State records guide

Property title search in Kentucky

Facts below are taken from Kentucky statutes and official sources, each linked, each checked on the date shown. General information, not legal advice.

What a Kentucky title search has to account for

Where are Kentucky deeds recorded?

Section 382.110 has deeds, mortgages and other instruments required by law to be recorded, to be effectual against purchasers without notice or creditors, recorded in the county clerk's office of the county in which the property conveyed, or the greater part of it, is located. The Montgomery County Clerk page linked above says its real estate recordings department houses all land records for that county, including deeds, mortgages, tax liens and plats.

Kentucky has 120 counties, and the Census Bureau guide linked above notes that two are not considered functioning because they have consolidated governmental functions with an incorporated place. The report traces the chain of title as far back as the county's records go, with document images of the key instruments, and verifies findings with the assessor, tax office, recorder and courts.

How is a Kentucky mortgage foreclosed?

The Kentucky Court of Justice page linked above describes master commissioners as officers appointed by the circuit judge to help manage judicial sales at the county level, including court-ordered property sales such as foreclosures.

Section 426.530 gives a redemption right after some court-ordered sales: if real property sold under a judgment or order of a court, other than an execution, does not bring two-thirds of its appraised value, the defendant and the defendant's representatives may redeem it within six months from the day of sale by paying the original purchase money and ten percent per annum interest, with the reasonable costs the section allows. 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 to unpaid property taxes in Kentucky?

Under the Department of Revenue page linked above, unpaid tax bills move from the sheriff to the county clerk, ordinarily at the close of business on April 15, become certificates of delinquency and are liens on the property. Section 134.122 also allows a filing date under an alternative collection schedule and extra working days in a consolidated local government. Beginning in mid-July the clerk offers certificates for sale to third party purchasers, after advertising the list in the local newspaper at least 30 days ahead.

Interest accrues on the total due at 1% per month, and the Department of Revenue page lists a 10% county clerk fee and a 20% county attorney fee; section 134.504 pays a county attorney that 20% when collecting under a contract with the department. The page says substantial additional fees are applied by a third party purchaser, that the owner must work with that purchaser to arrange payment, and that an installment plan can be requested. Under section 134.546, an action to collect on a certificate may be brought after one year from the date the taxes became delinquent and must be brought within eleven years, and property sold under a foreclosure judgment carries the redemption right of section 426.530. The report verifies tax sales and redemptions with the tax office and states the surviving liens, taxes and assessments in dollars.

How does title pass when a Kentucky owner dies?

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 recorded deed. Section 391.360 makes a written provision for a nonprobate transfer on death in a conveyance or deed of gift nontestamentary.

Section 392.020, as amended effective July 15, 2026, gives the surviving spouse of a spouse who died intestate, in addition to the share under section 391.010, a life estate in one-third of any real estate the other spouse was seized of in fee simple during the marriage but not at the time of death, unless that right was barred, forfeited or relinquished. On divorce, section 403.190 has the court assign each spouse's property to that spouse and divide the marital property in just proportions, and it presumes property acquired after the marriage is marital regardless of how title is held. The report states the recorded deed or decree it finds, and an attorney reads the effect.

Which package fits a Kentucky property?

Every package covers Kentucky 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 Kentucky