What's a quitclaim?

October 13, 2005 5:48 AM

Quitclaim deeds. What are they?

My partner and I legally changed our names a few years back so that we would share a last name, and several months ago we refinanced our home equity loan, and we just got a document from a title and settlement company. The Quitclaim deed was signed and initialed by us, but there was so much signing going on that I don't even remember what this means. Did I just sign away my rights of survivorship or something?

posted by archimago to law & government (7 comments total)

A quitclaim deed is a method of transferring any and all interest you have in a property, without making any warranty as to what interest you have.

Who is the deed signed over to?
posted by MrZero at 6:10 AM on October 13, 2005

Yes. The difference between a grant deed and a quitclaim (or release deed in many states.) is basically this: A grant deed asserts that the claim is valid and truly described, a quitclaim deed does not.

Usually, it is used between family members, or in circumstances where the "party" on both ends of the transaction is really the same person. Quitclaims, not warranting the claim or the truth thereof, don't need the same validiation efforts that grant deeds do.

It may be, than in your state, the title to the land needs to be in your legal name. If you've changed it from "John Doe" to "Robert Roe" a quitclaim deed from "John Doe" to "Robert Roe" would quickly make the legal transfer required to correct this.

It's obvious why grant deeds are normally used -- but for something like a legal name change on a title -- where you are signing something over to you -- jumping through the hoops on a grant deed is annoying. The quitclaim deed solves that.
posted by eriko at 6:20 AM on October 13, 2005

the exact wording is that we both "hereby remise, release and forever quitclaim unto the said 'party 1 and party 2' as joint tenants with right of survivorship," yadda yadda.

party 1 and 2 are us, so it seems that we are quitclaiming to ourselves, or each other?
posted by archimago at 6:20 AM on October 13, 2005

thanks eriko, so basically it is a legal document stating that I am the same person even though the name has changed and that the title to the property has been transferred to the new name.
posted by archimago at 6:22 AM on October 13, 2005

You are quitclaiming to each other, as joint tenants with rights of survivorship. That means that if one of you dies, the other immediately succeeds to full ownership of the home. Sounds like the survivorship is intact.
posted by MrZero at 6:37 AM on October 13, 2005

thanks everyone!!
posted by archimago at 6:47 AM on October 13, 2005

Cecil Adams delivers the Straight Dope.
posted by fandango_matt at 12:24 PM on October 13, 2005