Ohio transfer on death designation affidavit
A transfer on death designation affidavit lets you name who inherits your Ohio property without probate, while you keep full control, including the power to sell or mortgage it without anyone's signature. Here is exactly what Ohio requires, what it costs, and where to file it.
- Recording office
- County Recorder
- Witnesses
- Notary only
- Transfer tax
- None when recorded
- First-page margin
- 3″ top
- Recording fee
- ~$34 up to 2 pages
- E-recording
- Approved submitters
What a transfer on death designation affidavit does in Ohio
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 Ohio the governing statute is Ohio Rev. Code § 5302.22. Ohio replaced the transfer-on-death DEED with a transfer on death designation AFFIDAVIT in 2009. A TOD deed executed in Ohio today is ineffective. The affidavit is the correct instrument, and it is recorded by the current owner. It must be sworn: the owner, and the owner's spouse if married, swear to it before a notary, who completes a jurat. An acknowledgment is not enough (Ohio Rev. Code § 5302.22(D)).
The Ohio law behind this deed
Start with Ohio Rev. Code § 5302.22 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 designation affidavits specifically | Ohio Rev. Code § 5302.22 |
| Conveyances generally | Ohio Rev. Code § 5301.01 |
| Recording with the County Recorder | Ohio Rev. Code §§ 317.08, 317.114, 317.32 |
| Homestead and spousal consent | Ohio Rev. Code § 2103.02 (dower) |
| Transfer tax | Ohio Rev. Code §§ 319.54, 322.02 |
When Ohio homeowners use a transfer on death designation affidavit
- 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 Ohio requires on the deed
These are the execution and formatting rules county recorders enforce. Getting any of them wrong is the usual reason a deed comes back in the mail.
| Requirement | What Ohio says |
|---|---|
| Recording office | County Recorder |
| Notarization | Required, as a jurat. The owner, and the owner's spouse if married, swears to the affidavit before the notary (R.C. 5302.22(B), (D)); an acknowledgment is not enough. |
| Witnesses | None required. The affidavit is sworn before a notary instead. |
| 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 | Required. The deed must name who drafted it. |
| Prior deed reference | Required. The county auditor will not transfer a deed that does not cite the recorded instrument the grantor took title under (Ohio Rev. Code § 319.20), and a transfer on death designation affidavit must cite the recorded instrument that contains the legal description (Ohio Rev. Code § 5302.22(D)(1)). Copy the instrument number, or the volume and page, from your current recorded deed. |
| Page setup | 8.5 × 11 in, 3-inch clear space at the top of page one, 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. |
A spouse may have to sign even if they are not an owner
A married owner's spouse must sign to release dower, even when the spouse is not on the title (Ohio Rev. Code § 2103.02). If the spouse does not sign, the deed still records, but the spouse keeps a dower interest (a life estate in one third) that clouds the new owner's title, and title companies will insist on the release.
Ohio requires a reference to your prior deed
The county auditor will not transfer a deed that does not cite the recorded instrument the grantor took title under (Ohio Rev. Code § 319.20), and a transfer on death designation affidavit must cite the recorded instrument that contains the legal description (Ohio Rev. Code § 5302.22(D)(1)). Copy the instrument number, or the volume and page, from your current recorded deed.
How to complete and record it in Ohio
- Find your current deedYou need the legal description from it, word for word. If you can't find your copy, the County 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 Ohio deeds.
- Sign in front of a notaryBring photo ID, and your spouse if you are married. The notary gives you an oath, watches you sign, and completes the jurat (R.C. 5302.22(D)).
- Record it with the County 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, a beneficiary signs a sworn affidavit of confirmation, presents it with a certified copy of the death certificate to the county auditor, and then files it with the county recorder (R.C. 5302.222).
What it costs in Ohio
| Cost | Typical amount |
|---|---|
| Recording fee | About $34 for up to 2 pages and $8 for each page after that |
| Transfer tax | None when recorded |
| Notary | Ohio caps notary fees at $5 per notarial act, not per signature, and up to $30 for an online notarization (Ohio Rev. Code § 147.08). A notary may add a travel fee agreed in advance. |
| Deedly | $49, one time (launch price, regular $69) |
| Attorney (for comparison) | $150–$700 for the same statutory document |
No conveyance fee and no DTE 100 or DTE 100EX are due when you record the affidavit, because it transfers nothing until your death (R.C. 5302.23(B)(4)). Some county auditors, such as Montgomery's, want to stamp it "no transfer" before it goes to the recorder, so call your county auditor first.
Where to record it in Ohio
Ohio deeds are recorded with the County Recorder in the county where the property sits, not where you live. There are 88 counties in Ohio.
Many Ohio 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 Ohio: Franklin, Cuyahoga, Hamilton, Montgomery, Summit, Lucas, Butler, Stark, Lorain, Warren, Delaware. See all Ohio recording offices.
What a transfer on death designation affidavit 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 Ohio law that catch people out
- Ohio does not use transfer-on-death deeds anymore. Since December 2009 the correct instrument is a transfer on death designation AFFIDAVIT under R.C. 5302.22. A TOD deed signed in Ohio today does nothing.
- Ohio still has DOWER. A married owner's spouse must sign the deed to release dower rights even when the spouse's name is nowhere on the title. Without that signature the deed still records, but the spouse keeps a dower interest that clouds the title, and title companies will insist on the release.
- Ohio eliminated the old two-witness requirement in 2002; a notary alone is sufficient. Online forms still showing witness lines are outdated.
- The grantee, or the grantee's representative, files Form DTE 100 (or DTE 100EX for an exempt transfer) with the county auditor, who stamps the deed "transferred" or "transfer not necessary". The recorder will not record a deed without that stamp (R.C. 319.202, 317.22).
- Every Ohio deed must cite the recorded instrument the grantor took title under (its instrument number, or volume and page). The county auditor will not transfer a deed without it (R.C. 319.20).
- Ohio recognized tenancy by the entirety only for deeds recorded from February 9, 1972 through April 3, 1985. None can be created now. Use a survivorship tenancy under R.C. 5302.17 instead.
- In Cuyahoga and Summit counties there is no County Recorder. Deeds are recorded by the county Fiscal Office.
$49, one time. Your finished deed appears in full before you pay, with Ohio's witness rules, margins, and recording instructions already applied.
Common questions
No. Ohio 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 County 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 around $34 for up to 2 pages and $8 for each page after that. No conveyance fee and no DTE 100 or DTE 100EX are due when you record the affidavit, because it transfers nothing until your death (R.C. 5302.23(B)(4)). Some county auditors, such as Montgomery's, want to stamp it "no transfer" before it goes to the recorder, so call your county auditor first. Ohio's recording fee is set by state law, not by the county: $34 covers the first two pages, and each page after that is $8 (Ohio Rev. Code § 317.32). Counties that have adopted the document preservation surcharge add up to $5; Cuyahoga, for example, charges $39 for the first two pages. A document that does not meet Ohio's format rules costs $20 more (Ohio Rev. Code § 317.114).
No. Instead, the owner, and the owner's spouse if married, must swear to the affidavit before a notary, who completes a jurat (R.C. 5302.22(B), (D)). An acknowledgment is not enough.
With the County Recorder in the county where the property is located, not where you live, and not where the buyer lives. Ohio has 88 counties. Many offices in this state also accept e-recording, but usually only from approved submitters such as title companies.
Yes. You record a new transfer on death designation affidavit that revokes or changes the earlier one (R.C. 5302.23(B)(5)), or you sell the property. You don't need your beneficiary's permission for any of it.
Yes, for this property. On death the property passes to the beneficiaries who survive you, outside probate. A beneficiary then signs a sworn affidavit of confirmation, presents it with a certified copy of the death certificate to the county auditor, and files it with the county recorder (R.C. 5302.222). 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.
Often, yes. A married owner's spouse must sign to release dower, even when the spouse is not on the title (Ohio Rev. Code § 2103.02). If the spouse does not sign, the deed still records, but the spouse keeps a dower interest (a life estate in one third) that clouds the new owner's title, and title companies will insist on the release. That surprises people, because the spouse is not becoming an owner. They are releasing rights the law gives them automatically. Deedly adds a joinder block for the signature when it applies.
Keep reading
- Ohio quitclaim deedTransfers whatever interest you have in a property, with no promises about the title.
- Ohio general warranty deedTransfers ownership with the strongest title guarantees the law allows.
- Ohio special warranty deedTransfers ownership, but only guarantees the title for the period you owned it.
- Ohio life estate deedYou keep the right to live in the property for life; named remaindermen own it after you.
- All deed rules for OhioRecording offices, transfer tax, witness rules, and fees.
- Ohio 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.