New statewide requirements for recording documents affecting real property to begin Jan. 1
Currently, in order to qualify for recording, documents affecting real property which require a witness must have the witness’s signature and the witness’s name legibly printed, typewritten, or stamped beneath the signature. Beginning Jan. 1, 2024, legislation passed in 2023 will also require the witness’s address to be legibly printed, typewritten, or stamped on the document. “Even with this new requirement, the potential for the recording of a fraudulent document remains,” said Gary Cooney, Lake County Clerk of the Circuit Court & Comptroller. “While fraud will likely never be eliminated, Lake County citizens can take advantage of my office’s free notification system which was established in 2018. That system will inform citizens if a document using their name is recorded in the Official Record of Lake County.” Anyone wanting to register with the notification system may do so online. The system will allow any person to provide up to five variations of their name. When any document with any of the five variations is recorded, the system will notify the registered user via email. The registered user can then determine if the document concerns the user, and if so, take early appropriate action. All documents recorded in the Official Record of Lake County since the creation of the county in 1887 may be searched online. |
TAVARES, FL — Effective Jan. 1, additional information will be required on documents affecting real property, which are submitted for recording.