Why People File a Quitclaim Deed in Yolo County
Just Got Married
One of the more common reasons this office sees quitclaim deeds filed is simply: a couple got married and wants the title to reflect that.
Going Through a Divorce
Once property division is settled in a divorce, a quitclaim deed is what actually severs joint ownership on paper.
Inherited Property
If a will divided a property among several children, a quitclaim deed is often the tool used to later consolidate it under one name.
Gifting to Family
If a relative offered to give you their portion of a jointly owned property, a quitclaim deed is what makes that gift official.
About the Yolo County Clerk-Recorder
Yolo County was one of California's original 27 counties, created February 18, 1850 with its name spelled "Yola" in the original legislative act -- a corruption, most historians believe, of the Patwin village name Yodoi or the name of its chief, Yodo, and sometimes glossed as "a place abounding in rushes." Woodland, the county seat, started life in 1853 as Yolo City under founder Henry Wyckoff, only taking its present name in 1859 when a postmaster suggested it for the oak groves surrounding the settlement; it became county seat in 1862. The county today sits between Sacramento and the Coast Range, anchored by the University of California, Davis on one end and the Sacramento River port town of West Sacramento on the other, with much of its interior still given over to tomato, rice, and other row-crop farming.
Cities and Communities Served
Recording jurisdiction runs countywide, not by city limits — if the property sits anywhere within Yolo County, this is the Yolo County Clerk-Recorder that will accept the deed. That includes:
Incorporated cities: Woodland (county seat), Davis, West Sacramento, Winters.
Unincorporated communities: Esparto, Knights Landing, Yolo, Clarksburg.
Office Details
Address: 625 Court Street, Woodland, CA 95695
Phone: (530) 666-8130
Hours: Monday - Friday, 8:00 AM - 4:00 PM. The office has noted that its service counter has been temporarily relocated within the same building (to the Elections Office space) during facility renovations -- call ahead to confirm the current room before visiting.
Recording Fee: Yolo 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: Yolo County accepts electronic recording from title companies, attorneys, and lenders through CeRTNA (California Electronic Recording Transaction Network Authority) authorized submitters; check with an authorized CeRTNA agent to confirm current access.
Good to know before you go: Yolo County's Clerk-Recorder service counter has been temporarily moved within its Woodland courthouse complex due to building renovations, so the room number posted on older printouts or older Google listings may be out of date -- calling the main line before a trip is the safest way to confirm exactly where to go.
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 Yolo 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 Yolo 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 Yolo 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 Yolo County Clerk-Recorder?
Ask below and get an instant answer on California quitclaim deeds.
Other Counties in California
Filing somewhere else in the state? Here are a few other county pages:
You are not on the official Yolo County government website. CaliforniaQuitclaimDeed.com is a privately owned website and is not affiliated with any government agency.