Mississippi property deeds
Deed rules are state law, and Mississippi'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
- Chancery Clerk
- Witnesses
- Notary only
- Transfer tax
- None
- First-page margin
- 3″ top
- Recording fee
- ~$25 first page
- E-recording
- Generally available
Deeds Mississippi 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 |
| Transfer-on-death 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 |
Mississippi does not recognize lady bird deeds. Recording one here wouldn't achieve what you want.
How a deed has to be signed in Mississippi
Mississippi 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 | Both spouses must join to convey a homestead (Miss. Code Ann. § 89-1-29). |
Mississippi document formatting rules
Chancery clerks in Mississippi expect 8.5 × 11 inch paper with a 3-inch top margin on the first page and 1-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.
Mississippi transfer tax and recording fees
Mississippi has no state real estate transfer tax. Mississippi imposes no real estate transfer tax.
Recording fees run about $25 for the first page plus roughly $1 per additional page. Typical figure. Counties set their own fees. Confirm with your recorder before mailing.
How to hold title in Mississippi
- 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.
- Tenancy by the entirety. Married couples only, with automatic survivorship and, in most states that allow it, protection from one spouse's creditors.
Where to record a deed in Mississippi
Deeds are recorded with the Chancery Clerk in the county where the property is located. Mississippi has 82 counties. Most offices accept e-recording through a submitting service, which is usually same-day.
Hinds · Harrison · DeSoto · Rankin · Jackson · Madison. all Mississippi recording offices
Why deeds get rejected in Mississippi
- Mississippi records deeds with the Chancery Clerk, an office that also handles probate. Convenient when a transfer touches an estate.
- Mississippi adopted transfer-on-death deeds in 2020, making it one of the most recent states to do so.
- Mississippi has no real estate transfer tax.
- Both spouses must join to convey homestead property, even where only one holds title.
From $39. Every Mississippi 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 Chancery Clerk 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. Mississippi 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 $25 for the first page plus roughly $1 per additional page. Mississippi has no state transfer tax.
Yes. The statute is Miss. Code Ann. § 91-27-1 et seq. It must be recorded before the owner's death to be effective.
Keep reading
- Mississippi quitclaim deedTransfers whatever interest you have in a property, with no promises about the title.
- Mississippi general warranty deedTransfers ownership with the strongest title guarantees the law allows.
- Mississippi special warranty deedTransfers ownership, but only guarantees the title for the period you owned it.
- Mississippi transfer-on-death deedNames who inherits your property, skips probate, and changes nothing while you're alive.
- Mississippi 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.