Why People File a Quitclaim Deed in Lake County
Just Got Married
Owned the place solo before saying "I do"? A quitclaim deed is how most couples add the new spouse to the title afterward.
Going Through a Divorce
A signed settlement doesn't update the title by itself — a quitclaim deed is the document that actually does that final step.
Inherited Property
Probate can decide who inherits, but it's usually a quitclaim deed that actually gets the title switched into the heir's name.
Gifting to Family
If you'd rather hand property to your kids now than leave it in a will, a quitclaim deed is the usual way that gets done.
About the Lake County Assessor-Recorder
Lake County was carved out of Napa, Mendocino, and Colusa counties in 1861 and takes its name from the geographic feature that dominates it: Clear Lake, generally considered the oldest lake in North America, with a basin geologists trace back roughly 2.5 million years and the largest natural freshwater lake located entirely within California. The lake sits beside Mount Konocti, a dormant volcanic peak sacred to the Pomo people who have lived in the basin for thousands of years and still maintain several tribal governments in the county today. Lakeport, the county seat since the county's founding, sits on the lake's western shore. In the past decade Lake County has also become known, less happily, as one of the parts of California hit hardest by major wildfires -- the Valley, Clayton, Mendocino Complex, and other fires burned large shares of the county's land between 2015 and the early 2020s, reshaping both its landscape and its local emergency-preparedness rules for property owners.
Cities and Communities Served
Recording jurisdiction runs countywide, not by city limits — if the property sits anywhere within Lake County, this is the Lake County Assessor-Recorder that will accept the deed. That includes:
Incorporated cities: Lakeport, Clearlake.
Unincorporated communities: Kelseyville, Middletown, Lower Lake, Cobb, Nice, Lucerne, Upper Lake, Hidden Valley Lake, Clearlake Oaks.
Lakeport and Clearlake are the county's only two incorporated cities; recording is handled countywide from the single Lakeport office, so most Lake County residents live in an unincorporated community rather than either city.
Office Details
Address: 255 N. Forbes Street, Room 223, Lakeport, CA 95453
Phone: (707) 263-2293 (Recorder); (707) 263-2302 (Assessor)
Hours: Monday-Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., open through the lunch hour. Same-day recording and vital-record requests must be submitted by about 4:30 p.m. even though the office stays open until 5:00.
Recording Fee: A per-page recording fee applies, with a higher per-page rate for non-conforming or oversized documents, plus a small per-name indexing fee once a document references more than a handful of names. A county documentary transfer tax based on a percentage of the property's value is also due, along with a statewide real-estate-transaction fee (with common residential-transfer exemptions), a modest monument-preservation surcharge the county added to grant deed recordings, and a possible penalty fee if a complete Preliminary Change of Ownership Report is not submitted with the deed.
E-recording: Lake County participates in the CSC eRecording network, allowing deeds to be submitted electronically through a CSC-affiliated e-recording provider instead of filing in person.
Good to know before you go: Even though the Lakeport office's posted hours run until 5:00 p.m., the county's own recorder page notes that anyone who wants to record a document or pick up a vital record that same day needs to be there by 4:30 p.m. The office also recently added a small monument-preservation surcharge to grant deed recordings (per county Resolution 2024-57), so a deed transferring a property by grant deed rather than quitclaim may carry that extra line item. Because Lake County has had repeated wildfire evacuation activity in recent fire seasons (including a fast-moving vegetation fire near Lakeport in July 2026), it's worth calling ahead during peak fire season to confirm the office is open as scheduled before making a trip.
How to File a Document
- Sign in Front of a Notary: California requires the grantor's signature to be acknowledged before a notary public before the Lake County Assessor-Recorder will accept a deed for recording. California notaries also have to take the signer's right thumbprint in their journal specifically for deeds and other real-property documents -- a state-specific requirement that catches people off guard if their notary isn't prepared for it, so it's worth confirming ahead of time that whoever notarizes your deed has a journal and inkpad on hand.
- Attach a Full Legal Description, Not Just an Address: A street address alone won't satisfy California's requirements -- the deed needs the property's actual legal description (a metes-and-bounds description, a government survey reference, or a platted lot and block, depending on how the parcel was originally surveyed and subdivided). You can usually copy this directly from the deed that transferred the property to you.
- Complete a Preliminary Change of Ownership Report: California requires a separate Preliminary Change of Ownership Report (PCOR) to accompany most deeds when they're filed. It's a distinct form the county assessor's office uses to determine whether the transfer triggers a reassessment -- a penalty applies if it's missing or left incomplete, so it's worth getting right before you file. The Lake County Assessor-Recorder or county assessor can supply the current version.
- Know Where California Stands on Remote Online Notarization: Unlike some states, California-commissioned notaries can't yet offer remote online notarization -- that's not scheduled to change until January 1, 2030. In the meantime, an out-of-state online notary can still validly notarize a California deed, since California recognizes notarial acts performed under another state's laws. See our online notarization page for how that works.
- Record with the County Clerk-Recorder: Bring, mail, or (where the county supports it) e-file the signed, notarized deed and its Preliminary Change of Ownership Report with the Lake County Assessor-Recorder for the county where the property sits. California's recording fee is a flat, statute-set amount per document, and on top of that, a county documentary transfer tax applies based on a percentage of the property's value -- some cities also levy their own additional city transfer tax on top of the county's.
Still Have Questions About Filing With the Lake County Assessor-Recorder?
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Other Counties in California
Filing somewhere else in the state? Here are a few other county pages:
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