New York City Deed Records

Deed records in New York City span five boroughs and five counties. Unlike the rest of the state where county clerks handle land records, NYC uses the Automated City Register Information System (ACRIS) run by the Department of Finance. This system covers Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, and the Bronx. Staten Island works a bit differently, with the Richmond County Clerk maintaining its own records. Whether you need to search for a deed, file a new one, or trace ownership history, the city provides several ways to access these documents online and in person.

Which Office Handles NYC Deed Records

New York City is unique in all of New York State. The city spans five counties, and deed records for four of them are managed by the NYC Department of Finance through the Office of the City Register. The ACRIS system lets you search and file property records for Manhattan (New York County), Brooklyn (Kings County), Queens (Queens County), and the Bronx (Bronx County). Records in ACRIS go back to 1966.

Staten Island is the exception. The Richmond County Clerk keeps deed records for that borough. Those records are available online through a separate system and go back to 1945. So if you need a deed for a property on Staten Island, you go through the county clerk rather than ACRIS.

The NYC City Clerk's Office at 141 Worth Street in Manhattan does not handle deed records at all. That office deals with marriage licenses and vital records. Many people confuse the City Clerk with the recording office, but they are completely separate. All deed-related work goes through the Department of Finance or the Richmond County Clerk.

How to Search NYC Deed Records Online

The main way to search is through ACRIS. The system is free to use. You can search by property address, borough/block/lot (BBL) number, party name, document type, or document ID. Each search pulls up a list of recorded documents tied to that property or person. You can view and download PDF copies of deeds right from the results page.

A BBL search is the most reliable method. Every parcel in the city has a unique BBL number. If you know it, just enter the borough, block, and lot to see everything recorded against that parcel. Not sure of the BBL? Use the address lookup tool built into ACRIS to find it.

Party name searches work well too. Enter the name of a buyer or seller to find all documents they filed across the city. This is handy for finding someone who owns more than one property. You can also filter by document type and date range to narrow your results. For help with any part of the system, call (212) 487-6300 or email acrishelp@finance.nyc.gov.

Five Boroughs and Their Counties

Each borough corresponds to a county. Manhattan is New York County. Brooklyn is Kings County. Queens is Queens County. The Bronx is Bronx County. Staten Island is Richmond County. When you record a deed or search for one, the county matters because it determines which office and system you use.

Recording Fees and Transfer Taxes

Recording a deed in New York City involves several costs. The basic recording fee is $45 for the first page and $5 for each additional page. On top of that, you pay state and city transfer taxes. The New York State real estate transfer tax is $2 per $500 of the sale price. The city adds its own Real Property Transfer Tax (RPTT) at 1% for residential sales under $500,000 and 1.425% for those at or above $500,000. Commercial rates are higher.

Sales of $1 million or more trigger the mansion tax, which adds another 1% to the cost. The mortgage recording tax also applies when you file a new mortgage. NYC rates combine state and city portions, making the total higher than in most other parts of the state. For one- and two-family homes, the first $10,000 of mortgage debt is exempt from the additional tax component.

In four boroughs, you pay these costs through ACRIS using eCheck or credit card. Online payments cannot be split across multiple accounts. For Staten Island, payments go to the Richmond County Clerk.

Filing a Deed Through ACRIS

To record a deed electronically, you first register for an e-Record account on the NYC Department of Finance website. Then you prepare your documents as PDFs along with the required tax forms and a cover page. Upload everything, review it, and submit.

ACRIS has strict formatting rules. Pages must be no larger than 11 by 17 inches. PDFs must be black and white. No layers allowed. The recommended scan resolution is 300 DPI. The system converts all uploads to images for storage. A poorly formatted document could get rejected or show up with reduced clarity in the public record.

For property transfers in NYC (except Staten Island), you do not use the standard Form RP-5217. The transfer information is captured through the ACRIS system itself. Staten Island transfers require Form RP-5217-NYC, which is filed separately with the Richmond County Clerk.

Property Fraud Protection

NYC offers the Notice of Recorded Document Program to help property owners guard against deed fraud. When you sign up, the City Register sends you a notification any time a deed, mortgage, or related document is recorded against your property. This alert comes by email or regular mail. There is no fee to register or to get notifications.

You can also designate someone you trust to receive alerts on your behalf. A family member or attorney can monitor your property records without you having to check constantly. Signing up takes just a few minutes through ACRIS or the Department of Finance website.

Older Deed Records

ACRIS covers four boroughs from 1966 forward. Staten Island records go back to 1945 through the Richmond County Clerk. For anything older, you will need to do in-person research. The New York State Archives holds historical government records from across the state and may have older property documents. The New York State Library Digital Collections also includes scanned historical materials that could help with early property research.

Call the ACRIS Help Line at (212) 487-6300 to ask about the location of pre-1966 records for a specific borough. Some older records are on microfilm. Others may be stored at city archives facilities.

Legal Framework for NYC Deed Records

New York Real Property Law sets the rules for how deeds must be prepared and recorded. Under RPL Section 291, a deed must be recorded to protect the buyer's interest against later claims. RPL Section 333 covers the requirements for what a valid deed must contain, including the names of the parties, a property description, and proper acknowledgment. These rules apply across all five boroughs.

NYC also has its own local laws governing transfer taxes and recording procedures. The city's Administrative Code includes provisions for the RPTT and outlines the duties of the City Register. You can look up the full text of state property laws through the New York State Senate website or the Cornell Legal Information Institute.

Additional Resources

The NYS Municipal Data Portal provides property sales data for all of New York except NYC. For city sales data, use ACRIS instead. The portal still offers useful information about tax rates, equalization rates, and municipal profiles that apply to properties across the state.

Property owners in New York City should also check whether they qualify for the STAR property tax exemption. The NYS Department of Taxation and Finance has resources for homeowners including the Homeowner Benefit Portal where you can register for STAR, check your status, and manage your exemptions.

Nearby Cities

These neighboring cities also have deed records pages with information about their county recording offices:

• Yonkers
• Mount Vernon
• New Rochelle