Maryland Recording Basics

Upon the conclusion of a closing, the work of Excalibur Title & Escrow is not finished. Additional and important post-closing work remains to be done. In addition to disbursing funds, balancing the file, sending payoffs, and preparing and sending closing documents to borrowers, lenders and sellers, Excalibur must also record certain documents executed at closing.

In the case of a refinance, the Deed of Trust must be recorded in the Land Records of the county in which the underlying property is located. In the case of a purchase, the Deed and Deed of Trust, if any, must be recorded.

We prepare a “Land Instrument Intake Sheet” that summarizes the pertinent data about the transaction and the property. It contains information about the legal description of the property, the parties involved in the transaction, the number and types of instruments being recorded, and the recording fees, recording and transfer taxes, and exemptions (if any) that are applicable to the recording.

The Deed of Trust, and Deed in the case of a purchase, are packaged along with the Intake Sheet and supporting documentation such as affidavits signed at closing, and checks for applicable fees and taxes, and delivered to a recording agent who is typically the company that prepared the abstract of title prior to closing. The recording agent then “walks through” the recording package to county and municipal authorities for approvals that are reflected in the form of stamps. Approval is typically required from water and sewer authorities and from taxing authorities. Once all pre-required approvals are obtained, the package is then delivered to the Land Records clerk for final recording approval.

Upon acceptance by the Land Records clerk, land instruments are time and date stamped, marked with a book and page number, scanned and received into Land Records as formal public documents. The date that land instruments are recorded has important legal significance. Following the scanning of the instruments, the original Deed of Trust is mailed by the clerk back to the lender, and the Deed is mailed either to Excalibur Title or directly to the purchaser.

Upon receipt of an original recorded Deed from either Land Records or Excalibur Title, you the purchaser should keep your Deed in a safe place such as a bank safe deposit box or a fire safe.