Montana transfer-on-death deed
A transfer-on-death deed lets you name who inherits your Montana property without probate, while you keep full control, including the power to sell or mortgage it without anyone's signature. Here is exactly what Montana requires, what it costs, and where to file it.
- Recording office
- Clerk and Recorder
- Witnesses
- Notary only
- Transfer tax
- None
- First-page margin
- 3″ top
- Recording fee
- $20 first page
- E-recording
- Approved submitters
What a transfer-on-death deed does in Montana
A transfer-on-death deed (a beneficiary deed in Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado and Missouri) names the person who should receive your real estate when you die. You record it now, but it transfers nothing until death: you keep full ownership, you can sell or mortgage the property, and you can revoke the deed at any time without your beneficiary's consent. When you die, the property passes outside probate. Your beneficiaries then record the documents your state requires to show them as the owners; in a few states that filing has a deadline, or is what completes the transfer.
In Montana the governing statute is Mont. Code Ann. § 72-6-401 et seq.
The Montana law behind this deed
Start with Mont. Code Ann. § 72-6-401 et seq. if you want to read the statute's own language. The table below lists the main statutes behind the rules on this page.
| What it governs | Citation |
|---|---|
| Transfer-on-death deeds specifically | Mont. Code Ann. § 72-6-401 et seq. |
| Conveyances generally | Mont. Code Ann. § 70-20-101 |
| Recording with the Clerk and Recorder | Mont. Code Ann. §§ 70-21-201 to 70-21-213 (recording), 7-4-2636 and 7-4-2637 (format standards and fees) and 15-7-305 (Realty Transfer Certificate) |
When Montana property owners use a transfer-on-death deed
- Leave a house to your children without probate
- Keep real estate out of a will contest
- Get probate avoidance without paying for a full living trust
- Name a backup beneficiary in case your first choice dies first
- Revoke or change an earlier beneficiary designation
What Montana requires on the deed
These are the execution and formatting rules for Montana deeds. A deed must be acknowledged before it can be recorded (Mont. Code Ann. § 70-21-203), and the Clerk and Recorder will not accept a deed that transfers property now without a Realty Transfer Certificate (§ 15-7-305). A deed that misses the format rules is still recorded, for $10 more (§ 7-4-2637(2)).
| Requirement | What Montana says |
|---|---|
| Recording office | Clerk and Recorder |
| 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 | Not required, but customary. |
| Prior deed reference | Not required, though it keeps the chain of title clean. |
| Page setup | 8.5 × 11 in, a 3-inch space at the top of the first page (blank for the recording stamp, except for the return name and address in its upper left corner), 1-inch margins elsewhere, nothing under 10pt. This is the profile Deedly applies. |
| Accompanying form | None when you record it. |
| Timing | Must be recorded before the owner's death. Recording it afterwards has no effect. |
How to complete and record it in Montana
- Find your current deedYou need the legal description from it, word for word. If you can't find your copy, the Clerk and Recorder 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 Montana 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 Clerk and RecorderFile in the county where the property is located and pay the recording fee. Many offices in this state also accept e-recording, but usually only from approved submitters such as title companies. Keep the stamped receipt. It fixes your priority date.
- Tell your beneficiaries where it isAfter your death they record proof of it, such as a certified death certificate or an affidavit of death, with the Clerk and Recorder so the land records show them as the owners.
What it costs in Montana
| Cost | Typical amount |
|---|---|
| Recording fee | $20 for the first page and $10 per additional page |
| Transfer tax | None in this state |
| Notary | A Montana notary may charge no more than $10 for each acknowledgment, plus any travel or remote-notarization fee you agree to in advance (Mont. Code Ann. § 1-5-626). |
| Deedly | $49, one time (launch price, regular $69) |
| Attorney (for comparison) | $150–$700 for the same statutory document |
Montana has no transfer tax. No Realty Transfer Certificate is filed when a transfer on death deed is recorded. After the owner's death, the beneficiary files one with the Clerk and Recorder, with a copy of the recorded deed and a certified copy of the death certificate.
Where to record it in Montana
Montana deeds are recorded with the Clerk and Recorder in the county where the property sits, not where you live. There are 56 counties in Montana.
Many Montana recording offices accept e-recording through vendors such as Simplifile, CSC, or ePN. E-recording is generally open only to approved submitters such as title companies, attorneys, and lenders, so if you prepared the deed yourself, plan to record in person or by mail. Some offices accept filings from the public through those vendors; your county's website will say.
Recording offices we cover in Montana: Yellowstone, Gallatin, Missoula, Flathead, Cascade, Lewis and Clark. See all Montana recording offices.
What a transfer-on-death deed does NOT do
Being honest about the limits is more useful than a sales pitch. Every one of these catches somebody out.
- Only 34 states plus DC recognize it. Recording one in a state that does not accept it accomplishes nothing.
- It does not clear the mortgage. Your beneficiary takes the property subject to any loan, lien, or judgment against it.
- It doesn't protect the property from your creditors, and in many states it doesn't shield the property from Medicaid estate recovery.
- The beneficiary receives no ownership interest until you die. They cannot be added as a co-owner this way.
- If a beneficiary dies before you, what happens to their share depends on state law: in some states it passes to the other beneficiaries or to the beneficiary's descendants, in others it fails. Naming an alternate, where your state's form allows one, avoids the question.
Quirks of Montana law that catch people out
- A Realty Transfer Certificate must accompany every Montana deed that transfers property now, including gifts and other transfers with no price. Recorders will not accept such a deed without one. A transfer on death deed is the exception: no certificate is filed until the owner dies.
- Montana has no real estate transfer tax.
- Montana recognizes transfer-on-death deeds under its Uniform Real Property Transfer on Death Act.
- Montana's recording fee is set by state law: $20 for the first page and $10 for each additional page, plus $10 for a document that misses the state's format standards (Mont. Code Ann. § 7-4-2637).
- If your name has changed since you took title, the deed must also give the name on your current deed, for example "Jane Smith, who took title as Jane Doe" (Mont. Code Ann. § 70-20-109). Enter that name in the People step and Deedly prints it.
$49, one time. Your finished deed appears in full before you pay, with Montana's witness rules, margins, and recording instructions already applied.
Common questions
No. Montana 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 Clerk and Recorder. 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 $20 for the first page and $10 per additional page. Montana has no transfer tax. No Realty Transfer Certificate is filed when a transfer on death deed is recorded. After the owner's death, the beneficiary files one with the Clerk and Recorder, with a copy of the recorded deed and a certified copy of the death certificate. The recording fee is set by state law and is the same in every Montana county. A document that does not meet Montana's format standards costs $10 more (Mont. Code Ann. § 7-4-2637). From July 1, 2027 the Department of Revenue adjusts the fee for inflation every two years.
No. Montana 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 Clerk and Recorder in the county where the property is located, not where you live, and not where the buyer lives. Montana has 56 counties. Many offices in this state also accept e-recording, but usually only from approved submitters such as title companies.
Yes. Transfer-on-death deeds are revocable during your lifetime. You can record a revocation, record a new one naming different beneficiaries, or simply sell the property. You don't need your beneficiary's permission for any of it.
Yes, for this property. On your death the property passes directly to the people you named, outside probate. They then record proof of your death with the Clerk and Recorder so the public record shows the change. It doesn't avoid probate for anything else you own, it doesn't clear the mortgage, and it doesn't protect the property from your creditors.
Keep reading
- Montana quitclaim deedTransfers whatever interest you have in a property, with no promises about the title.
- Montana general warranty deedTransfers ownership with the strongest title guarantees the law allows.
- Montana special warranty deedTransfers ownership, but only guarantees the title for the period you owned it.
- Montana life estate deedYou keep the right to live in the property for life; named remaindermen own it after you.
- All deed rules for MontanaRecording offices, transfer tax, witness rules, and fees.
- Montana 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.