The Recorder's Office was originally created in 1860 as an office to "keep books for entering deeds". This duty has expanded to include a vast array of documents and services. The Recorder's Office maintains all official real estate documents and provides retrieval and reproduction of these records for the public and businesses.
Click the links below for more information and to download forms.
Responsibilities/Documents
- Document Formatting Standards
- Search Iowa Land Records Online
- Declaration of Value (DOV) Form
- Deeds
- Mortgages
- Contracts
- Bills of Sale
- Releases & Assignments
- Surveys & Corner Certificates
- Affidavits
- Federal & State Tax Liens
- Easements
- Military Service Records
- Trade Names (must print as legal size doc)
- Condemnations
- Leases
- Financing Statements
- Powers of Attorney
- Articles of Incorporation
- Social Security Duplicate
- Drainage Agreements
- Groundwater Hazard Forms
Vital Records
DNR Licenses/Registrations
- Boat Registrations, Titles, Liens
- Snowmobile Registration, Titles, Liens
- OHV Registrations, Titles, Liens
- Hunting Licenses
- Fishing Licenses
- Habitat, Duck & Trout Stamps see page 12 at link
- Fur Harvester Licenses
- Deer Licenses
- Turkey Licenses
Recording Documents
The Iowa fees to file a document in the Recorder's Office are: $7.00 for the first page of any document (a page being a one sided document), plus $5.00 for each additional page, plus a $5.00 Auditor's transfer fee on all transfer documents for each Section or Block in the legal description of the property being transferred. Fees are made payable to Franklin County Recorder.
E-Submission with Iowa Land Records
E-Submission with Iowa Land Records from Iowa Land Records on Vimeo.