State records guide
Property title search in Connecticut
Facts below are taken from Connecticut statutes and official sources, each linked, each checked on the date shown. General information, not legal advice.
A Connecticut title search runs in the town clerk's land records, one of 169 towns. Mortgages are foreclosed in court, by strict foreclosure, a foreclosure by sale or, for first mortgages, a market sale. A collector's tax deed stays unrecorded while redemption runs, and an association lien can partly outrank earlier recorded mortgages.
What a Connecticut title search has to account for
| Where deeds are recorded | A Connecticut conveyance holds the land against anyone other than the grantor and the grantor's heirs only if it is recorded on the land records of the town in which the land lies. Source: Section 47-10, Connecticut General Statutes, checked 2026-11-06. |
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| Recording jurisdictions | Connecticut has 169 towns, the count used on the Department of Public Health's town offices page. Source: Connecticut Department of Public Health, town offices, checked 2026-11-06. |
| Mortgage foreclosure process | Connecticut mortgages are foreclosed in court. On the written motion of a party the court may order a foreclosure by sale instead of a strict foreclosure, and the statute also provides for a foreclosure by market sale for a first mortgage on the mortgagee's motion with the mortgagor's consent. Source: Section 49-24, Connecticut General Statutes, checked 2026-11-06. |
| Delinquent property tax sales | Within two weeks after the sale the collector executes a deed to the purchaser or the municipality and lodges it with the town clerk, where it stays unrecorded for six months from the date of sale while the redemption period runs. Tax lien assignments and collector's tax deed sales, with the redemption period of six months or sixty days, section by section. Source: Section 12-157, Connecticut General Statutes, checked 2026-11-06. |
| Redemption after a tax sale | The delinquent taxpayer, or any mortgagee, lienholder or other encumbrancer affected by the sale, may redeem not later than six months after the date of the sale, or within sixty days if the property was abandoned or meets conditions set by town ordinance, by paying the collector the taxes, interest and charges due at the sale, interest on the purchase price at eighteen per cent per annum, and the unrecovered municipal taxes, debts and charges the section lists. Source: Section 12-157, Connecticut General Statutes, checked 2026-11-06. |
| Marital property system | On dissolution, annulment or legal separation the Superior Court may assign to either spouse all or any part of the other's estate and may pass title to real property or order its sale when that is the proper mode to carry the decree into effect, and once the decree is recorded on the town land records it transfers title as if it were a deed. Connecticut community property, divorce assignment and surviving spouse share rules, section by section. Source: Section 46b-81, Connecticut General Statutes, checked 2026-11-06. |
| Common interest community lien priority | In an action to foreclose, the association's lien is prior to a first or second mortgage recorded before the assessment became delinquent to the extent of the budgeted common expense assessments for the nine months before the action was begun, excluding late fees, interest and fines, plus the association's costs and reasonable attorney's fees, with a notice condition on costs and fees. Source: Section 47-258, Connecticut General Statutes, checked 2026-11-06. |
Where are Connecticut deeds recorded?
At the town level. Section 47-10 says a conveyance holds the land against anyone other than the grantor and the grantor's heirs only if it is recorded on the land records of the town in which the land lies, and the state has 169 towns.
The town line, not the county line, decides where the search runs, and a parcel in two towns is searched in both towns' records. The report traces the chain of title as far back as the town's records go, with document images of the key instruments, and verifies findings with the assessor, tax office, recorder and courts.
How does a Connecticut strict foreclosure work?
Mortgages are foreclosed in court, and section 49-24 names three routes. On the written motion of a party, the court may in its discretion order a foreclosure by sale instead of a strict foreclosure, and sections 49-24a to 49-24g add a judgment of foreclosure by market sale for a first mortgage, on the mortgagee's motion with the mortgagor's consent.
In a strict foreclosure no sale is held; section 49-15 speaks of title having become absolute in an encumbrancer once the time to redeem has passed. Either way, the title search reads the judgment and the deed or certificate that followed it. An auction title report reports the foreclosing lien's position and the liens that would survive, in dollars, for the bidder's attorney.
What happens at a Connecticut tax sale?
When a collector holds a tax sale under section 12-157, the sale is not final at once. Within two weeks after the sale the collector executes a deed to the purchaser or the municipality and lodges it with the town clerk, where it stays unrecorded for six months from the date of sale, or sixty days in the cases the section lists.
The delinquent taxpayer, or any mortgagee, lienholder or other encumbrancer affected by the sale, may redeem not later than six months after the sale, or within sixty days if the property was abandoned or meets conditions set by town ordinance. Redemption means paying the collector the taxes, interest and charges due at the sale, interest on the purchase price at eighteen per cent per annum from the sale date, any taxes and debts owed to the municipality that the sale did not recover, and any additional charges under section 12-140. The report verifies tax sales and redemptions with the tax office and states the surviving liens, taxes and assessments in dollars.
How does Connecticut land pass at death or on dissolution?
A probate title search finds the decedent's property by name and reports vesting at death, how title passes, including joint tenancy, a trust or a life estate, and the liens to pay, starting from the vesting language on the last deed. Chapter 802b, checked for this page, contains the Uniform TOD Security Registration Act and no transfer on death deed for real property.
On dissolution, annulment or legal separation, section 46b-81 lets the Superior Court assign to either spouse all or any part of the other's estate, and pass title to real property or order its sale without any act by either spouse when in the court's judgment that is the proper mode to carry the decree into effect. A decree recorded on the town land records transfers title as if it were a deed. The report states the recorded decree or deed it finds, and an attorney reads the effect.
Why does a Connecticut common interest community lien matter?
Section 47-258 makes an association's lien prior to other liens except, among others, a first or second security interest recorded before the date the assessment sought to be enforced became delinquent. Even against those, in an action to foreclose, the lien has priority for an amount equal to the budgeted common expense assessments for the nine months before the action began, plus the association's costs and reasonable attorney's fees, excluding late fees, interest and fines.
The section also says that if the association fails to give the required written notice before suing to foreclose its own lien, the nine-month priority remains but does not include costs or attorney's fees. Whether a mortgage was recorded before the delinquency, and whether and when an action was filed, decide the order. The report states any recorded association lien it finds, and the bidder's attorney reads its effect.
Which package fits a Connecticut property?
Every package covers Connecticut property wherever it is recorded. Pick by situation:
- Probate law firm: Find every property a decedent held, how it was vested and what has to be paid before it passes. $595 per estate.
- Real estate law firm: A preliminary report with schedule-style exceptions and print-ready exhibits for your matter. $695 per property.
- Builders and developers: Multi-parcel research on access, easements, restrictions, mineral reservations and entity ownership. $995 first parcel.
- Auction buyer: Know the total cost to own, which liens survive the sale and whether to bid at all. $395 for 1 property.
- Home buyer: Confirm the seller owns the home and learn what has to be cleared before you pay. $449 per property.
- Home seller: Find the old mortgage, judgment or name mismatch before a buyer's title company does. $449 per property.
Questions about a title search in Connecticut
Which office records deeds in Connecticut?
The town clerk of the town where the land lies. Under section 47-10, a conveyance holds the land against anyone other than the grantor and the grantor's heirs only if it is recorded on the land records of that town. Connecticut has 169 towns, and a parcel in two towns is searched in both. The report traces the chain of title as far back as the town's records go.
Is Connecticut a judicial foreclosure state?
Yes. Section 49-24 provides for strict foreclosure, for a foreclosure by sale that the court may order on the written motion of a party, and, for a first mortgage, for a foreclosure by market sale on the mortgagee's motion with the mortgagor's consent. In a strict foreclosure no sale is held. The report states the foreclosing lien's position and the liens that would survive, and an attorney reads the judgment.
How long can a Connecticut owner redeem after a tax sale?
Under section 12-157, the delinquent taxpayer or any affected mortgagee, lienholder or encumbrancer may redeem not later than six months after the sale, or within sixty days if the property was abandoned or meets conditions set by town ordinance. The payment covers the taxes, interest and charges due at the sale, eighteen per cent a year on the purchase price, unrecovered municipal taxes and debts, and listed charges.
How does Connecticut divide property on divorce?
Under section 46b-81, the Superior Court on dissolution, annulment or legal separation may assign to either spouse all or any part of the other's estate, and may pass title to real property or order its sale when in its judgment that is the proper mode to carry the decree into effect. A decree recorded on the town land records transfers title as if it were a deed.
Does a Connecticut association lien come ahead of the mortgage?
In part. Section 47-258 ranks the lien behind a first or second mortgage recorded before the assessment became delinquent, except that in a foreclosure action the lien has priority for an amount equal to nine months of budgeted common expense assessments, plus costs and reasonable attorney's fees, excluding late fees, interest and fines. Costs and fees lose that priority if the association skipped the required notice.
How many towns does a Connecticut title search have to cover?
Connecticut has 169 towns, and section 47-10 ties recording to the land records of the town where the land lies. The report identifies the town from the parcel, searches a second town when a parcel crosses a town line, and verifies findings with the assessor, tax office, recorder and courts.