New Jersey property deeds
Deed rules are state law, and New Jersey's differ from its neighbors 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 (or Register of Deeds and Mortgages)
- Witnesses
- Notary only
- Transfer tax
- Graduated from 0.4% to 1.21% of the consideration
- First-page margin
- 3″ top
- Recording fee
- ~$45 first page
- E-recording
- Approved submitters
Deeds New Jersey 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. | No |
| 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 |
New Jersey does not recognize transfer-on-death deeds and lady bird deeds, so recording one here may not do what you want.
How a deed has to be signed in New Jersey
New Jersey requires the grantor's signature to be acknowledged before a notary public. No witnesses are required. A New Jersey attorney, a county clerk, a register of deeds and mortgages, or a surrogate (or their deputies) may take the acknowledgment instead of a notary (N.J.S.A. 46:14-6.1). An attorney who does replaces the words "notary public" in the certificate with their own title.
| Requirement | Rule |
|---|---|
| Notarization | Required. Each signer must appear before the notary and acknowledge the signature. |
| Witnesses | None |
| Preparer statement | Required |
| Grantee address on the deed | Required |
| Prior deed reference | Optional |
| Spousal joinder | If a married (or civil union) grantor is conveying the couple's principal residence, the other spouse should sign the deed, or a separate written release, to release the statutory right of joint possession (N.J.S.A. 3B:28-3). Otherwise the grantee takes subject to it. Property held as tenants by the entirety needs both spouses' written consent (N.J.S.A. 46:3-17.4). |
New Jersey document formatting rules
A safe layout for New Jersey is 8.5 × 11 inch paper with a 3-inch clear space at the top of the first page for the county clerk's stamp, 1-inch margins elsewhere, and no type smaller than 10 point. That is the profile Deedly formats every New Jersey document to. Writing into the recorder's stamp area is the most common formatting rejection there is.
- New Jersey's only statutory format rule is that the document be legibly printed on paper no larger than 8.5 × 14 inches (N.J.S.A. 46:26A-5(a)). There is no statutory margin or type-size rule. The recording prerequisites are about content: names printed beneath all signatures, the municipal tax map's lot and block number (preceded by "part of" if the lot has been subdivided, or a statement that none is assigned), the preparer's name, and the grantee's mailing address (N.J.S.A. § 46:26A-3). Deedly asks for the lot and block in the Property step.
New Jersey transfer tax and recording fees
New Jersey charges Realty transfer fee at Graduated from 0.4% to 1.21% of the consideration, paid by the grantor (seller), plus a Graduated Percent Fee of 1% to 3.5% of the entire consideration, also paid by the grantor, on sales over $1,000,000 of residential, residential farm, cooperative and Class 4A commercial property. The statute puts both fees on the grantor (N.J.S.A. 46:15-7, 46:15-7.2). The Graduated Percent Fee replaced the buyer-paid 1% 'mansion tax' for deeds submitted for recording from July 10, 2025. It is 1% of the entire consideration up to $2 million, 2% up to $2.5 million, 2.5% up to $3 million, 3% up to $3.5 million, and 3.5% above that, and every deed for more than $1,000,000 needs Form RTF-1EE (Affidavit of Consideration for Graduated Percent Fee), as does every commercial transfer. Consideration includes the unpaid balance of any mortgage the property stays subject to (N.J.S.A. 46:15-5(c)), so a gift of mortgaged property to anyone other than a spouse, civil union partner, parent or child pays the fee on that balance. A transfer to your own LLC or company has no exemption of its own: it is exempt only if the consideration, counting any mortgage, is under $100. The exemptions are in N.J.S.A. 46:15-10 and 46:15-10.1, and you claim one only on the sworn RTF-1 affidavit attached to the deed.
Common exemptions: transfers between spouses or civil union partners, or between parent and child (N.J.S.A. 46:15-10(j)), transfers between former spouses, but only if the deed is recorded within 90 days after the divorce decree (N.J.S.A. 46:15-10(p)), transfers for a consideration of less than $100, counting any mortgage balance the property stays subject to (N.J.S.A. 46:15-10(a)), A reduced rate when a seller who is a New Jersey resident and 62 or older, blind, or permanently and totally disabled sells the one- or two-family home they own and occupy, where every joint owner other than a spouse must also qualify (N.J.S.A. 46:15-10.1), and A reduced rate for low- and moderate-income housing (N.J.S.A. 46:15-10.1).
A form has to travel with the deed
New Jersey requires Form RTF-1 (Affidavit of Consideration for Use by Seller) whenever an exemption is claimed or the deed does not state the full consideration, and a seller's residency form for each seller (Form GIT/REP-3, or Form GIT/REP-1 for a nonresident seller who owes estimated tax) with most recorded deeds, including gifts and other exempt transfers. Recorders reject packages that are missing it.
Recording fees run about $45 for the first page and roughly $10 per additional page. The statute sets a base fee of $30 for the first page and $10 for each additional page (N.J.S.A. 22A:4-4.1). Add-on fees, a $10 abstract fee on every deed and, in most counties, a homelessness trust fund surcharge, make the total differ by county, so check your county's schedule. Bergen, Middlesex, Essex, Hudson, Camden and Ocean counties all charge $45 for a deed's first page. Add $20 if you do not attach a cover sheet (N.J.S.A. 46:26A-5(c)) and $6 for each name after the first five. Confirm with your county before mailing.
See how New Jersey's transfer tax and recording fee compare with other states.
How to hold title in New Jersey
- 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.
What the law presumes for married couples
A deed to two people that names them as spouses creates a tenancy by the entirety unless the deed expressly says tenancy in common or joint tenancy (N.J.S.A. 46:3-17.2, 46:3-17.3). The same applies to civil union partners (N.J.S.A. 37:1-31).
Where to record a deed in New Jersey
Deeds are recorded with the County Clerk (or Register of Deeds and Mortgages) in the county where the property is located. New Jersey has 21 counties. Many offices accept e-recording, but usually only from approved submitters such as title companies, attorneys, and lenders.
Bergen · Middlesex · Essex · Hudson · Monmouth · Ocean · Union · Passaic · Camden · Morris. all New Jersey recording offices
Why deeds get rejected in New Jersey
- New Jersey's realty transfer fee is graduated and can reach 1.21%. On residential sales over $1 million the seller also pays a Graduated Percent Fee of 1% to 3.5% of the whole price (the old buyer-paid 'mansion tax' ended July 10, 2025).
- Every deed needs a Gross Income Tax seller's form signed by each seller: Form GIT/REP-3 (Seller's Residency Certification/Exemption) or, for a nonresident seller who owes estimated tax, Form GIT/REP-1. The county will not record the deed without it, even for a gift (N.J.S.A. 54A:8-10(d)).
- An Affidavit of Consideration (RTF-1) must be attached whenever a full or partial exemption is claimed or the deed does not state the full consideration, and every deed for more than $1,000,000 also needs Form RTF-1EE (N.J.S.A. 46:15-6, 46:15-7.2).
- Consideration includes the unpaid balance of any mortgage the property stays subject to, so a gift of mortgaged property to anyone other than a spouse, civil union partner, parent or child owes the realty transfer fee on that balance (N.J.S.A. 46:15-5(c)).
- Every deed is recorded with the county's own cover sheet on top (N.J.S.A. 46:26A-5(b)). Without a cover sheet the county charges $20 more (N.J.S.A. 46:26A-5(c)), and Hudson and Camden counties say it is required. Deedly fills in the county's own cover sheet from your deed in Bergen, Camden, Essex, Hudson, Middlesex, Monmouth, Morris, Ocean, Passaic and Union counties and includes it with your documents. In the other 11 counties, download the form from the county clerk's website and fill it in yourself.
- A deed for new construction (a new building never occupied or used) must carry the words "NEW CONSTRUCTION" at the top of page one and the grantor's affidavit, RTF-1 section 6 (N.J.S.A. 46:15-6(c)). Deedly does not print that legend, so it is not the right tool for the first sale of a new building.
- New Jersey does not recognize transfer-on-death deeds.
- A deed to a married couple or civil union partners that names them as spouses creates a tenancy by the entirety unless it says otherwise.
From $29. Every New Jersey 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 (or Register of Deeds and Mortgages) 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 living trust for probate avoidance.
No. New Jersey 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 $45 for the first page and roughly $10 per additional page. New Jersey also charges realty transfer fee at Graduated from 0.4% to 1.21% of the consideration, paid by the grantor (seller), plus a Graduated Percent Fee of 1% to 3.5% of the entire consideration, also paid by the grantor, on sales over $1,000,000 of residential, residential farm, cooperative and Class 4A commercial property.
No. New Jersey is not among the 34 states plus DC that authorize a transfer-on-death deed. The usual alternatives here are a revocable living trust or survivorship titling.
Keep reading
- New Jersey quitclaim deedTransfers whatever interest you have in a property, with no promises about the title.
- New Jersey general warranty deedTransfers ownership with the strongest title guarantees the law allows.
- New Jersey special warranty deedTransfers ownership, but only guarantees the title for the period you owned it.
- New Jersey life estate deedYou keep the right to live in the property for life; named remaindermen own it after you.
- New Jersey 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
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.