Wisconsin property deeds
Deed rules are state law, and Wisconsin'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
- Register of Deeds
- Witnesses
- Notary only
- Transfer tax
- $0.30 per $100 of value or fraction of $100
- First-page margin
- 3.5″ top
- Recording fee
- $30 per document
- E-recording
- Approved submitters
Deeds Wisconsin 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 designation | 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 |
Wisconsin does not recognize lady bird deeds, so recording one here may not do what you want.
How a deed has to be signed in Wisconsin
Wisconsin requires the grantor's signature to be acknowledged before a notary public. No witnesses are required. Instead of a notary's acknowledgment, a member in good standing of the State Bar of Wisconsin may authenticate the signatures (Wis. Stat. §§ 706.05(2)(b), 706.06(2)).
| 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 | Recommended |
| Prior deed reference | Optional |
| Spousal joinder | If the property is the homestead of a married grantor, both spouses must sign, even a spouse who is not on title, unless the deed is between the spouses (Wis. Stat. § 706.02(1)(f)). Wisconsin's standard deed forms also state whether the property is homestead property. No statute requires it, but title examiners look for it, so Deedly prints it. |
Wisconsin document formatting rules
A safe layout for Wisconsin is 8.5 × 11 inch paper with a 3.5-inch clear space at the top of the first page for the register of deeds' stamp, 0.5-inch margins elsewhere, and no type smaller than 10 point. That is the profile Deedly formats every Wisconsin document to. Writing into the recorder's stamp area is the most common formatting rejection there is.
- Wisconsin requires a blank space of at least 3 inches by 3 inches in the upper right corner of the first page, within the margins (a document without it may not be recorded), a top margin of 0.5 inch on every page, side and bottom margins of at least 0.25 inch, return information on the first page, the name of whoever drafted the document, white paper of at least 20-pound weight, and 8.5 × 11 or 8.5 × 14 paper (Wis. Stat. § 59.43(2m)). The statute sets no minimum type size; Deedly prints nothing smaller than 10 points.
- On a Wisconsin page one Deedly leaves the upper right corner blank and prints the drafter's name, the return address and, under it, the parcel identification number on the left within the top 3 inches, as Dane and Winnebago counties ask. The title and the rest of the document start below the corner.
Wisconsin transfer tax and recording fees
Wisconsin charges Real estate transfer fee at $0.30 per $100 of value or fraction of $100 ($3.00 per $1,000), imposed on the grantor (§ 77.22(1)).
Common exemptions: transfers between spouses (§ 77.25(8m)), transfers for nominal or no consideration between parent and child, stepparent and stepchild, parent and son- or daughter-in-law, or grandparent and grandchild (§ 77.25(8)), transfers into a trust, if a direct transfer from you to the trust's beneficiaries would itself be exempt (§ 77.25(16)), and transfers from a trustee to a beneficiary without actual consideration (§ 77.25(9)).
A form has to travel with the deed
Wisconsin requires Wisconsin Real Estate Transfer Return (RETR) with most recorded deeds, including gifts and other exempt transfers. Recorders reject packages that are missing it.
Recording fees run $30 per document. Set by state law, whatever the number of pages (Wis. Stat. § 59.43(2)(ag)).
See how Wisconsin's transfer tax and recording fee compare with other states.
How to hold title in Wisconsin
- 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.
- Marital property (Wis. Stat. § 766.60(1), (2)). Each spouse owns an undivided half (§ 766.31(3)), and a deceased spouse's half passes under their will or by intestacy.
- Survivorship marital property (§ 766.60(5)(a)), usually the best choice for married couples here: probate avoidance plus a full step-up in basis on the whole property at the first death. A home spouses take together, with no one else on title, is survivorship marital property unless the deed says otherwise (§ 766.605).
What the law presumes for married couples
Wisconsin is a marital property state (the IRS treats it as a community property state), the only Midwestern state where that is the default for married couples. All property of spouses is presumed to be marital property (Wis. Stat. § 766.31(2)). Property spouses take together is marital property, and a home they take together, with no one else on title, is survivorship marital property unless the deed says otherwise (Wis. Stat. §§ 700.18, 766.605).
Where to record a deed in Wisconsin
Deeds are recorded with the Register of Deeds in the county where the property is located. Wisconsin has 72 counties. Many offices accept e-recording, but usually only from approved submitters such as title companies, attorneys, and lenders.
Milwaukee · Dane · Waukesha · Brown · Racine · Outagamie · Winnebago · Kenosha · Washington. all Wisconsin recording offices
Why deeds get rejected in Wisconsin
- Before recording, complete Wisconsin's online Real Estate Transfer Return (RETR) at revenue.wi.gov. It must be filed electronically unless the Department of Revenue grants a hardship waiver (Wis. Stat. § 77.22(2)). Bring or mail the printed receipt with the deed and the fee. Every grantor, grantee and parcel on the deed must appear on the receipt, and the Register of Deeds writes the fee or exemption on the deed. A transfer on death designation needs no return (Wis. Stat. § 77.255).
- Leave a blank space of at least 3 by 3 inches in the upper right corner of page one, below a 0.5-inch top margin, and keep the top 0.5 inch of every page blank (Wis. Stat. § 59.43(2m)(a)3, 14). Deedly lays out every Wisconsin document this way.
- The document must show the name of whoever drafted it (Wis. Stat. § 59.43(2m)(a)16). Deedly prints it at the top of page one.
- The parcel identification number (tax key) is required in Milwaukee County and in counties that require it by ordinance (Wis. Stat. § 59.43(2m)(a)5, (7)). Copy it from your tax bill. Deedly prints a line for it under the return address.
From $29. Every Wisconsin 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 Register of Deeds 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. Wisconsin 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.
$30 per document. Wisconsin also charges real estate transfer fee at $0.30 per $100 of value or fraction of $100 ($3.00 per $1,000), imposed on the grantor (§ 77.22(1)).
Yes. The statute is Wis. Stat. § 705.15. Wisconsin calls it a transfer on death designation. It must be recorded before the owner's death to be effective.
Keep reading
- Wisconsin quitclaim deedTransfers whatever interest you have in a property, with no promises about the title.
- Wisconsin general warranty deedTransfers ownership with the strongest title guarantees the law allows.
- Wisconsin special warranty deedTransfers ownership, but only guarantees the title for the period you owned it.
- Wisconsin transfer on death designationNames who inherits your property, skips probate, and changes nothing while you're alive.
- Wisconsin 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.