Tennessee special warranty deed
Here is what Tennessee 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
- $0.37 per $100 of the consideration or the property's value
- First-page margin
- 3″ top
- Recording fee
- $12 up to 2 pages
- E-recording
- Professional filers
What a special warranty deed does in Tennessee
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 Tennessee law behind this deed
Tennessee has no section written specifically for special warranty 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 |
|---|---|
| Conveyances generally | Tenn. Code Ann. § 66-5-103 |
| Recording with the Register of Deeds | Tenn. Code Ann. § 66-24-101 |
| Homestead and spousal consent | Tenn. Code Ann. § 26-2-301 |
| Transfer tax | Tenn. Code Ann. § 67-4-409 |
When Tennessee homeowners 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 Tennessee 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 Tennessee 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 | Required. The deed must name who drafted it. |
| Prior deed reference | Required. Tennessee requires a derivation clause naming the deed, will, court decree or inheritance through which the grantor acquired title, with the book and page or instrument number of the recorded source (Tenn. Code Ann. § 66-24-110). |
| Page setup | 8.5 × 11 in, 3-inch clear space at the top of page one, 1-inch margins elsewhere, nothing under 10pt. This is the profile Deedly applies. |
| Also required | Tennessee requires a sworn oath of the consideration or value on the face of the deed, made by the grantee or the grantee's agent (Tenn. Code Ann. § 67-4-409(a)(1)(F)(i)). A transfer that is exempt from the tax needs no oath (§ 67-4-409(a)(1)(E)). Tennessee requires the name and address of the new owner and of the person responsible for paying the property taxes on the deed (Tenn. Code Ann. § 66-24-114). Deedly prints both on page one. Tennessee requires the assessor's map and parcel number on the face of the deed, or a sworn statement that it was requested from the assessor and not furnished promptly (Tenn. Code Ann. § 66-24-122). |
A spouse may have to sign even if they are not an owner
If you are married and the property is your home, have your spouse sign the deed and the acknowledgment too, even if only you are on the title. Tennessee's homestead right in a married couple's home cannot be given up without both spouses' consent (Tenn. Code Ann. § 26-2-301(b)).
Tennessee requires a reference to your prior deed
Tennessee requires a derivation clause naming the deed, will, court decree or inheritance through which the grantor acquired title, with the book and page or instrument number of the recorded source (Tenn. Code Ann. § 66-24-110).
How to complete and record it in Tennessee
- 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 Tennessee 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. Since July 1, 2025, Tennessee law lets only attorneys, banks and other lenders, title insurance companies and agents, and government bodies e-record (Tenn. Code Ann. § 47-10-118(d)). If you prepared the deed yourself, record it in person or by mail. Keep the stamped receipt. It fixes your priority date.
- 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 Tennessee
| Cost | Typical amount |
|---|---|
| Recording fee | $12 for up to 2 pages and $5 for each page after that |
| Transfer tax | Realty transfer tax: $0.37 per $100 of the consideration or the property's value, whichever is greater (a quitclaim deed: the consideration only) |
| Notary | Tennessee sets no maximum notary fee: a notary may charge a reasonable fee (Tenn. Code Ann. § 8-21-1201(a)). |
| Deedly | $49, one time (launch price, regular $69) |
| Attorney (for comparison) | $150–$700 for the same statutory document |
Tennessee charges a realty transfer tax of $0.37 per $100 of the consideration or the property's value, whichever is greater (a quitclaim deed: the consideration only).
Exemptions that commonly apply to a transfer like this: transfers between spouses that create or end a tenancy by the entirety, transfers between divorcing spouses under a divorce decree or property settlement, and transfers into your own (or your spouse's) revocable living trust, and from that trust back to you or your spouse. You have to claim the exemption. The recorder won't apply it for you.
Where to record it in Tennessee
Tennessee deeds are recorded with the Register of Deeds in the county where the property sits, not where you live. There are 95 counties in Tennessee.
Since July 1, 2025, Tennessee law lets only attorneys, banks and other lenders, title insurance companies and agents, and government bodies e-record (Tenn. Code Ann. § 47-10-118(d)). If you prepared the deed yourself, record it in person or by mail.
Recording offices we cover in Tennessee: Shelby, Davidson, Knox, Hamilton, Rutherford, Williamson, Montgomery, Sumner. See all Tennessee 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 Tennessee law that catch people out
- Tennessee deeds must include a DERIVATION CLAUSE: a reference to the deed, will or court decree the grantor took title under (or, for an inheritance, the last recorded instrument), with book and page or instrument number. A Tennessee deed without one gets rejected (Tenn. Code Ann. § 66-24-110).
- Tennessee also requires a sworn oath of the consideration or value on the face of the deed. The grantee or the grantee's agent swears it before a notary or the register. A transfer exempt from the tax states its exemption instead (Tenn. Code Ann. § 67-4-409(a)(1)(E), (F)).
- The deed must show the name and address of the new owner and of the person who receives the tax bills (Tenn. Code Ann. § 66-24-114), the assessor's map and parcel number (§ 66-24-122), and the name and address of whoever prepared it (§ 66-24-115). Registers refuse deeds missing any of them.
- Tennessee does not recognize transfer-on-death deeds.
- A conveyance to a married couple creates a tenancy by the entirety by default.
How to hold title in Tennessee
When two or more people take title in Tennessee 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 Tennessee: tenancy by the entirety (married couples only), joint tenancy with right of survivorship, and tenancy in common.
Married couples
A conveyance to a married couple in Tennessee creates a tenancy by the entirety by default.
$49, one time. Your finished deed appears in full before you pay, with Tennessee's witness rules, margins, and recording instructions already applied.
Common questions
No. Tennessee 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 $12 for up to 2 pages and $5 for each page after that. Tennessee also charges realty transfer tax of $0.37 per $100 of the consideration or the property's value, whichever is greater (a quitclaim deed: the consideration only), and it has no gift or family exemption. Set by state law, the same in every county (Tenn. Code Ann. § 8-21-1001): $12 covers a deed of up to two pages ($10 plus a $2 data-processing fee), then $5 for each page after the second. When transfer tax is paid, the register adds $1 for the tax receipt (Tenn. Code Ann. § 67-4-409(d)(3)).
No. Tennessee 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 Register of Deeds in the county where the property is located, not where you live, and not where the buyer lives. Tennessee has 95 counties. Since July 1, 2025, Tennessee law lets only attorneys, banks and other lenders, title insurance companies and agents, and government bodies e-record (Tenn. Code Ann. § 47-10-118(d)). If you prepared the deed yourself, record it in person or by mail.
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. If you are married and the property is your home, have your spouse sign the deed and the acknowledgment too, even if only you are on the title. Tennessee's homestead right in a married couple's home cannot be given up without both spouses' consent (Tenn. Code Ann. § 26-2-301(b)). 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
- Tennessee quitclaim deedTransfers whatever interest you have in a property, with no promises about the title.
- Tennessee general warranty deedTransfers ownership with the strongest title guarantees the law allows.
- Tennessee life estate deedYou keep the right to live in the property for life; named remaindermen own it after you.
- Tennessee quitclaim deed (gift)Transfers property to someone as an outright gift, for no payment.
- All deed rules for TennesseeRecording offices, transfer tax, witness rules, and fees.
- Tennessee 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.