There is a chance that you may check your deed and realize that it has an error. You may wonder if there is a way you can make some changes to your deed so that it reflects properly what you wanted. Remember that when you record a deed, it becomes a public record, meaning you cannot change it.
The good news is that you can get a new deed which is known as a correction deed. Corrective deeds are designed to alter these original records. But there are a couple of things working noting about a correction deed. This article discusses a correction deed.
A correction deed
A correction deed, sometimes called a corrective or confirmatory deed, refers to a legal document that you can use to correct errors on a recorded property title. A property owner can utilize this type of deed to alter some of the common errors like incomplete names, misspellings, and other missing information. Also, you can have a corrective deed to correct defects so that the deed is in the way it was acknowledged or executed.
You can only use a correction deed to a current deed. This means that you cannot use it to transfer property ownership. This type of deed can confirm the warranties and covenants that were initially in place. You should only use it to correct minor and common errors as mentioned earlier like missing information or misspellings.
It’s worth mentioning that different states usually have different rules that apply to a correction deed. For example, it can cause confusion if you use a correction deed for mitigating material errors. Some good examples where you can use a correction deed include changing the amount of consideration, adding omitted exhibits, and changing the property’s legal description.
There are many common examples of the best time you have to use a corrective deed. For example, you can be checking the deed and realize that your name was misspelled. There is also a chance that the name of your spouse and marital status were not included. Another example is a minor error in the description of the legal property. All these are good reasons why you must utilize a corrective deed to amend the original one.
But take note that a minor error can be subjective and varies from one state to another. There can be a case in which your state may need you to record a new deed completely. Examples of such situations include changes in material of the deed. Also, there can be an error associated with the covenants or warranty in the original deed or the description of the legal property is changing. In these cases, a correction deed cannot be enough, so you need to start over and record a new deed.
Creating a correction deed
If you want to create a corrective deed, then you have to visit the office of your local county. They can often offer you a correction deed form alongside some helpful guides on the best way to complete the form.
But, if you created the original deed yourself, then you need to determine whether or not the error was made because of your lack of the right knowledge. If this is the case, you can avoid further mistakes by getting some professional help to make sure that your corrective deed doesn’t have errors. Otherwise, you can decide to follow the correction deed form which you can use as a template and read the information offered to you.
You can create a corrective deed by getting a copy of your original deed which you can use as an attachment. You should remember that this is duplicated and includes correction which comes next to the title. You can then make sure that you identify the error that was in the original copy and indicate how it needs to be corrected.
And, you can also give a brief description of why you intend to modify the deed and make sure to include all the necessary information regarding the previously recorded deed. This means that you can include how they transferred the title and the recording data. You should also include the document number and the date.
As explained earlier, if there is a typo or any mistake on your deed, you should not be worried because most states give you a simple way you can amend the original deed, meaning you don’t have to record a new deed. Therefore, if both parties agree that there is a need for a correction, you can construct a simple correction. It’s usually one correction rather than several changes required, and the rest of the deed remains valid.
In most cases, all parties involved in signing the original deed need to sign the corrective deed and a notary should be available to acknowledge its execution. You have to remember that you need to record it in the court records system so that it can be valid.
The correction deed is not sufficient enough to change or add an element in the current agreement for both parties. In this case, you need to draw up a new contract. A corrective deed can just change a single specific element, and leave others intact. Ideally, you cannot change the language and verbiage in a correction deed. Remember that once the agreement on the deed changes with the new language and verbiage, you need to have a new deed. A correction deed can only fix a clerical mistake or error, and the rest remains the same.
Therefore, when reviewing your deed or ownership of the property’s title, make sure that it has the right names. For example, you can ensure that the names on the driver’s license are the same ones used in the deed. This can help you to avoid mistakes and errors. It’s not a good idea to use the correction deed for changing prices or any other key changes. It’s your responsibility to update your last name due to divorce, marriage, or choice. You can use a correction deed to change a name when you name changes.
