Why People File a Quitclaim Deed in Nevada County
Just Got Married
Second marriages bring their own title questions, and adding a new spouse via quitclaim deed is one of the more common answers.
Going Through a Divorce
Some couples handle the deed themselves right after the divorce; others wait — either way, a quitclaim deed is the document that gets it done.
Inherited Property
An heir taking sole ownership of a property that several siblings inherited jointly usually does so with a quitclaim deed.
Gifting to Family
A property gifted within the family still needs a title update — a quitclaim deed is the standard way to record it.
About the Nevada County Clerk-Recorder
Gold was first panned along Deer Creek in the summer of 1848, and by the fall of 1849 a settlement there was known simply as Deer Creek Dry Diggins. In 1850, civic leaders renamed it Nevada -- Spanish for snow-covered -- and the following year it incorporated as the seat of the newly formed Nevada County, roughly a decade before the federal government organized Nevada Territory in 1861 and long before Nevada became a state in 1864. Once the state to the east claimed the name, the town added "City" to become Nevada City to avoid confusion, a naming footnote residents still like to point out to visitors. Neighboring Grass Valley grew into the county's larger town on the strength of deep hard-rock quartz mining rather than placer gold, and together the two towns anchor a county whose Gold Rush-era brick storefronts and mining infrastructure are unusually well preserved compared to many of California's other mining counties. The office's full formal title also includes Registrar of Voters duties.
Cities and Communities Served
Recording jurisdiction runs countywide, not by city limits — if the property sits anywhere within Nevada County, this is the Nevada County Clerk-Recorder that will accept the deed. That includes:
Incorporated cities: Grass Valley, Nevada City, Truckee.
Unincorporated communities: Penn Valley, North San Juan, Rough and Ready, Lake Wildwood, Alta Sierra.
Grass Valley is Nevada County's largest city, but the county seat and recording office are in the smaller, historic Nevada City; all recording is handled countywide from that single office regardless of city.
Office Details
Address: 950 Maidu Avenue, Suite 210, Nevada City, CA 95959
Phone: (530) 265-1221
Hours: Monday-Friday, 8:00 am - 4:00 pm; recording of documents is accepted until 4:00 pm. In-person counter service (including recording) has historically been by appointment only -- Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, 8:00 am - 3:30 pm, first-come first-served with no same-day appointments or walk-ins -- a policy the office put in place during a 2021 phased reopening; call or email ahead to confirm current scheduling before visiting in person.
Recording Fee: A per-page recording fee (with a higher first-page charge than each additional page), plus extra per-title indexing charges for combined documents, plus a non-conformance penalty per page for documents that don't meet formatting standards, plus a county documentary transfer tax based on a percentage of the property's value, plus state Building Homes and Jobs Act (SB2) and AB 1466 fees on most real estate documents unless exempt (for example, owner-occupied residential transfers already subject to the documentary transfer tax).
E-recording: E-recording is available for Nevada County through the Simplifile network, which the county joined as part of a multi-jurisdiction western U.S. expansion in 2019; it's generally used by title and escrow companies rather than individual one-time filers.
Good to know before you go: Nevada County's Clerk-Recorder has operated on an appointment-only basis for in-person counter service since a May 2021 phased reopening -- service is limited to Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings and early afternoons, with no same-day appointments and no walk-ins accepted -- so anyone planning to hand-deliver a deed for recording should call or email the office first rather than simply showing up.
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 Nevada County Clerk-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 Nevada County Clerk-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 Nevada County Clerk-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 Nevada County Clerk-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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