In observance of Memorial Day, County offices will be closed Monday, May 30. For online services, visit our web page.
In observance of Memorial Day, County offices will be closed Monday, May 30. For online services, visit our web page.
Why do documents get recorded? Colorado is a Race-Notice state: the recording of documents that affect real property must be made public record and serve as notice to others that someone has an interest in the property.
How do documents get recorded? Documents are sent to the Douglas County Recording office in paper or electronic format. A list of fees for recording different types of documents is included in the FAQ below.
What kinds of documents get recorded? Most of the documents recorded in the Recording office are specific to real estate. However, any document that meets the margin requirements (top margin of 1 inch and bottom/side margins of at least 1/2 inch) can be recorded as long as the appropriate fee is received. If you are recording a document that will impact the ownership of your property, we recommend you contact the Assessor’s office, an attorney, and/or title company before proceeding.
Use Caution When Recording a Document: The very point of recording a document is to make it public for all time. Please use caution when recording a document that contains information of a sensitive nature, as the entire public will have access – online or otherwise – to all contents of the recording.
Documents submitted for recording MUST:
Documents up to legal size (8.5″ x 14″)
First page: $13
Additional pages: $5 each
Documents larger than legal size (8.5″x 14″)
First page: $13
Additional pages: $10 each
Plats or condominium plats (mylar required)
First page: $13
Additional pages: $10 each
Land Survey Plats
First page: $20
Additional pages: $10 each
Uniform Commercial Code (U.C.C)
Up to 2 pages – paper $13.00
Uniform Commercial Code (U.C.C)
3 or more pages paper $18.00
All electronically recorded UCC statements
unlimited pages – $8.00
Federal Tax Liens or Releases and Redemption Certificates
First page: $8
Additional pages: $5 each
Mining documents/deeds
First page: $8
Additional pages: $5 each
Plus $.25 per mine name listed
Military Discharge/DD-214
No Charge
State Documentary Fee
Sale price greater than $500 requires a fee of $.01 per $100 of sales price to be collected.
Sale price $500 or less: no additional fee required
Please note: personal property is deducted from the consideration of commercial property only $.01 per $100 of sale price
Transfer Documents (Warranty Deeds, Quit Claim Deeds, etc.)
Will be assessed a documentary tax if the consideration is $500 or more in addition to the recording fee. The documentary tax is $.01 per $100.
Technology Fees
Per Colorado Revised Statutes, the County Clerk and Recorder shall collect a surcharge of one dollar for each document received for recording or filing in his or her office. The County Clerk and Recorder shall also collect the three dollar surcharge imposed by the Electronic Recording Technology Board under 24-21-40-(2) C.R.S. These surcharges shall be in addition to any other fees permitted by statute and have already been added to the recording fees listed above.
Yes. There is a convenience fee charged by the third-party company that handles credit card transactions for the County. The convenience fee is not retained by the County. Please note that credit cards CANNOT be accepted for passport application fees.
Checks should be made payable to Douglas County Clerk & Recorder.
Yes. eRecording enables submitters and receivers to create, sign, transmit, record, index, archive, and return the original document – all without ever touching a piece of paper. eRecording increases the speed decreases the cost and improves the accuracy of document filing.
Entities interested in eRecording may contact a third-party vendor already contracted with the County OR build their own interface.
Interested in building and maintaining your own interface? Please complete the eRecording Submitter Memorandum of Understanding and email [email protected] for your next steps.
If your document meets the listed requirements, it will be recorded, entered into the permanent public record, and given a reception number. The document is then scanned and a digitized image is created. Once the quality of the image is verified, the data (Grantor, Grantee, legal description and cross references) is Indexed so that it may be found by anyone searching for it. Once the Indexing data has been verified, the document will be returned to the submitting party. Subdivision plats and Land Survey Plats are excluded, as State law requires these items to be retained by the Clerk.
Documents being sent via FedEx, UPS, or other shipping companies should be sent to:
Douglas County Clerk & Recorder
301 Wilcox Street
Castle Rock, CO 80104
Attn: Real Estate Recording
Documents being sent via U.S. Mail should be sent to:
Douglas County Clerk & Recorder
PO Box 1360
Castle Rock, CO 80104
Attn: Real Estate Recording
Documents will be returned to the address from which they were received. However, if a self-addressed envelope is included with the documents, they will be returned in that envelope.
We are unable to provide forms for real estate transactions. Please visit an office supply store.
Members of our staff are prohibited from offering legal advice, including but not limited to: which documents should be recorded, how the documents should be filled out, the order in which documents should be recorded, potential legal ramifications from recording documents.
If you have questions regarding the proper completion of forms or required information, please consult a title company and/or an attorney.
Documents can be searched online 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, by using the Google Chrome browser and visiting LandmarkWeb.
If copies of documents are desired, click on “Log On” in the top right-hand corner to create a new account. You may then search the Indexes using any of the icons from the home screen or one of the popular searches under the Quick Search option.
Results matching the search criteria entered will be displayed towards the bottom of the screen. Results can be opened up to fully view the Index, images will not be displayed. To obtain a copy of a document, place it in the shopping cart and then check out using a credit card.
Trying to establish a chain of title and not sure how to do so? Follow the below guidelines.
Document Search Tips
If you are trying to establish a chain of title it may be easiest, to begin with, the current owner and then search for previous, historical owners of the property starting with the date of the latest filing (deed). Locate the present owner’s deed and then identify the seller listed on the deed (the previous owner). Repeat this same process of finding the last, previous owner in order to identify all of the historical transactions for the property until you find the original patent or deed. You may also use the opposite process by starting with the patent and then tracing ownership forward. This process can take a great deal of time and patience.
Each deed is recorded in the Grantor and Grantee indices according to the date it was recorded (which is not necessarily the date the deed was issued or signed).
Once a “chain of title” or ownership is established, search for the owner(s) name in the index. Any deeds transferring easements, mineral rights, etc., should be notated. You should view a photocopy of the deed for specific details. While indexing information is found on our website, the image is not. You must visit our office to view images.
A shortcut for easements or rights-of-way is to check the last warranty deed for any reference to these or other restrictions. Most deeds list restrictions as “except easements, covenants or other restrictions of record”, which means you have to conduct a search to discover what, if any, are recorded.
Additionally, if the property is in a subdivision (duly platted and recorded), easements may be shown on the plat copy in the Recording office. This does not apply to property not subdivided.
Our records are not cumulative, but rather chronological; and that an easement or right-of-way may have been granted at any time by any of the previous owners.
A sample “chain of title” is shown below:
Now that you know the names of all of the owners and the time periods which they owned the property (Tom & Mary Hill, Sept. 14, 1925 to May 30, 1962), you are ready to search the “Grantor” indices, looking for any easements, covenants, etc., which they may have “granted” while they owned the property.
Images prior to 1994 must be viewed on a microfilm reader and require an in-person visit to the Recording office.
Document images can only be viewed online by trusted business partners that have entered into a legal contract with the Recording Division and been given a secure user name and password. Anyone else is welcome to view the images in our office at 301 Wilcox Street, Castle Rock, CO 80104, between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. Images from 1994 to the present may be viewed on the computers. Images prior to 1994 must be viewed on a microfilm reader.
Recording Indexes date back to 1983 and are available to the public online.
Copies can be requested from the Recording office for a fee and purchased online. Certification of copies requires an additional fee of $1.00 per document. Certified copies may be picked up in person, mailed, or e-mailed.
If you are requesting a copy of a DD214 or a marriage/civil union license, you need to complete a formal application. These documents contain sensitive information and can only be provided to qualifying applicants.
Please click here for Marriage/Civil Union License copy request form. NOTE: if you are requesting a certified copy of your marriage license for name change purposes, the Driver License office cannot accept an electronically certified copy.
Please click here for a DD214 copy request form. Copies of DD 214’s are restricted under federal law to the following parties:
The Douglas County Recording office cannot provide copies of Divorces/Dissolutions, Court Records, Water Court Findings, or Birth/Death Certificates. The Recording office will only have a record of Death Certificates that were recorded as part of a real estate transaction. Any death certificate recorded in our office will have personal information redacted before copies are given and a request form must be completed.
Recorded Document Copy Fees:
Once documents are recorded, they remain in the permanent records, even when they are satisfied. However, if you have questions as to whether or not the release for your mortgage has been sent by the mortgage company, please call the Public Trustee’s Office at 303-660-7417. All Releases of Deeds of Trusts (Mortgages) must be processed by the Public Trustee’s office before they can be recorded by the Recording office.
The legal description for a piece of property may be obtained from the Assessor’s office:
Phone: 303-660-7450
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.douglas.co.us/Assessor
The Assessor’s office can help you determine the taxing jurisdictions for a piece of property.
Phone: 303-660-7450
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.douglas.co.us/Assessor
The property tax bill for your home is sent by the Treasurer’s Office. Please feel free to contact them at 303-660-7455 or visit Douglas County Treasurer with any questions.
Property Assessments are handled by the Assessor’s office.
Phone: 303-660-7450
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.douglas.co.us/Assessor
The Assessor’s office can help you determine the owner of a piece of property.
Phone: 303-660-7450
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.douglas.co.us/Assessor
A grantor refers to either the seller of a property, the borrower of a mortgage/trust deed, or the person being charged with a lien. Generally, this is the person signing the document. A grantee refers to either the buyer of a property, the bank or lending institution, or the person filing a lien.
Land Survey Plats are deposited with the Recording Office. Deposited surveys are sent to the County Surveyor for verification. Once verified, they are returned to the Recording Office for permanent retention.
Plats of individual pieces of property are called Improvement Location Certificates (ILC’s) and those are obtained from the Building Division at [email protected] or 303-660-7497.
If you live within a municipality (Parker, Castle Rock, Lone Tree) please contact their Building Department about requesting an ILC.
Entities who need access to Douglas County’s records for business purposes have several options:
Public Document Access (PDA) – Requires a signed agreement for each user accessing Indexes back to 1983 and watermarked images from 1994 forward. Unwatermarked copies must be paid for at current rates. Subscriptions are $50 per year and the year runs from February 1st of each year through January 31st of the following year. Annual renewal letters are sent to all current users in December or January.
Bulk Data Subscription (FTP) – Provides subscribers with a secure username and password to an FTP server to download images and index files. Subscribers are charged for both index/image files even if they choose not to download one or the other. Historical images/indexes can be provided. A signed agreement and deposit are required.
Escrow Account – If a business would like to open an escrow account to use for copies or recording documents, they may do so by sending in a letter on company letterhead. Individuals allowed to charge copies must be identified. A minimum deposit of $100 is required.
