North Carolina Register of Deeds: Recording Fees, Excise Tax and Satisfaction Deadlines
Every North Carolina county charges the same recording fees and $1 per $500 excise tax. Rules for deeds, deeds of trust and the 30 day satisfaction deadline.
Quick answer
North Carolina registers of deeds charge uniform statewide fees: $26 for the first 15 pages of a deed and $64 for the first 35 pages of a deed of trust, plus $4 for each extra page. The excise tax on a deed is $1 for each $500 of value. A lender must submit a satisfaction for recording within 30 days of payoff, and recording it costs nothing.
Are North Carolina recording fees the same in every county?
Yes. North Carolina General Statute 161-10 says the fees a register of deeds collects for the duties of the office are uniform throughout the State. A deed recorded with the Mecklenburg County Register of Deeds in Charlotte costs the same to record as one recorded in Gates County, so the county does not change the fee schedule. What changes from county to county is the office itself: where it is, how far back its electronic index reaches and which cross references it keeps.
The register of deeds is a county office in each of North Carolina's 100 counties. It records deeds, deeds of trust, satisfactions, plats and related real property documents. Judgments are not recorded there. They are docketed with the Clerk of Superior Court, a separate office, under G.S. 1-234, so a title search has to look in both places.
What does it cost to record a deed or a deed of trust?
The fee schedule in G.S. 161-10 for the documents a buyer or lender meets most often:
| Document | Recording fee |
|---|---|
| Deed or most other instruments | $26 for the first 15 pages, plus $4 for each additional page or fraction |
| Deed of trust or mortgage | $64 for the first 35 pages, plus $4 for each additional page or fraction |
| A deed of trust that carries extra instruments | $10 for each additional instrument that could be recorded alone |
| Satisfaction or cancellation of a deed of trust or mortgage | No fee |
What do the fees add up to on a real purchase?
Take a $250,000 purchase with a 40 page deed of trust. The deed is a short document, so the recording fee is $26. The deed of trust runs five pages over its 35 page allowance, so the fee is $64 plus five times $4, which is $84. The excise tax on the deed is $1 for each $500, so 250,000 divided by 500 is 500, and the tax is $500. The recording fees and tax come to $610 before anything the closing attorney charges.
Take a $180,000 sale instead. The excise tax is $360. If the buyer pays cash, there is no deed of trust and the recording fee is only the $26 for the deed. The excise tax is part of the seller's cost: the statute says the transferor pays the tax to the register of deeds before recording the instrument.
What is the North Carolina excise tax on deeds?
If a parcel lies in two or more counties, the tax is paid to the register of deeds of the county where the greater part of the land, by value, lies. The register remits the proceeds to the county finance officer, who credits half to the county general fund and sends the rest to the state on a monthly basis.
Definition
Excise tax on conveyances — A tax of $1.00 on each $500.00 or fractional part of the consideration or value of an interest in real property conveyed, paid by the transferor to the register of deeds of the county where the land lies before the deed is recorded (G.S. 105-228.30).
How does a North Carolina deed of trust get satisfied?
The lender has 30 days
Under G.S. 45-36.9, a secured creditor must submit a satisfaction of a security instrument for recording within 30 days after it receives full payment or performance of the secured obligation.
Credit lines need a termination first
For a line of credit or future advances, the debt is fully performed only if the creditor has also received a request to terminate the line, a credit suspension directive or a clear notice that ends the future advances.
The lender can be liable
A creditor that misses the deadline is liable to the landowner for actual damages. If the landowner gives notice and the creditor still does not file within 30 days, the creditor owes $1,000 plus reasonable attorneys' fees and court costs.
Recording is free
G.S. 161-10 sets no fee for recording a satisfaction or any other cancellation of a deed of trust or mortgage.
The record still has to be read
A deed of trust with no recorded satisfaction is still a lien of record. A title search matches each deed of trust to its satisfaction, and lists the ones it cannot match for the buyer to chase.
Why does the order of recording matter in North Carolina?
G.S. 47-18 makes a deed, a deed of trust, a contract to convey, an option to purchase, a lease of land for more than three years and a few similar documents valid against lien creditors and purchasers for value only from the time of registration in the county where the land lies. The document that is registered first generally wins. That is why a title search is a search of registration order, and why a document signed a week ago but not yet recorded is a risk worth checking.
HeritageDeed searches the register of deeds in the North Carolina counties it covers, including Mecklenburg, Durham, Forsyth, Cumberland, Pitt, Iredell, Catawba and Onslow. The North Carolina state page lists every county. Judgments docketed with the Clerk of Superior Court are not searched.
Frequently asked questions
- How much does it cost to record a deed in North Carolina?
- The register of deeds charges $26 for the first 15 pages and $4 for each additional page. The fee is set by statute and is the same in every county. The seller also pays the excise tax of $1 per $500 of value.
- What does a deed of trust cost to record in North Carolina?
- A deed of trust or mortgage costs $64 for the first 35 pages, plus $4 for each additional page or fraction. A deed of trust that bundles extra instruments adds $10 for each one.
- Who pays the North Carolina excise tax on a deed?
- The transferor, which is usually the seller. The tax is $1 for each $500 of value and is paid to the register of deeds before the deed is recorded.
- How long does a lender have to record a satisfaction in North Carolina?
- Thirty days after full payment or performance. A lender that misses the deadline is liable for the landowner's actual damages and, after notice, for $1,000 plus attorneys' fees and costs.
- Does the register of deeds record judgments?
- No. Judgments are docketed with the Clerk of Superior Court under G.S. 1-234, so a lien search has to include the court as well as the register of deeds.
- Is there a fee to record a satisfaction of a deed of trust?
- No. G.S. 161-10 sets no fee for recording a satisfaction or cancellation of a deed of trust or mortgage.
Legal references
Statutes and rules cited in this article.
- 1N.C. Gen. Stat. 161-10 (fees of the register of deeds)
- 2N.C. Gen. Stat. 105-228.30 (excise tax on conveyances)
- 3N.C. Gen. Stat. 45-36.9 (secured creditor to submit satisfaction)
- 4N.C. Gen. Stat. 47-18 (registration of conveyances and contracts)
- 5N.C. Gen. Stat. 1-234 (judgment docket and lien)
Cite this guide
APA
HeritageDeed. (2026, November 10). North Carolina Register of Deeds: Recording Fees, Excise Tax and Satisfaction Deadlines. https://heritagedeed.com/blog/north-carolina-register-of-deeds-fees-excise-tax-satisfaction
MLA
“North Carolina Register of Deeds: Recording Fees, Excise Tax and Satisfaction Deadlines.” HeritageDeed, November 10, 2026, heritagedeed.com/blog/north-carolina-register-of-deeds-fees-excise-tax-satisfaction.
Link (HTML)
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