (launch price, regular $69) |
| Attorney (for comparison) | $150–$700 for the same statutory document |
New Hampshire charges a real estate transfer tax of $0.75 per $100 (or part of $100) of the price from EACH party, buyer and seller, for a combined 1.5%. By law the buyer and the seller each pay at that rate (RSA 78-B:4). You pay by buying tax stamps from the Register of Deeds when you record, and the Register collects both halves before recording the deed.
Exemptions that commonly apply to a transfer like this: gifts in which the recipient takes over no mortgage (RSA 78-B:2, IX), transfers between spouses under a final divorce or annulment decree (RSA 78-B:2, XIII), deeds that only correct an earlier deed (RSA 78-B:2, V), and transfer on death deeds made for no consideration (RSA 78-B:2, XXV). The Register of Deeds charges transfer tax on every deed unless the deed itself states why it is exempt (RSA 78-B:6); the forms are not enough. Deedly prints that statement when your answers show the exemption.
Where to record it in New Hampshire
New Hampshire deeds are recorded with the Register of Deeds in the county where the property sits, not where you live. There are 10 counties in New Hampshire.
Many New Hampshire 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 New Hampshire: Hillsborough, Rockingham, Merrimack, Strafford, Grafton, Cheshire. See all New Hampshire recording offices.
What a special warranty deed does NOT do
Being honest about the limits is more useful than a sales pitch. Every one of these catches somebody out.
- Defects that predate your ownership are not covered. The buyer bears that risk.
- It does not substitute for a title search or an owner's title insurance policy.
- It transfers ownership immediately and cannot be revoked.
- Some purchase contracts specifically require a general warranty deed; check yours before using this one.
Quirks of New Hampshire law that catch people out
- New Hampshire charges its transfer tax to BOTH parties (0.75% each, 1.5% total) which is unusual and catches people out.
- The Register of Deeds charges transfer tax on every deed unless the deed itself states why it is exempt (RSA 78-B:6). The form is not enough.
- Forms CD-57-P, CD-57-S and PA-34 must be filed with the Department of Revenue Administration within 30 days after recording, in addition to recording the deed.
- The register must refuse a deed whose property description does not name, in its first sentence, every town or city the land lies in (RSA 478:4-a). Use the town or city, not the post office name.
- A married owner's spouse must sign the deed of the home to release the homestead right, even if the spouse is not on title (RSA 480:5-a).
- New Hampshire has recognized transfer on death deeds since July 1, 2024 (RSA 563-D). One is void unless it is recorded within 60 days after it is signed and before the owner's death.
- New Hampshire does not recognize tenancy by the entirety. A deed to spouses "as tenants by the entirety" creates a joint tenancy with right of survivorship (RSA 477:18).
How to hold title in New Hampshire
When two or more people take title in New Hampshire and the deed says nothing more, the law presumes a tenancy in common, which means no automatic survivorship. If you want the survivor to take the whole property, the words have to be on the deed. Forms of co-ownership available in New Hampshire: joint tenancy with right of survivorship and tenancy in common.
Survivorship arises only when the deed says so: "as joint tenants with rights of survivorship", or "as tenants by the entirety", which New Hampshire reads as a joint tenancy (RSA 477:18).
$49, one time. Your finished deed appears in full before you pay, with New Hampshire's witness rules, margins, and recording instructions already applied.
Common questions
No. New Hampshire 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 Register of Deeds. 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 around $12 for the first page and roughly $4 per additional page. New Hampshire also charges real estate transfer tax of $0.75 per $100 (or part of $100) of the price from EACH party, buyer and seller, for a combined 1.5%, though whether a gift or family transfer is exempt depends on this state's exemptions, listed on this page. State law sets $10 for the first page and $4 for each additional page (RSA 478:17-g). A register may add a surcharge of up to $2 per document, but only in a county whose commissioners and county convention have approved it (RSA 478:17-j), so the fee is not set the same everywhere. When Deedly checked in September 2026, all ten registries' fee pages listed $12 for the first page. A $25 LCHIP surcharge on every deed is paid by the grantee (RSA 478:17-g, II). A two-page deed costs $41 in all where the $2 surcharge applies, and $2 less where it does not. Add return postage.
No. New Hampshire requires only that the grantor's signature be acknowledged before a notary public. A justice of the peace can take the acknowledgment instead of a notary public (RSA 477:3).
With the Register of Deeds in the county where the property is located, not where you live, and not where the buyer lives. New Hampshire has 10 counties. Many offices in this state also accept e-recording, but usually only from approved submitters such as title companies.
No, and this is the single most common misunderstanding about deeds. A deed changes who owns the property. The mortgage is a separate contract with the lender, and only a refinance or a written release from the lender removes a borrower. Someone can be off the deed and still fully liable on the loan.
Often, yes. A married owner's spouse must sign and acknowledge a deed of the home to release the homestead right, even if the spouse is not on title (RSA 480:5-a). Without that signature the spouse keeps a right to live in the home, for life if the spouse outlives the owner (RSA 480:3-a). A deed to the owner's own revocable trust keeps the homestead right of the people who sign it unless it expressly releases it (RSA 480:9). 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
- New Hampshire quitclaim deedTransfers whatever interest you have in a property, with no promises about the title.
- New Hampshire general warranty deedTransfers ownership with the strongest title guarantees the law allows.
- New Hampshire transfer on death deedNames who inherits your property, skips probate, and changes nothing while you're alive.
- New Hampshire life estate deedYou keep the right to live in the property for life; named remaindermen own it after you.
- All deed rules for New HampshireRecording offices, transfer tax, witness rules, and fees.
- New Hampshire 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.