Texas Quitclaim Deed: Requirements, Recording and Homestead Rules

A quitclaim deed in Texas is a deed the Property Code recognizes by name: § 13.006 sets out what a recorded quitclaim deed does and does not signal to later buyers and creditors once four years have passed. To be recorded with the county clerk where the land lies, the deed must be acknowledged before a notary or other authorized officer, or signed in front of two credible subscribing witnesses (Tex. Prop. Code § 12.001), and since December 4, 2025 anyone presenting it in person must show photo identification.

This page covers what Texas requires on the deed itself, homestead signatures, recording and fees, property tax effects and the deed fraud law that took effect in December 2025. For the same rules in other states, see quitclaim deed rules by state.

Information last verified on 2026-10-08. This article has not been reviewed by a licensed lawyer.

Jurisdiction scope: This article covers Texas Property Code chapters 5, 11, 12 and 13, Local Government Code §§ 118.011, 191.007, 191.009 and 191.010, Family Code §§ 3.102, 3.104 and chapter 5, Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 16.025, Texas Constitution article VIII, § 29, Tax Code §§ 11.43 and 23.23, Penal Code §§ 31.23 and 32.60 and Estates Code chapter 114. It does not cover title insurance, lender or loan rules beyond the federal due-on-sale limits noted below, individual county fee totals beyond the statutory base, the Texas Constitution's homestead provisions, federal gift or income tax, or other states' laws.

How Texas law treats a quitclaim deed

No statutory or state-published quitclaim form in Texas appears among the sources cited here. The general rule for any deed is in Property Code § 5.021: a conveyance of land "must be in writing and must be subscribed and delivered by the conveyor or by the conveyor's agent authorized in writing."

The short-form deed in § 5.022 conveys fee simple with a general warranty. The same section makes clear that warranty language is optional: "(b) A covenant of warranty is not required in a conveyance. (c) The parties to a conveyance may insert any clause or use any form not in contravention of law." Do not count on the county clerk for one: the Fort Bend County Clerk, for example, posts that its staff cannot provide legal advice, help fill out forms or provide forms (Fort Bend County Clerk). A lawyer can prepare a deed.

The four-year rule for recorded quitclaim deeds

Property Code § 13.006, added by SB 885 effective September 1, 2021, sets out the effect of recording a quitclaim deed. After the fourth anniversary of the date a quitclaim deed is recorded in the county deed records, the quitclaim deed "does not affect the question of the good faith of a subsequent purchaser or creditor," and it "is not notice to a subsequent purchaser or creditor of any unrecorded conveyance of, transfer of, or encumbrance on the real property."

The same 2021 law amended Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 16.025, the five-year adverse possession limitations period, which protects a possessor who cultivates, uses or enjoys the property, pays the taxes on it and claims it under a duly registered deed. That section "does not apply to a claim based on a quitclaim deed, a forged deed, or a deed executed under a forged power of attorney" (Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.025(b)).

What a quitclaim deed does not promise

Under Property Code § 5.023, unless the deed says otherwise, using "grant" or "convey" in a fee-simple conveyance implies only two covenants: that the grantor has not already conveyed the property and that it is free from encumbrances. This guide does not settle whether a deed that uses only quitclaim or release wording carries those implied covenants. For how quitclaim deeds generally differ from deeds with title warranties, see our guide to quitclaim vs. warranty deeds.

A deed is also not a loan document. A quitclaim deed changes who holds title, but the statutes reviewed here say nothing about it ending a borrower's obligation on an existing mortgage. That depends on the loan documents and the lender, which this article does not cover.

Transferring title can also matter to the lender if the loan has a due-on-sale clause. For a loan secured by residential property with fewer than five dwelling units, federal law bars the lender from using that clause for certain transfers (12 U.S.C. § 1701j-3(d)), but the federal regulation applies that protection to a loan on a home the borrower occupies or will occupy, covers a transfer where the borrower's spouse or children become an owner, or a transfer to the borrower's spouse under a divorce decree, legal separation agreement or property settlement agreement, only when the new owner occupies or will occupy the home, and covers a transfer into a living trust only when the borrower is and remains the beneficiary and occupant (12 C.F.R. § 191.5(b)). [Also add a citation entry: 12 C.F.R. § 191.5 (limitation on exercise of due-on-sale clauses) | https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-12/chapter-I/part-191/section-191.5] A transfer that is not on the statute's list does not get that protection, so ask the lender before signing.

What a Texas quitclaim deed needs to be recorded

The notice of confidentiality rights tells a natural person that they may remove or strike their Social Security number or driver's license number from the deed before it is filed. Its required text appears in Property Code § 11.008(c). Leaving the notice off does not affect the deed's validity between the parties or the notice it gives, and the county clerk may not reject a deed solely because it does not comply with § 11.008 (Prop. Code § 11.008(d), (e)).

A missing grantee address does not undo the deed between the parties; it affects only recording, where the penalty fee applies (Prop. Code § 11.003). A page that does not meet the format rules in Loc. Gov't Code § 191.007 costs twice the regular fee to record.

Homestead: when a spouse must sign

Family Code § 5.001 sets the homestead joinder rule: "Whether the homestead is the separate property of either spouse or community property, neither spouse may sell, convey, or encumber the homestead without the joinder of the other spouse except as provided in this chapter or by other rules of law." Sections 5.002 and 5.003 let a spouse sell, convey or encumber the homestead without the other spouse's joinder when the other spouse has been judicially declared incapacitated. Subchapter B (Fam. Code § 5.101 and following) lets a spouse file a sworn petition asking a court to allow the sale, conveyance or encumbrance of the homestead without the other spouse's joinder in limited situations, such as when the other spouse has disappeared or has permanently abandoned the homestead.

The § 5.001 joinder rule is about the homestead. For other community property, Family Code § 3.102 gives each spouse sole management of the community property that spouse would have owned if single, such as personal earnings, and puts other community property under the joint management of both spouses unless they provide otherwise by a written power of attorney or other agreement. Property held in one spouse's name is presumed to be under that spouse's sole management, and a third person may rely on that spouse's authority unless the third person is a party to a fraud or has actual or constructive notice that the spouse lacks authority (Fam. Code § 3.104). Ask a lawyer before one spouse alone signs a deed to community property. For deeds that follow a divorce, see Texas divorce laws.

Recording with the county clerk

A deed must be recorded in the county where any part of the property is located (Prop. Code § 11.001). The county clerk records instruments relating to the same property in the order they are filed (Prop. Code § 11.004). To search deeds already on record, see our guide to Texas property records.

What recording does

Texas has a notice-type recording statute. An unrecorded deed is void as to a creditor or a later purchaser for value who does not have notice of it (Prop. Code § 13.001(a)). But "the unrecorded instrument is binding on a party to the instrument, on the party's heirs, and on a subsequent purchaser who does not pay a valuable consideration or who has notice of the instrument" (Prop. Code § 13.001(b)). A recorded instrument is notice to all persons (Prop. Code § 13.002).

Recording fees

Local Government Code § 118.011(a)(2) sets the base real property records filing fee at $5 for the first page and $4 for each additional page with visible marks, plus $0.25 for each name over five. The clerk may also collect other separately authorized fees, such as a records management and preservation fee of up to $10 (§ 118.011(b)). Those are statewide base amounts; each county's total differs, so check your county clerk's fee schedule.

County clerks may accept and record documents electronically under Texas State Library and Archives Commission rules (Loc. Gov't Code § 191.009), but e-recording is optional county by county. Ask your clerk whether it is available.

Transfer tax and accompanying forms

Texas has no state real estate transfer tax, deed tax or documentary stamp tax: none appears among the taxes listed by the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, and the Texas Constitution bars any law enacted after January 1, 2016 from imposing a transfer tax on a transaction that conveys fee simple title to real property (Tex. Const. art. VIII, § 29). Recording a quitclaim deed still costs the county clerk's recording fees, covered above.

The sources cited here also show no state transfer tax return or change-of-ownership form that must go with a Texas deed. The property tax homestead exemption works separately through the county appraisal district, covered next.

Property tax: the homestead exemption

A Texas residence homestead exemption, once allowed, does not have to be claimed again each year, but "the exemption applies to the property until it changes ownership or the person's qualification for the exemption changes" (Tax Code § 11.43(c)). A quitclaim deed that moves the home out of the exemption holder's name can therefore end the exemption for that owner, and the new owner applies to the county appraisal district (Tax Code § 11.43).

The 10 percent limit on increases in a homestead's appraised value (Tax Code § 23.23) takes effect on January 1 of the tax year after the owner first qualifies the property for the homestead exemption. It expires on January 1 of the first tax year in which neither the owner when the limit took effect nor that owner's spouse or surviving spouse qualifies for the exemption (Tax Code § 23.23(c)), so a deed that moves the home to someone other than the owner's spouse can end the limit. Ask the appraisal district how this applies to your transfer.

Deed fraud protections (SB 16, 2025)

SB 16 (89th Legislature, 2nd Called Session, Chapter 16) took effect December 4, 2025, and changed how Texas handles fraudulent deeds.

• Photo ID to record. "A county clerk shall require a person presenting a document in person for filing in the real property records of the county to present a photo identification to the clerk" (Loc. Gov't Code § 191.010(b)). Information the clerk copies from the ID is confidential, and Property Code § 12.001(b)(2) bars recording an in-person conveyance without it.
• Real property theft (Penal Code § 31.23). Bringing about a transfer or purported transfer of real property, or of an interest in it, without the owner's effective consent and with intent to deprive is a second-degree felony if the market value is under $300,000 and a first-degree felony at $300,000 or more, raised one category when the owner is elderly, disabled or a nonprofit or the property has a residence homestead exemption. The section states that a "nonpossessory interest" includes "an interest that may be conveyed by a quitclaim deed or conditional transfer."
• Real property fraud (Penal Code § 32.60). Causing another person to sign a document affecting real property without effective consent, or causing a public servant to file or record a document purporting to show title or a lien, with intent to defraud, is a second- or first-degree felony depending on value, with enhancements for elderly, disabled, nonprofit or homestead-exempt owners.
• County alerts. Some counties offer free alerts. Fort Bend County's Property Fraud Alert, for example, notifies subscribers when documents containing their name, business name or trust name are recorded in its Official Public Records (Fort Bend County Clerk). That is a county service, not a statewide one.

The transfer on death deed alternative

If the goal is to pass the property at death rather than now, Texas authorizes a transfer on death deed under the Texas Real Property Transfer on Death Act (Estates Code chapter 114). It must contain the formalities of a recordable deed, state that the transfer happens at the owner's death, and "be recorded before the transferor's death in the deed records in the county clerk's office of the county where the real property is located." It needs no consideration or delivery and can be revoked. For property left without one, see Texas probate.

Common misconceptions

"A quitclaim deed is not valid until it is recorded." An unrecorded deed binds the parties, their heirs and later purchasers with notice or who pay nothing (Prop. Code § 13.001(b)). Recording protects against creditors and later purchasers for value without notice.

"A quitclaim recorded long ago still warns buyers about earlier unrecorded deals." Not after four years. Under Prop. Code § 13.006, a quitclaim deed recorded more than four years earlier is not notice to a later purchaser or creditor of any unrecorded conveyance or encumbrance.

"A quitclaim deed takes my name off the mortgage." The statutes reviewed for this article do not support that. A deed changes title; the loan is a separate contract with the lender.

Related

• Quitclaim deed rules by state
• Quitclaim vs. warranty deed
• Texas property records
• Texas divorce laws
• Texas probate

Disclaimer: This article provides general legal information about Texas law on quitclaim deeds, recording, homestead joinder and related property tax and fraud rules, verified on 2026-10-08. It is not legal or tax advice. For your specific situation, contact your county clerk (who cannot give legal advice), a legal aid office, or a lawyer licensed in Texas.

Last updated: 2026-10-08.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I file a quitclaim deed in Texas?

The grantor signs the deed and acknowledges it before a notary or other authorized officer, or signs before two credible subscribing witnesses (Property Code § 12.001), and the deed is filed with the county clerk in the county where the property is located (§ 11.001). Anyone filing it in person must show photo ID (Local Government Code § 191.010).

Does a quitclaim deed need to be notarized in Texas?

To be recorded, it must be either acknowledged before an officer authorized to take acknowledgments, such as a notary, or signed and acknowledged in the presence of two or more credible subscribing witnesses (Property Code § 12.001(b)(1)).

How much does it cost to record a quitclaim deed in Texas?

Local Government Code § 118.011 sets a base real property records fee of $5 for the first page and $4 for each additional page, and the clerk may add other authorized fees, such as a records management and preservation fee of up to $10. Totals vary by county, so check your county clerk's fee schedule.

Do you pay transfer tax on a quitclaim deed in Texas?

No state transfer tax applies. Texas does not impose a real estate transfer tax, and the Texas Constitution bars any law enacted after January 1, 2016 from imposing one on a transaction conveying fee simple title (art. VIII, § 29). You still pay the county clerk's recording fees.

Does my spouse have to sign a quitclaim deed for our home in Texas?

If the property is the homestead, yes in most cases: Family Code § 5.001 bars either spouse from selling or conveying the homestead, whether separate or community property, without the other spouse's joinder, subject to exceptions in that chapter.

Is a quitclaim deed valid in Texas if it is not recorded?

An unrecorded deed still binds the parties, their heirs and later buyers who pay nothing or who know about it (Property Code § 13.001(b)). Recording protects the new owner against creditors and later buyers for value who lack notice (§ 13.001(a)).

Will a quitclaim deed affect my homestead exemption in Texas?

It can. Under Tax Code § 11.43(c), a residence homestead exemption applies until the property changes ownership or the owner's qualification changes, so a new owner has to apply to the appraisal district.

Does a quitclaim deed remove me from the mortgage?

The Texas statutes reviewed for this article do not say a quitclaim deed changes anyone's obligations under a loan. Whether a borrower stays liable depends on the loan documents and the lender, so ask the lender before relying on a deed to end your liability.

What is the penalty for a fraudulent quitclaim deed in Texas?

SB 16, effective December 4, 2025, created real property theft (Penal Code § 31.23) and real property fraud (Penal Code § 32.60) offenses, both felonies graded by the property's value. Section 31.23 defines a protected nonpossessory interest to include one that may be conveyed by a quitclaim deed.