The Quitclaim Deed and the Legal Requirement for a Valid Document in Michigan!

The state of Michigan allows for various types of real estate needs. This allows for the effortless and legal transfer of the real estate, residential property, or land from one party to another. One such useful legal instrument is the quitclaim deed. It is the most common real estate deed, and the use and process involved are least complicated.

The quitclaim deed in Michigan is a legally binding legal document allowing a person with ownership rights of a property to give up their rights. In other words, it is a document used to grant rights to someone else for a named property. The person who gives-up rights on a property is called the grantor while the person who receives the rights is called the grantee.

A unique thing about the quitclaim deed Michigan is; unlike the other type of real estate deeds, this does not offer any warranties on the property transfer. This means that the grantee does not get as much protection from the deed, and they might not face any legal recourse against the grantee in case of title issues. This is the reason why quitclaim is also referred to as a non-warranty deed as it differs from other documents. 

Legal Requirements for the Quitclaim’s validity:

To implement your quitclaim successfully, you first need to file a Michigan quitclaim deed form. You must remember that the state of Michigan uses the form 863 quitclaim deed, but formatting requirements may vary across different counties. So, make sure that you use the correct form.

The basic requirements for a valid quitclaim form include:

• The form must contain the full legal description of the real property. It should include previous ownership details and how the grantor gained ownership of this property.
• It should state the type of consideration, and the amount of consideration paid for the property.
• The deed must be signed, sealed, and acknowledged by the grantor for it to be valid and work as a conveyance deed. The acknowledgment must take place in the notary public.
• On the first page of the deed, the document should list the name and the mailing address of the deed’s preparer.
• You must make sure that the document meets the requirements of the Michigan Compiled Laws for any formatting and content requirements.
• For male grantors, the deed must indicate their marital status. The missing details may create confusion for the register of deeds in the state/county, and he might refuse to record the instrument.
• The language of the document must show that the grantor is surrendering his/her rights in the property.

Keeping a written record of the deed is important to ensure that the property transfer is recorded in the public and legal records. Any unrecorded deed is deemed void against any future/subsequent purchasers of the real property. If there is no record of the deed in the public records, this means that you don’t have any rights to the property. Recording in the public records is crucial for the preservation of the chain of title, and ensure that the public is aware of the changed ownership.

Typical uses of the quitclaim deed

• Transfer real property between family members like parents and children, or between siblings and other closely related families.
• A quitclaim claim facilitates the addition/removal of a spouse from the title of real ownership.
• If the owner changes name, the quitclaim is used to notify the changed name.
• The quitclaim is used to transfer property rights to a trust, as a part of estate planning.
• It is used in the removal of clouds from a title for title insurance. Since any defects can affect ownership, the insurer will ask you to clear them before obtaining title insurance.

Since quitclaim deed comes without any warranties, it is commonly used between families and people who trust each other.