South Dakota Quitclaim Deed
Transfer your interest in a South Dakota property — between family, into a trust or LLC, or after a divorce — and download a print-ready PDF with South Dakota’s signing rules built in. Free, no signup.
Maintained by Rapi Stack · Every state-specific figure on this page is cited to its statute or official agency page · Dataset last verified 2026 · Not legal advice.
South Dakota deed rules · as of 2026
- Witnesses (besides notary)
- None — notary only
- Where to record
- County Register of Deeds (SDCL 43-28-1 — 'must be recorded by the register of deeds of the county in which the real property... is situated')
- Transfer tax
- Yes — see below
Source: SDCL 43-25-26 · verify ↗. A deed moves real property — have someone qualified review it before you sign, and record it promptly.
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South Dakota signing & recording
No — in South Dakota the grantor's notarized signature is enough; no separate witnesses are required (SDCL 43-25-26 — acknowledgment is the standard; proof by a subscribing witness is only an ALTERNATIVE when the grant 'is not duly acknowledged', as of 2026). SDCL 43-25-26 — 'The execution of a grant of an estate in real property... if it is not duly acknowledged, must, to entitle the grant to be recorded, be proved by a subscribing witness' (i.e., acknowledgment before a notary entitles the deed to record); recording per SDCL 43-28-1. Record the signed deed with the County Register of Deeds (SDCL 43-28-1 — 'must be recorded by the register of deeds of the county in which the real property... is situated'). Transfer tax: Real estate transfer fee: $0.50 per $500 of value, paid by the grantor (SDCL 43-4-21); exemptions (SDCL 43-4-22) include spouse and parent-child transfers for nominal consideration, corrective deeds, distributions from estates — no blanket gift exemption for unrelated parties. Check the current South Dakota deed rules before recording.
Married? If the property is (or may be) your homestead, your spouse may need to sign the deed even if they are not on title — several states require it, and a deed missing that signature can be rejected for recording or invalid. Use the “Co-grantor / spouse” field above to add their signature line, and check your state’s rule before recording.
Existing mortgage? Transferring mortgaged property can trigger the loan’s “due-on-sale” clause. Federal law (12 U.S.C. §1701j-3(d), the Garn–St Germain Act) bars lenders from enforcing it for several transfers of residential property with fewer than five dwelling units — including a transfer to the borrower’s spouse or children, a transfer resulting from a divorce decree, and a transfer into an inter vivos (living) trust in which the borrower is and remains a beneficiary. The loan itself stays in place either way — nobody is released until it is refinanced. Read the statute ↗
Frequently asked questions
Does South Dakota require witnesses on a quitclaim deed?
No — in South Dakota the grantor's notarized signature is enough; no separate witnesses are required (SDCL 43-25-26 — acknowledgment is the standard; proof by a subscribing witness is only an ALTERNATIVE when the grant 'is not duly acknowledged', as of 2026). SDCL 43-25-26 — 'The execution of a grant of an estate in real property... if it is not duly acknowledged, must, to entitle the grant to be recorded, be proved by a subscribing witness' (i.e., acknowledgment before a notary entitles the deed to record); recording per SDCL 43-28-1.
Where do I record the deed in South Dakota?
With the County Register of Deeds (SDCL 43-28-1 — 'must be recorded by the register of deeds of the county in which the real property... is situated') where the property is located. Recording is what makes the transfer visible to the world — an unrecorded deed can be valid between the parties but lose to a later buyer or lender who records first. Take the original signed deed, pay the recording fee, and keep the returned stamped copy.
Is there a transfer tax in South Dakota?
Real estate transfer fee: $0.50 per $500 of value, paid by the grantor (SDCL 43-4-21); exemptions (SDCL 43-4-22) include spouse and parent-child transfers for nominal consideration, corrective deeds, distributions from estates — no blanket gift exemption for unrelated parties. Check the current rate and exemptions before recording — the recorder will not accept the deed without the required tax forms or stamps.
How does South Dakota compare? See the deed witness requirements in all 50 states, every rule cited to statute.
How South Dakota compares
Computed from our 51-jurisdiction dataset (as of 2026). Source for South Dakota: SDCL 43-25-26 ↗.
- South Dakota is one of 38 of 51 jurisdictions that charge a transfer or documentary tax when a deed is recorded (13 charge no state transfer tax on deeds).
- Witnesses required (beyond the notary)
Witnesses required (beyond the notary): 0, exactly the national median.
This is the most common figure nationally — shared by 45 other states.
Witnesses required (beyond the notary) in neighboring states — Iowa (0), Minnesota (0), Montana (0), Nebraska (0), North Dakota (0), Wyoming (0). Every neighboring state with a rule matches South Dakota.
The rest of what South Dakota requires
The figures below are South Dakota's, not national averages — each one is the value we verified for this state, with the statute it comes from. Follow a row to the full South Dakota page for that document.
- Security deposit cap · as of 2026
- 1 month's rent S.D. Codified Laws §43-32-6.1 & §43-32-24 ↗
- Deposit return deadline · as of 2026
- 14 days after move-out S.D. Codified Laws §43-32-6.1 & §43-32-24 ↗
- Notice to end a month-to-month tenancy · as of 2026
- 30 days S.D. Codified Laws §43-32-6.1 & §43-32-24 ↗
- Small claims limit · as of 2026
- $12,000 SDCL 16-12C-13 (jurisdictional limit); SDCL ch. 15-39 (small claims procedure) ↗
- Where you file · as of 2026
- Small claims procedure in Magistrate Court / Circuit Court (SD Unified Judicial System) · filing fee $24.84 to $42.84 all-in by claim size per the official UJS schedule: up to $100 = $24.84; $100.01-$1,000 = $30.84; $1,000.01-$3,999.99 = $40.84; $4,000-$12,000 = $42.84; add $11.84 per additional defendant (totals include certified-mail service). SDCL 16-12C-13 (jurisdictional limit); SDCL ch. 15-39 (small claims procedure) ↗
- Rental application fee · as of July 2026
- No statutory limit South Dakota Codified Laws ↗
- Bill of sale notarization · as of 2026
- Not required South Dakota DMV (Form MV-016) ↗
- Power of attorney signing · as of 2026
- Notarization required S.D. Codified Laws §59-12-4 (form §59-12-41) ↗
- LLC operating agreement · as of 2026
- Not required by statute, but it controls over the default rules SDCL §§ 47-34A-101(14), 47-34A-103 ↗
Quitclaim deed in other states
More South Dakota legal forms
Different state? See quitclaim deeds by state →