Virginia general warranty deed
Here is what Virginia actually requires on a general warranty deed. The witness rules, the notary block, the margins, the forms that have to travel with it, and where to record it, plus what the deed does and does not do.
- Recording office
- Clerk of the Circuit Court
- Witnesses
- Notary only
- Transfer tax
- $0.25 per $100
- First-page margin
- 3″ top
- Recording fee
- ~$35 per document
- E-recording
- Approved submitters
What a general warranty deed does in Virginia
A general warranty deed transfers ownership and adds the full set of title covenants: the grantor promises they own the property, have the right to sell it, that it is free of undisclosed encumbrances, and that they will defend the title against any claim, including claims that arose long before they owned it. It is the standard instrument for an arm's-length sale between private parties.
The Virginia law behind this deed
Start with Va. Code §§ 55.1-354 to 55.1-356 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 |
|---|---|
| General warranty deeds specifically | Va. Code §§ 55.1-354 to 55.1-356 |
| Conveyances generally | Va. Code § 55.1-300 |
| Recording with the Clerk of the Circuit Court | Va. Code §§ 17.1-223, 17.1-227.1, 17.1-252, 55.1-600 to 55.1-606 |
| Transfer tax | Va. Code §§ 58.1-801, 58.1-802, 58.1-814 |
When Virginia homeowners use a general warranty deed
- Sell a property directly to a buyer without an agent
- Transfer a property where the buyer expects full title protection
- Satisfy a purchase contract that calls for a warranty deed
- Convey property where a title company requires warranty covenants
What Virginia requires on the deed
These are the execution and formatting rules circuit court clerks enforce. Getting any of them wrong is the usual reason a deed comes back in the mail.
| Requirement | What Virginia says |
|---|---|
| Recording office | Clerk of the Circuit Court |
| 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 | Required. The deed must name who drafted it. |
| Prior deed reference | Required. Virginia clerks and title examiners expect a deed to recite the instrument the grantor took title under (deed book and page, or instrument number), and the Virginia Land Record Cover Sheet (Form CC-1570) asks for it. A missing or wrong reference is a common reason clerks return deeds. |
| 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. |
| Also required | A Virginia Land Record Cover Sheet (Form CC-1570, or your clerk's own version, such as Fairfax's barcoded online sheet), filled in and placed on top of the deed. Fairfax and Chesterfield refuse a paper deed without one, and every clerk must accept one (Va. Code § 17.1-227.1). Use one everywhere: with it, a clerk cannot turn the deed away for the first-page indexing items in Va. Code § 17.1-223(A), such as each surname in capital letters. The sheet asks for each grantor and grantee, the consideration and actual value, the Code section of any recordation tax exemption, the tax map or parcel number, the prior deed's book and page or instrument number, and a return address. |
Virginia requires a reference to your prior deed
Virginia clerks and title examiners expect a deed to recite the instrument the grantor took title under (deed book and page, or instrument number), and the Virginia Land Record Cover Sheet (Form CC-1570) asks for it. A missing or wrong reference is a common reason clerks return deeds.
How to complete and record it in Virginia
- Find your current deedYou need the legal description from it, word for word. If you can't find your copy, the Clerk of the Circuit Court 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 Virginia 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 of the Circuit CourtFile 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.
- Update insurance and tax recordsA change of ownership can affect your homeowner's policy, your homestead or senior exemption, and in some states the assessed value. Do this within a few weeks.
What it costs in Virginia
| Cost | Typical amount |
|---|---|
| Recording fee | About $35 per document |
| Transfer tax | Recordation tax and grantor's tax: $0.25 per $100 (or part of $100) of the price or the assessed value, whichever is greater, in state recordation tax (§ 58.1-801), plus a local recordation tax of one-third of that where the city or county imposes it (§ 58.1-814); on a sale the grantor also pays a grantor's tax of $0.50 per $500 (§ 58.1-802) and a regional fee of $0.20 per $100 in Northern Virginia or $0.06 per $100 in Hampton Roads (§§ 58.1-802.3 to 58.1-802.5) |
| Notary | A Virginia notary may charge up to $10 for an acknowledgment on paper and up to $25 for an electronic one, such as a remote online notarization, plus reasonable travel costs if you agree to them (Va. Code § 47.1-19). |
| Deedly | $49, one time (launch price, regular $69) |
| Attorney (for comparison) | $150–$700 for the same statutory document |
Virginia charges a recordation tax and grantor's tax of $0.25 per $100 (or part of $100) of the price or the assessed value, whichever is greater, in state recordation tax (§ 58.1-801), plus a local recordation tax of one-third of that where the city or county imposes it (§ 58.1-814); on a sale the grantor also pays a grantor's tax of $0.50 per $500 (§ 58.1-802) and a regional fee of $0.20 per $100 in Northern Virginia or $0.06 per $100 in Hampton Roads (§§ 58.1-802.3 to 58.1-802.5).
Exemptions that commonly apply to a transfer like this: deeds of gift and quitclaim deeds without consideration, when nothing is paid and the deed says so (§ 58.1-811(D)), deeds in which spouses are the only parties, when tax was paid on the original deed (§ 58.1-810(3)), deeds under a divorce or separation decree or agreement (§ 58.1-811(A)(14)), deeds into your own revocable trust when you are its beneficiary and nothing is paid (§ 58.1-811(A)(11)), deeds of distribution out of a trust or estate, stated as such on page one (§ 58.1-811(K)), deeds of correction or confirmation of a deed that was taxed (§ 58.1-810(1), (2)), and transfer-on-death deeds and their revocations, when nothing is paid (§ 58.1-811(J)). You have to claim the exemption. The recorder won't apply it for you.
Where to record it in Virginia
Virginia deeds are recorded with the Clerk of the Circuit Court in the county where the property sits, not where you live. There are 95 counties in Virginia.
Many Virginia 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 Virginia: Fairfax, Prince William, Virginia Beach, Loudoun, Chesterfield, Henrico, Chesapeake, Arlington, Norfolk, Richmond City, Alexandria. See all Virginia recording offices.
What a general warranty deed does NOT do
Being honest about the limits is more useful than a sales pitch. Every one of these catches somebody out.
- The covenants only bind the grantor personally. If they have no assets, a covenant claim may be worth little.
- It does not replace title insurance or a title search. It gives you a claim after the fact, not clean title today.
- It does not avoid probate and cannot be revoked once delivered and recorded.
- Signing one when you don't actually know the property's history exposes you to real liability. Where that is a concern, a special warranty deed is the safer instrument.
Quirks of Virginia law that catch people out
- Virginia clerks and title examiners expect a deed to recite the instrument the grantor took title under, with the deed book and page or instrument number. A missing or wrong reference is a common reason clerks return deeds.
- Virginia has 95 counties and 38 independent cities, served by 120 circuit court clerks. Some cities record with a neighboring county's clerk: the City of Fairfax with the Fairfax Circuit Court, and Manassas and Manassas Park with the Prince William Circuit Court. A mailing address can mislead: much of "Alexandria" is in Fairfax County. Check the tax assessment to see which county or city the property is in, then record there.
- Fairfax, Chesterfield and other clerks refuse a paper deed without a Virginia Land Record Cover Sheet (Form CC-1570) on top.
- A deed that claims a recordation tax exemption must state the Code section on its face (Va. Code § 17.1-223(A)). Without it, the clerk taxes the deed on the greater of the price and the assessed value.
- Virginia recognizes transfer-on-death deeds under its Uniform Real Property Transfer on Death Act.
- Virginia allows tenancy by the entirety to be preserved inside a joint revocable trust. Unusual and valuable for asset protection.
How to hold title in Virginia
When two or more people take title in Virginia and the deed says nothing more, the law presumes a tenancy in common, which means no automatic survivorship. If you want the survivor to take the whole property, the words have to be on the deed. Forms of co-ownership available in Virginia: tenancy by the entirety (married couples only), joint tenancy with right of survivorship, and tenancy in common.
Married couples
Virginia allows tenancy by the entirety for married couples, and it can be held in a joint revocable trust while preserving creditor protection.
$49, one time. Your finished deed appears in full before you pay, with Virginia's witness rules, margins, and recording instructions already applied.
Common questions
No. Virginia 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 of the Circuit Court. 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 $35 per document. Virginia also charges recordation tax and grantor's tax of $0.25 per $100 (or part of $100) of the price or the assessed value, whichever is greater, in state recordation tax (§ 58.1-801), plus a local recordation tax of one-third of that where the city or county imposes it (§ 58.1-814); on a sale the grantor also pays a grantor's tax of $0.50 per $500 (§ 58.1-802) and a regional fee of $0.20 per $100 in Northern Virginia or $0.06 per $100 in Hampton Roads (§§ 58.1-802.3 to 58.1-802.5), though gifts and transfers with no payment are exempt if the deed says so and cites the Code section, while a family transfer where money changes hands or a mortgage is assumed is taxed. Virginia's recording fees are set by state law, though clerks' published schedules differ in places. A deed of 1 to 10 pages pays a $26 clerk's fee ($18 under Va. Code § 17.1-275(A)(2) plus the $8 Technology Trust Fund fee under § 17.1-279; $40 for 11 to 30 pages), a $1 land-book transfer fee (§ 58.1-3314(3)), and a $3 open-space fee where the Virginia Outdoors Foundation holds open-space easements (§ 58.1-817). A clerk with e-recording may add $5 for a deed filed on paper (§ 17.1-258.3:1(B)). That makes $35 for a tax-exempt deed of up to 10 pages filed on paper. A deed that owes recordation tax also pays the tax, and Fairfax and Prince William add a $20 deed processing fee. Prince William's schedule lists the $26 clerk's fee, but Fairfax's schedule (effective July 1, 2026) lists $23 for a deed of 1 to 10 pages, so ask your clerk which applies. Use the Virginia courts' deed fee calculator for the exact amount: Prince William rejects a short check.
No. Virginia 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 of the Circuit Court in the county where the property is located, not where you live, and not where the buyer lives. Virginia has 95 counties. Many offices in this state also accept e-recording, but usually only from approved submitters such as title companies.
No, and this is the single most common misunderstanding about deeds. A deed changes who owns the property. The mortgage is a separate contract with the lender, and only a refinance or a written release from the lender removes a borrower. Someone can be off the deed and still fully liable on the loan.
Keep reading
- Virginia quitclaim deedTransfers whatever interest you have in a property, with no promises about the title.
- Virginia special warranty deedTransfers ownership, but only guarantees the title for the period you owned it.
- Virginia transfer-on-death deedNames who inherits your property, skips probate, and changes nothing while you're alive.
- Virginia life estate deedYou keep the right to live in the property for life; named remaindermen own it after you.
- All deed rules for VirginiaRecording offices, transfer tax, witness rules, and fees.
- Virginia 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.