Why People File a Quitclaim Deed in Trinity County
Just Got Married
There's rarely anything complicated about a post-wedding title update — a quitclaim deed adds your spouse's name and that's the whole transaction.
Going Through a Divorce
A quitclaim deed can remove a former spouse from title even if they're not entirely cooperative, once a court order backs it up.
Inherited Property
Property passed down informally within a family — without a full estate process — often still needs a quitclaim deed to make the title official.
Gifting to Family
A gift of real estate between family members is usually simpler on paper than people expect — a quitclaim deed is often the only document needed.
About the Trinity County Clerk-Recorder
Trinity County was one of California's original 27 counties, created February 18, 1850 with borders so large they originally encompassed present-day Humboldt, Del Norte, and part of Siskiyou counties before those were split off. It's named for the Trinity River running through it, and its county seat, Weaverville, was settled in 1850 and reportedly named on a coin flip -- won by a man named John Weaver who then left town for good within weeks. Gold drew more than 10,000 people to Weaverville at its peak, and the surrounding hydraulic mines, including the once world's-largest La Grange mine near Weaverville, reshaped the landscape; today the county remains almost entirely forested, mountainous, and unincorporated, with the Trinity Alps and Shasta-Trinity National Forest covering most of its area.
Cities and Communities Served
Recording jurisdiction runs countywide, not by city limits — if the property sits anywhere within Trinity County, this is the Trinity County Clerk-Recorder that will accept the deed. That includes:
Unincorporated communities: Weaverville (county seat), Hayfork, Lewiston, Douglas City, Trinity Center, Junction City.
Trinity County has no incorporated cities -- it is one of only a handful of California counties entirely unincorporated. Recording jurisdiction covers the whole county.
Office Details
Address: 11 Court Street, PO Box 1215, Weaverville, CA 96093
Phone: 530-623-1215
Hours: Monday - Friday, 9:00 AM - 1:00 PM and 2:00 PM - 4:00 PM (closed for lunch)
Recording Fee: Trinity County charges a flat per-page recording fee for the first page plus an additional fee for each subsequent page, along with a county documentary transfer tax based on a percentage of the property's value. A separate penalty fee applies if a Preliminary Change of Ownership Report (PCOR) is not submitted or is incomplete at the time of recording.
E-recording: As of this writing, Trinity County has not confirmed a live e-recording vendor; documents should be recorded by mail or in person unless the office confirms otherwise.
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 Trinity 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 Trinity 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 Trinity 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 Trinity 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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