Recording & Records Research

Public Meeting Quick Reference Guide

DOCUMENT RECORDING STANDARDS AND FEES

General Information Regarding Fees and Requirements

• A cover sheet, Recording Cover Sheet per SB 382, Re-Recording Cover Sheet, or Correction of Errors (Reconveyance Trustees Deed)containing all the required information, may be recorded for an additional fee.
• Recording Death Certificate Medical Information (2014)
  • Correction of Errors (Reconveyance Trustees Deed)

Military discharges (DD-214) or certified copies of same:  NO fee – Restricted record (SB 618)

• Request for Military Discharge Papers

RECORDING DOCUMENT REQUIREMENTS

ORS 205.232 states that a county clerk shall not accept a document for recording unless it meets the following requirements:

• Paper weight of not less than 20 lb. bond
• Document no larger than 8.5 x 14 inches
• Text size printed or written shall be at least eight point type

ORS 205.234 requires that the following information be on the first page of any document presented for recording, or on a cover sheet recorded with the document:

• Name(s) of transaction(s) – ORS 205.236
• Name(s) of all parties
• Name(s) and address of person to whom the document will be mailed
• Mailing address for future tax statements as required by ORS 93.030, if applicable
• True & actual consideration as required by ORS 93.030, if applicable
• Information required for County Clerk Lien Record as required by ORS 205.125(1)(c) and (e)

Documents that do not meet the above requirements will be charged an additional fee of $20 per ORS 205.327.

ORS 205.320(4)(b) requires a $5 per page (or side) fee
ORS 205.236 requires that an additional fee be charged for documents that contain more than one transaction.

Example:  Substitution of trustee & deed of reconveyance (one document)$81 first page + $5 additional transaction (+ $5 each additional page) One page $86.

ORS 205.320(12) requires a $5 fee for each additional assignment, satisfaction, or release, included in and made a part of one document.

COPY FEES

To request a copy by mail or e-mail:

• First page: $3.75
• Each additional page: $.25

Copies made in our office, not related to same day recording:

• Each page: $.25

Certified copies:

• First page:   $3.75
• Each additional page:  $.25

LEGIBILITY

If a document is rejected as “illegible” due to a notary and/or corporate seal or highlighting covering text, please re-do the document or consider the following options:

• If it is your opinion that the illegible information on the document is either unimportant or unnecessary, you may consider removing it or crossing it out. Please check with your legal counsel prior to doing so, the information may be required. If a form contains illegible text, a legible form of the same kind may be attached to the original, and it should state, “attached for legibility” somewhere on the attached page. Attaching extra pages will increase the total cost for recording. Notary must be original; photocopies cannot be recorded. Notary seals must not cover text or signatures on the document. A notary stamp that is blurred or faint is not acceptable for recording. You may write the information outside the seal border, or a new seal and/or acknowledgement can be affixed to compensate. (OAR 160-100-0000)
• Any highlighting of text or any other information on a document will cause the document to be rejected.

LEGAL DESCRIPTION REQUIRED FORM

• Subdivision name, lot and block; or
• Book and page or instrument number of a recorded deed where the legal can be found.
• Assessor’s map and tax lot number or account number is not acceptable as a legal description.

RECORDING A DOCUMENT

• Recording Fee Schedule
• You MUST provide a legible copy before your document is recorded.
• Any text of a document submitted for recording not sufficiently legible to reproduce a readable photographic record after the recording process will be returned without being recorded with an explanation of what is wrong.
• Flaps or riders must be attached to page on at least two sides. Anything under the flap or rider will not be recorded.
• The first page of the instrument must have a 2 inch border at the top of the page and 1-1/2 inch border along the other three sides.
• If this space is not provided, you will be charged for an extra page ($5).
• Document will be mailed back after recording.
• eRecording Services Harney County Clerk’s office offers electronic document recording (eRecording). This service allows you to record your documents more rapidly than if the documents are mailed. Documents must be submitted through a third-party vendor. In other words, we do not accept documents sent to us by email. Currently, Harney County has contracted with Simplifile, EPN and CSC.  Other interested vendors are welcome to contact our office. Those wishing to e-record documents with us can contact Simplifile, EPN or CSC at the numbers below, to set up an e-recording account.
• Simplifile – (800) 460-5657
• e-Recording Partners Network (epn) – 888-325-3365
• Corporate Service Company (CSC) – 866-652-0111

This office cannot:

• Give legal advice
• Provide blank forms Help fill out forms.
• Help fill out forms.
• Suggest what type of forms to use.
• Accept illegible, smeared documents which may not provide a readable scanned image Record documents other than those specified by Oregon Statutes.
• Provide birth, death and court records (including divorce decrees).

Records Research

Here is a link to Official Harney County Deed / Mortgage / Lien and Probate Record indices.

• Official Records1874-Present-Web Query
• Deed Index Books (1878 to1950)
• Research by Property

Harney County Deed Records are indexed back to circa 1950. Harney County’s on-line index is complete from circa 1951 thru today. Documents prior to 1951 may or may NOT appear in your search, as we are currently working on indexing the Historical Deeds. So, keep in mind, if the Deed record you are looking for is prior to 1951, and you do not find it in this index, please check with our office and a search through the historical index can be done.

Mortgage, Lien, and Probate Records are indexed back to 1984.<

All indexed records are current through today.

Copies will be made available by mail or e-mail, at a fee of $3.75 plus .25 cents per page. Certified copies of records are available for an additional $3.75.    For Copies of the documents, Please contact our office at 541-573-6641, or by e-mail at tammy.attleberger@harneycountyor.gov for copies of these records.

You may view documents in our office free of charge. Our staff will help you get started using the equipment and finding your information. We are located on the first floor of the Harney County Court House at 450 N Buena Vista, Burns.Our office does not do research over the phone. To search our records, you must come to our office in person, e-mail your request to tammy.attleberger@harneycountyor.gov, or mail in your request. Our mailing address is: Harney County Clerk, 450 N Buena Vista, Burns, Oregon 97720. When mailing a request, please include the Document number and the year of recordation. Please see recording fee schedule for recording and mailing costs. Please make checks payable to: Harney County Clerk. We cannot process your request without the correct payment.

If you are requesting a copy of a current deed and do not have the reference number, we can also search it by book and page number of deed book, or name of grantee or grantor and approximate recording date.  Questions?  Please call our office at 541-573-6641.