Posted by Ronald * Starr(in No CA) on September 05, 2003 at 18:44:55:
Tom–(CA)--------------
Depends upon your interpretation of “ok.”
It is legal. The delivery of the signed deed to the grantee–new owner–makes it a legal transer. It does not even have to be notarized for this to be true.
To record a deed in the county recorder’s office the grantor’s signature must be notarized.
However, the new owner faces some risks if the deed is not recorded. The ones I know about are the following. The grantor could make out a new deed for that same property to some other person. If that person records the deed before the grantor of the first deed records, the new person becomes the owner of the property and grantor of the first deed is out of luck–no ownership of the property.
If there are any liens or judgments filed against the grantor of the property, they will become a lien against the property. The new owner will be responsible for getting those obligations off of the property. Perhaps that would require paying the obligations.
There may also be some potential problems if the grantor were to file bankruptcy. Thist might tie of the property in the bankruptcy, preventing the new owner from doing anything with the property such as selling it or getting a loan secured by the property. This bankruptch business I am less sure of.
So, there are some good reasons that the grantor should record the deed.
Good InvestingRon Starr******