Colorado property deeds
Deed rules are state law, and Colorado's differ from its neighbours in ways that decide whether your document records or comes back. Here is the whole picture: which deeds exist here, how they have to be signed, what the recorder wants on the page, and what it costs.
- Recording office
- County Clerk and Recorder
- Witnesses
- Notary only
- Transfer tax
- $0.01 per $100 of consideration
- First-page margin
- 1″ top
- Recording fee
- ~$13 first page
- E-recording
- Generally available
Deeds Colorado recognizes
| Deed | What it does | Available? |
|---|---|---|
| Quitclaim deed | Transfers whatever interest you have in a property, with no promises about the title. | Yes |
| General warranty deed | Transfers ownership with the strongest title guarantees the law allows. | Yes |
| Special warranty deed | Transfers ownership, but only guarantees the title for the period you owned it. | Yes |
| Beneficiary deed | Names who inherits your property, skips probate, and changes nothing while you're alive. | Yes |
| Lady bird deed | An enhanced life estate deed: you keep total control for life, and the property passes automatically at death. | No |
| Life estate deed | You keep the right to live in the property for life; named remaindermen own it after you. | Yes, less common |
| Gift deed | Transfers property to someone as an outright gift, for no payment. | Yes, less common |
Colorado does not recognize lady bird deeds. Recording one here wouldn't achieve what you want.
How a deed has to be signed in Colorado
Colorado requires the grantor's signature to be acknowledged before a notary public. No witnesses are required.
| Requirement | Rule |
|---|---|
| Notarization | Required for every signature |
| Witnesses | None |
| Preparer statement | Customary, not required |
| Grantee address on the deed | Required |
| Prior deed reference | Optional |
| Spousal joinder | Not generally required |
Colorado document formatting rules
County clerks and recorders in Colorado expect 8.5 × 11 inch paper with a 1-inch top margin on the first page and 0.5-inch margins elsewhere. Type must be at least 10 point. That top margin is the recorder's stamp area. Writing into it is the most common formatting rejection there is.
- Colorado requires a top margin of at least 1 inch on the first page and 0.5 inch elsewhere (C.R.S. § 30-10-406).
Colorado transfer tax and recording fees
Colorado charges Documentary fee at $0.01 per $100 of consideration (0.01%), only when consideration exceeds $500. Customarily paid by the grantee. A handful of Colorado municipalities. Aspen, Avon, Breckenridge, Crested Butte, Frisco, Gypsum, Minturn, Ophir, Snowmass Village, Telluride, Vail, and Winter Park. Impose their own real estate transfer tax that can reach 3%.
Common exemptions: transfers with consideration of $500 or less and gifts with no consideration.
Recording fees run about $13 for the first page plus roughly $5 per additional page. Typical figure. Counties set their own fees. Confirm with your recorder before mailing.
How to hold title in Colorado
- Sole ownership. One person owns everything.
- Tenancy in common. Separate, divisible shares with no survivorship. A deceased owner's share goes to their heirs.
- Joint tenancy with right of survivorship. Equal shares; the survivor takes the whole property automatically.
Where to record a deed in Colorado
Deeds are recorded with the County Clerk and Recorder in the county where the property is located. Colorado has 64 counties. Most offices accept e-recording through a submitting service, which is usually same-day.
El Paso · Denver · Arapahoe · Jefferson · Adams · Douglas · Larimer · Weld · Boulder. all Colorado recording offices
Why deeds get rejected in Colorado
- Colorado calls a transfer-on-death deed a beneficiary deed (C.R.S. § 15-15-401).
- Colorado's documentary fee is unusually small, one cent per $100, and does not apply at all when consideration is $500 or less, which covers most gifts and family transfers.
- Several Colorado resort municipalities impose their own real estate transfer tax of 1–3%. Check the town, not just the county.
- Colorado's statutory warranty deed form under C.R.S. § 38-30-113 carries full covenants in a short form.
From $39. Every Colorado rule above is applied automatically, and you read the finished document before you pay.
Common questions
You sign a deed, have it notarized, and record it with the County Clerk and Recorder in the county where the property sits. Which deed depends on what you're doing: a quitclaim for family transfers and adding or removing a name, a warranty deed for a sale, and a transfer-on-death deed for probate avoidance.
No. Colorado does not require an attorney to prepare or record a deed. Use one when ownership is disputed, when the owner has died and the estate has not been probated, when the estate is large enough to owe tax, or when Medicaid planning is involved.
About $13 for the first page plus roughly $5 per additional page. Colorado also charges documentary fee at $0.01 per $100 of consideration (0.01%), only when consideration exceeds $500.
Yes. The statute is C.R.S. § 15-15-401 et seq. Colorado calls it a beneficiary deed. It must be recorded before the owner's death to be effective.
Keep reading
- Colorado quitclaim deedTransfers whatever interest you have in a property, with no promises about the title.
- Colorado general warranty deedTransfers ownership with the strongest title guarantees the law allows.
- Colorado special warranty deedTransfers ownership, but only guarantees the title for the period you owned it.
- Colorado beneficiary deedNames who inherits your property, skips probate, and changes nothing while you're alive.
- Colorado recording officesWhere to file in each county, with fees and contact details.
- Compare all 51 jurisdictionsWitness rules, transfer taxes, and recording fees side by side.
Deedly is not a law firm
We provide self-help software and state-specific statutory 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.