State records guide

Title research in New Hampshire

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

What a New Hampshire title search has to account for

Where are New Hampshire deeds recorded?

Every deed, court order or other instrument that affects title to real estate, except probate records and the tax liens the law exempts from recording, is recorded at length in the registry of deeds for the county where the land lies. An unrecorded instrument is not effective against a bona fide purchaser for value, under the statute linked above.

The state is divided by statute into 10 counties, and a parcel that lies in more than one county is recorded in each of them. Because the recording statute reaches court orders as well as deeds, a chain of title can carry a divorce decree or an attachment in the same index as the conveyances. 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 does a power of sale foreclosure work in New Hampshire?

A mortgage with a power of sale can be foreclosed without a suit or a decree of sale. The statute linked above has the lender give the notices the power requires, publish notice once a week for 3 successive weeks with the first publication at least 20 days before the sale, and deliver a foreclosure deed when the sale is complete. A copy of the notice goes to the mortgagor at least 25 days before the sale, or 45 days for a residential mortgage, and to each lienholder of record at least 21 days before, if the lien was recorded at least 30 days, or 50 days for a residential mortgage, before the sale.

The owner's protection sits before the auction. The notice tells the mortgagor of the right to petition the superior court to enjoin the sale, and failing to bring that petition and complete service before the sale bars any later action of the mortgagor based on the validity of the foreclosure. The redemption statute lets the mortgagor redeem after default by paying everything the mortgage secures together with the damages and costs of the default, but only before foreclosure, and a claim by the mortgagor or a record lienholder challenging the notice or the conduct of the sale is barred after one year and one day from the recording of the foreclosure deed. 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 a New Hampshire tax lien?

Collectors have two routes. Section 80:20 lets the collector sell real estate when the tax is not paid on or before December 1 after assessment, and section 80:59 makes the real estate tax lien procedure available only where the municipality has adopted it; a lien imposed under that procedure has priority over all other liens.

Under the lien procedure, section 80:76 has the collector, after 2 years from the execution of the lien, deed the land not redeemed to the lienholder, after at least 30 days' notice to the current owner and to mortgagees of record under sections 80:77 and 80:77-a. The governing body may refuse a deed to the municipality because of environmental liability, or other obligations it judges contrary to the public interest, and the lien and the redemption right then continue. Until the deed, any person with a legal interest may redeem by paying the collector the lien with interest at 14 percent per annum from its execution. Section 80:80 bars a town from transferring a tax lien during the 2-year redemption period, or conveying tax-deeded land, unless authorized by vote, and then requires a public auction or advertised sealed bids.

For property acquired by tax deed on or after its effective date, section 80:88 limits the municipality's recovery on resale to back taxes, interest, costs and penalty, with any excess paid into the superior court within 60 days of settlement for distribution to the former owners and holders of recorded interests, and section 80:89 requires notice to the former owner at least 90 days before the town offers the property, with a right to repurchase on the terms it sets. 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 New Hampshire owner dies or divorces?

The recording statute exempts probate records from recording in the registry of deeds. 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.

On divorce, the statute linked above defines property to include everything belonging to either or both spouses whether title is in one name or both, and the court presumes an equal division is equitable unless the statutory factors point elsewhere. The recording statute makes a court order affecting title effective against a bona fide purchaser only once recorded. The report states the recorded deed or decree it finds, and an attorney reads the effect.

Does a New Hampshire condominium lien come ahead of the mortgage?

A condominium association perfects its lien for unpaid assessments by filing a memorandum in the registry of deeds within 6 months after the assessment became due and payable. Once perfected the lien is prior to other liens except real estate tax liens, liens recorded before the declaration, and sums unpaid on a first mortgage securing an institutional lender.

The exception is a limited priority for residential units. Regular monthly common assessments unpaid during the 6 months before the memorandum is filed, with costs of collection including reasonable attorney's fees, come ahead of the first mortgage if the association sends the owner and the institutional lender, within 70 days of the delinquency, written notice that the account is at least 60 days delinquent, and sends the lender at least 30 days' notice of its intent to file the memorandum. That priority excludes special assessments, late charges, fines, penalties and interest. The report states any recorded association lien it finds, and the bidder's attorney reads its effect.

Which package fits a New Hampshire property?

Every package covers New Hampshire 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 New Hampshire title research