An Arkansas warranty deed is a document that transfers real estate and backs the transfer with the seller’s legal promise that the title is good. It gives the buyer more protection than a quitclaim deed, which passes along only whatever interest the seller happens to hold. To be valid in Arkansas, the deed has to be signed correctly, witnessed or acknowledged, and recorded in the right county. Miss any of those steps and the buyer’s ownership can be attacked later.
What a Warranty Deed Guarantees
When a seller signs a warranty deed, they promise the buyer that they actually own the property, have the right to sell it, and are handing it over free of undisclosed liens, mortgages, or other claims that aren’t listed in the deed itself.1Justia. Arkansas Code 18-12-102 – Transfer by Deed – Warranty They also promise the buyer can occupy the property without someone else showing up with a better claim to it. If any of those promises turn out to be false, the seller is financially responsible, and the buyer can enforce that responsibility years after closing.
That’s the core difference from a quitclaim. A warranty deed puts the seller on the hook for title problems. A quitclaim deed does not.
The Three Types Used in Arkansas
Arkansas recognizes three warranty deeds. They differ in how far back the seller’s promises reach.
General Warranty Deed
The strongest form. The seller guarantees the title against every defect in the property’s history, even ones that arose before they owned it. If a boundary claim from decades ago resurfaces, or a forgotten heir appears, the seller who signed a general warranty deed has to deal with it. This is the standard deed in most residential sales.
Special Warranty Deed
The seller’s promises cover only the time they owned the property. Anything older is the buyer’s problem. Special warranty deeds show up most in commercial deals and in transfers from estates, banks selling foreclosed property, and corporate entities. A buyer accepting one should pay for a full title search and title insurance to fill the gap.
Statutory Warranty Deed
Arkansas Code 18-12-102 creates a shortcut. Any deed using the words “grant, bargain, and sell” automatically carries certain covenants by law, even if the deed doesn’t spell them out: that the seller owns the property, that it’s free from encumbrances caused by the seller, and that the buyer will have quiet enjoyment.1Justia. Arkansas Code 18-12-102 – Transfer by Deed – Warranty
One catch worth knowing. The statutory warranty does not cover improvement district taxes or assessments. Those pass to the buyer, who becomes responsible for installments coming due after closing unless the deed says otherwise.1Justia. Arkansas Code 18-12-102 – Transfer by Deed – Warranty In counties with active road or drainage districts, that surprise can be expensive.
When a Spouse Has to Sign
Even if only one spouse is on the title, Arkansas law often requires both to sign the deed. This is where deals fall apart later.
For homestead property, there’s no wiggle room. Arkansas Code 18-12-403 says no deed, mortgage, or other instrument affecting a married person’s homestead is valid unless the other spouse joins in signing and acknowledging it.2Justia. Arkansas Code 18-12-403 – Conveyance, Etc., of Homestead A homestead deed signed by only one spouse can be voided.
For non-homestead property, Arkansas still recognizes dower and curtesy, which give a non-owning spouse a potential future interest in the other spouse’s real estate. A deed signed without that spouse’s consent isn’t automatically void, but it leaves a cloud on the title. Under Arkansas Code 28-11-203, that inchoate dower or curtesy interest is barred only after the deed has been recorded for at least seven years.3Justia. Arkansas Code 28-11-203 – Right of Dower and Curtesy Barred The clean solution is to have the non-owning spouse sign at closing and release those rights.
Signing the Deed Correctly
The seller signs the deed. The buyer does not, because the promises run from seller to buyer.
Arkansas Code 18-12-104 requires the seller either to sign in front of two disinterested witnesses, or to acknowledge the deed to two such witnesses who then sign it themselves.4Justia. Arkansas Code 18-12-104 – Execution of Deeds If a witness signs later rather than at execution, the date of that witness’s signature has to appear next to it.
Before the county clerk will record the deed, it also needs a formal acknowledgment. Arkansas Code 16-47-107 provides the acknowledgment forms.5Justia. Arkansas Code 16-47-107 – Acknowledgment Forms In practice, a notary handles this: they confirm the seller’s identity and that the signature is voluntary. When more than one person owns the property, each one signs and acknowledges separately.
The seller has to be at least 18 to convey real estate in Arkansas.6Justia. Arkansas Code 9-26-103 – Ownership of Property by Persons 18 Years of Age or Older Deeds signed on behalf of a trust or business entity usually need extra paperwork, such as a resolution or affidavit proving the signer has authority.
Recording the Deed
Once the deed is signed, witnessed, and acknowledged, it goes to the circuit clerk in the county where the property sits.7Justia. Arkansas Code 14-15-402 – Instruments to Be Recorded Recording puts the transfer into the public record and gives everyone else notice that ownership has changed.
Fees are set by statute: $15 for the first page and $5 for each additional page.8Saline County, AR. Recording Fees and Requirements A typical two- or three-page warranty deed runs $15 to $25.
Formatting the Document
Recorders reject deeds that don’t meet formatting rules. The document must be on 8.5-by-11-inch paper, with a 2.5-inch margin at the top right of the first page reserved for the recorder’s file mark, half-inch side and bottom margins, and a 2.5-inch bottom margin on the last page. Font size has to be at least 11 points, and the deed needs a title, the names of the seller and buyer, and text that stays legible when scanned.9Fulton County AR Government. Recording Standards
Record Right Away
Delay is dangerous. Arkansas Code 14-15-404 says an unrecorded deed is not valid against a later buyer who pays fair value and has no actual knowledge of the earlier sale.10Justia. Arkansas Code 14-15-404 – Effect of Recording Instruments – Subsequent Purchasers If your seller sells the same property to someone else before you record, and that second buyer had no idea about your deal, you can lose the property. Recording immediately shuts that risk down.
Real Property Transfer Tax
Arkansas charges a transfer tax, often called the deed stamp tax, when a deed is recorded. The rate is $3.30 per $1,000 of actual consideration for any transfer over $100.11Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration. Miscellaneous Tax Descriptions On a $200,000 sale that’s $660.
A Real Property Transfer Tax Affidavit of Compliance goes in with the deed at recording. It lists the names and addresses of buyer and seller, the transfer date, the county, and the full sale price, and the person filing it certifies under penalty of false swearing that the correct stamp amount has been paid.12Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration. Real Property Transfer Tax Affidavit of Compliance Form
Several transfers are exempt:
- Transfers to or from the United States, the State of Arkansas, or their agencies and political subdivisions.
- Documents given solely to secure a debt, such as a mortgage or deed of trust.
- Deeds between spouses dividing marital property in a divorce, by agreement or court order.
- Transfers between corporations, partnerships, LLCs, or other business entities incident to a reorganization, merger, or liquidation.
- Transfers where the total consideration is $100 or less.
- Transfer-on-death beneficiary deeds filed under Arkansas Code 18-12-608.
- Deeds filed solely to correct or replace a previously recorded instrument where the tax was already paid.
To claim an exemption, mark the right category on the affidavit instead of paying the tax.12Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration. Real Property Transfer Tax Affidavit of Compliance Form Choosing the wrong category won’t void the deed, but it can prompt the recorder to hold up the filing until it’s cleared up.