Virginia · DeedsVirginia deed recording: what the first page needs and what the clerk charges

A Virginia circuit court clerk records a writing as to each person who signed it with an original signature once that person has acknowledged it or it has been proved by two witnesses before the court or the clerk (Va. Code §55.1-600). Unless a cover sheet is submitted, the clerk may reject the writing unless the surname of each individual party is underscored or written in capitals in the first clause naming the parties, every page is numbered consecutively, a deed subject to recordation tax states the consideration and the actual value of the property on page one, any law claimed for a recordation-tax exemption is stated on its face, and each party to be indexed is listed in the first clause and identified as grantor or grantee (§17.1-223(A)). The attorney or party who prepares the writing must remove Social Security numbers and, on a deed conveying residential property with up to four dwelling units, state on page one the title insurance underwriter (or that the preparer doesn't know of any title insurance) and that the deed was prepared by the owner or by a Virginia attorney, with the attorney's name and Virginia State Bar number; that last statement doesn't apply to deeds of trust (§17.1-223(B)). In localities with a unique parcel identification system, the deed must show the tax map or parcel number on page one or on the cover sheet (§17.1-252). The clerk's recording fee is $18 for 10 or fewer pages, $32 for 11 to 30 pages and $52 for 31 or more, and $17 a sheet for plats larger than 8½ by 14 inches (§17.1-275(A)(2)), plus an $8 Technology Trust Fund fee on each instrument recorded in the deed books (§17.1-279(A)); the recordation and grantor taxes are separate.