The ten ways a recorder says no.
Every rejected document is a second courier run, a second set of fees, and a gap in the chain of title while the clock runs. These are the ten defects that send instruments back — ranked by how often they actually do it.
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The single largest category. Missing acknowledgment, a blank or mismatched venue, an expired commission or no expiration shown, a seal that is illegible or stamped over text and signatures, a notary name that does not match the seal, or the wrong certificate form for the state.
Miscounted pages, missed per-page overage, non-conforming page surcharges, multiple-instrument or additional-reference fees, and missed state and county add-ons such as affordable-housing fees or e-filing surcharges. A shortfall of one dollar rejects exactly like a shortfall of one hundred.
Amount missing, declaration unsigned, no city tax stated where one applies, an exemption claimed without citing the statute, or a zero-dollar tax with no stated reason. In California, a missing PCOR — or one whose sales price contradicts the deed.
No blank top-right block for the recorder’s stamp, side or bottom margins too tight, type below the minimum size, a page size other than letter or legal where required, colored paper or non-black ink, double-sided pages where prohibited, and stapled or bound originals.
No “Recording Requested By,” no “Return To” address, no “Mail Tax Statements To,” or a preparer statement without a complete name and address. The cheapest defect on this list to prevent, and one of the most frequently missed.
No legal description at all, a street address standing in for one, an Exhibit A referenced but never attached, a missing parcel or APN where the county requires it, or a legal that does not match the vesting deed or the certificate of title.
A grantor named differently than title was vested without an aka or formerly-known-as recital, a signature that does not match the typed name, an entity missing its correct suffix, a signer whose capacity or title is not shown for an entity or trust, or marital status omitted where the state requires it.
Assignments, releases, satisfactions, modifications and subordinations that fail to cite the book and page or instrument number of the document they affect — or that cite a number which does not exist, or which was recorded in a different county.
The state-specific layer: Maryland lien certification and its expiration window, New York RP-5217 and TP-584, Minnesota CRV, Illinois PTAX-203 or MyDec, Washington REETA, transfer-on-death and homestead affidavits, plus local certifications such as no-delinquent-taxes and municipal utility clearances.
Faint scans, gray or highlighted text that images solid black, handwriting over printed text, cut-off edges, skewed pages, and interlineations left uninitialed. In e-recording, add the wrong file type, oversized files, and pages that fail the county’s image standard.
Or before it. Either way the certificate cannot be corrected on the face of the document, and the instrument comes back.
A near-certain rejection with nothing to fix — only fees to pay a second time and days lost off the recording date.
Let someone else catch these before the county does.
We review every instrument against the receiving county's requirements before it is submitted, e-record where the county allows it, and walk it in where it does not.