Minnesota Amends Recording Requirements Relating to Real Property

The Minnesota legislature passed House File 46, a bill concerning the recording of documents relating to real property. The amendments therein set forth new requirements and clarifications concerning the filing of certificates of value, recording, registration, use of electronic documents and other provisions affecting real estate.

Electronic Documents

Concerning the recording of electronic documents, the amendments clarify that an electronic signature satisfies the requirement that a document contain original signatures and additionally clarifies when an electronic document delivered to a recorder’s office in recordable form is considered recorded.

Certificate of Real Estate Value

The changes include an addition to Section 272.115, Subd. 7 which clarifies that a “certificate of real estate value is not required when the transfer is made by a deed in fulfillment of a contract for deed when the deed refers to a recorded contract for deed by document number or book and page and the consideration paid for the real estate described in the contract for deed.”

Determination of Boundaries

Section 508.671 includes amendments concerning the process to determine the boundaries between registered land which shares one or more boundaries with unregistered land.

An owner of registered land may now apply by a duly verified petition to have the boundary lines judicially determined, regardless of having one or more common boundary with registered or unregistered land. Additionally, an owner of unregistered land may now apply to have the boundary lines of the unregistered parcel judicially determined, provided the request affects adjoining parcels of registered land.

A petition for boundary determination must include a legal description of the adjoining lands, be recorded with the registrar of titles, be entered on the certificate title or recorded with the county recorded in the case of unregistered land and entered in the tract index.

The resulting order must be entered on all affected certificates of title and in the tract index for the affected abstract land. Additionally, a certified copy of the plat of the survey shall be filed with the registrar of titles and if boundaries on unregistered land are affected, also filed with the country recorder.

Directive by Examiner

Section 508A.71 Subd. 3 has been amended to clarify that by a written directive, the examiner of titles may order “the deletion of easements or other non fee interests which are terminated by their own terms or by written instrument” at the request of a registered owner or other person in interest.

Standard Documents

Section 508A.82 Subd. 1 regarding the fees charged by the registrar of title has been amended to reflect “for any certified copy of a certificate of title that states the date it is verified through, $10,” which previously read “for each certificate showing condition of the register, $50.”

 

View the full House File 46:

https://www.revisor.mn.gov/bills/bill.php?b=House&f=HF46&ssn=0&y=2017

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Margaret Wright, JD, is regulatory compliance director with CLA. She is a graduate of Stonehill College and earned her juris doctor at Suffolk University Law School. She is admitted to the Massachusetts Bar.

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