How an order runs
The same steps run for every order.
- 01
The address is matched to its parcel
The order form checks that the address is in a county we cover before you pay. The search then finds the official parcel: borough, block and lot in New York City, and the parcel number from the county or state parcel layer elsewhere. A parcel is accepted only on a matching house number and street; when several parcels share an address with nothing to tell them apart, the order is refused rather than guessed.
- 02
The owner of record comes first
Parcel and owner sources run before anything else, because the land-records and court searches need the parcel number and the owner's name. In Durham and Forsyth counties, where the tax roll can lag a recent sale, a recorded deed out of the listed owner is followed to the new owners.
- 03
Every other source is searched in parallel
Land records, tax and assessment data, federal courts, city agencies in New York City, and the flood and environmental layers are queried at the same time. Each source has its own time limit and retries; a source that fails is reported as failed, never as clean.
- 04
Each loan is matched to its release
Mortgages and deeds of trust are paired with their satisfactions or releases by the recorder's own cross-reference where the index has one, as in New York City, Cook County, Hillsborough, Forsyth and Horry. Elsewhere the pairing uses the parties, the dates and the property's description, and a pairing the record does not settle is marked as uncertain.
- 05
Open items follow fixed rules
A loan counts as open only when no release is recorded for it. Loans granted by an earlier owner before the latest sale, and old loans followed by a refinance, are listed for you to verify rather than counted as open. Documents tied to the property only by the owner's name are marked as name matches, and court cases, which are found by name, are listed for you to confirm.
- 06
Delivery depends on the critical sources
If a source the report cannot do without fails (the land records or the tax and owner roll), the report is held and retried instead of being sent. If a supporting source fails, the report is delivered and names the gap. A report that is not delivered within 24 hours can be refunded in full.
- 07
The summary is written last
An AI model writes a plain-English summary and a 1 to 10 risk score from the records already in the report. The report tells you to verify every statement against the source records that follow it, and a rule-based summary built from the same records is used when the model is unavailable.
Official sources, county by county
The government offices each county's report reads, and what it checks there. Full detail, including what each county's report does not cover, is on its county page.
- CourtListenerFederal district and bankruptcy court records, matched to the owner's name
- FEMA National Flood Hazard LayerFlood zone of the parcel
- EPA EnvirofactsEPA-listed sites near the parcel
NYNew York
Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens County and The Bronx
- NYC Department of Finance, Office of the City Register Records deeds, mortgages and other property documents for Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx; searchable in ACRIS
- ACRIS (Automated City Register Information System) Free online index and images of recorded documents
- NYC Department of Finance, Property Information Portal Owner on the tax roll, tax class, assessed value and property tax charges
- Deeds, mortgages, satisfactions, assignments and UCC fixture filings in ACRIS
- Property tax charges and the NYC tax lien sale list from the Department of Finance
- Water and sewer charges from the Department of Environmental Protection
- HPD housing violations, DOB violations and permits, and ECB/OATH penalties
- New York State court filings (eCourts) and federal court records matched to the owner
- FEMA flood zone and EPA-listed sites near the parcel
Staten Island (Richmond County)
- Richmond County Clerk Records Staten Island deeds, mortgages and other land documents
- ACRIS Carries a smaller share of Staten Island records than of the other four boroughs
- NYC Department of Finance, Property Information Portal Owner on the tax roll, tax class, assessed value and property tax charges
- Deeds, mortgages, satisfactions, assignments and UCC fixture filings in ACRIS
- Property tax charges and the NYC tax lien sale list from the Department of Finance
- Water and sewer charges from the Department of Environmental Protection
- HPD housing violations, DOB violations and permits, and ECB/OATH penalties
- New York State court filings (eCourts) and federal court records matched to the owner
- FEMA flood zone and EPA-listed sites near the parcel
Erie County
- Erie County Clerk Records deeds, mortgages and liens for Erie County
- Deeds, mortgages, satisfactions and liens recorded with the Erie County Clerk
- Owner of record and assessment from the New York State tax roll
- New York State court filings and federal court records matched to the owner
- FEMA flood zone and EPA-listed sites near the parcel
FLFlorida
Duval County
- Duval County Clerk of the Circuit Court Keeps the Official Records: deeds, mortgages, liens, lis pendens
- Duval County Property Appraiser Owner of record, parcel data, assessed values and sale history
- Official records of the Clerk of the Circuit Court: deeds, mortgages, satisfactions, liens and lis pendens
- Owner, parcel and sale history from the county property appraiser
- Florida court records and federal court records matched to the owner
- FEMA flood zone and EPA-listed sites near the parcel
Hillsborough County
- Hillsborough County Clerk of the Circuit Court Keeps the Official Records: deeds, mortgages, liens, lis pendens
- Hillsborough County Property Appraiser Owner of record, parcel data, assessed values and sale history
- Official records of the Clerk of the Circuit Court: deeds, mortgages, satisfactions, liens and lis pendens
- Owner, parcel and sale history from the county property appraiser
- Florida court records and federal court records matched to the owner
- FEMA flood zone and EPA-listed sites near the parcel
Brevard County
- Brevard County Clerk of the Circuit Court Keeps the Official Records: deeds, mortgages, liens, lis pendens
- Brevard County Property Appraiser Owner of record, parcel data, assessed values and sale history
- Official records of the Clerk of the Circuit Court: deeds, mortgages, satisfactions, liens and lis pendens
- Owner, parcel and sale history from the county property appraiser
- Florida court records and federal court records matched to the owner
- FEMA flood zone and EPA-listed sites near the parcel
Manatee County
- Manatee County Clerk of the Circuit Court Keeps the Official Records: deeds, mortgages, liens, lis pendens
- Manatee County Property Appraiser Owner of record, parcel data, assessed values and sale history
- Official records of the Clerk of the Circuit Court: deeds, mortgages, satisfactions, liens and lis pendens
- Owner, parcel and sale history from the county property appraiser
- Florida court records and federal court records matched to the owner
- FEMA flood zone and EPA-listed sites near the parcel
Pasco County
- Pasco County Clerk of the Circuit Court Keeps the Official Records: deeds, mortgages, liens, lis pendens
- Pasco County Property Appraiser Owner of record, parcel data, assessed values and sale history
- Official records of the Clerk of the Circuit Court: deeds, mortgages, satisfactions, liens and lis pendens
- Owner, parcel and sale history from the county property appraiser
- Florida court records and federal court records matched to the owner
- FEMA flood zone and EPA-listed sites near the parcel
Okaloosa County
- Okaloosa County Clerk of the Circuit Court Keeps the Official Records: deeds, mortgages, liens, lis pendens
- Okaloosa County Property Appraiser Owner of record, parcel data, assessed values and sale history
- Official records of the Clerk of the Circuit Court: deeds, mortgages, satisfactions, liens and lis pendens
- Owner, parcel and sale history from the county property appraiser
- Florida court records and federal court records matched to the owner
- FEMA flood zone and EPA-listed sites near the parcel
ILIllinois
Cook County
- Cook County Clerk, Recordings Records deeds, mortgages and liens since taking over from the Recorder of Deeds
- Cook County Assessor's Office Owner, parcel (PIN) and assessment data, plus parcel sales
- Deeds, mortgages, releases and liens recorded with the Cook County Clerk
- Owner, PIN and assessment from the Cook County Assessor, plus recorded sale history
- Federal court records matched to the owner
- FEMA flood zone and EPA-listed sites near the parcel
PAPennsylvania
Philadelphia County
- Philadelphia Department of Records Records deeds, mortgages and other real estate documents
- Office of Property Assessment (property.phila.gov) Owner, parcel and assessment data
- Deeds, mortgages, satisfactions and sheriff's deeds recorded with the Department of Records
- Owner and assessment from the Office of Property Assessment
- Federal court records matched to the owner
- FEMA flood zone and EPA-listed sites near the parcel
TXTexas
McLennan County
- McLennan County Clerk Records deeds, deeds of trust, releases and liens (Official Public Records)
- McLennan Appraisal District Owner, account and appraisal data
- Owner, property description and market value from the appraisal district roll (TxGIO StratMap parcels)
- Deeds, deeds of trust, releases and liens recorded with the McLennan County Clerk, searched by owner name and tied to the property by its legal description
- Federal court records matched to the owner
- FEMA flood zone and EPA-listed sites near the parcel
Harris County
- Harris County Clerk Records deeds, deeds of trust, releases and liens
- Harris Central Appraisal District (HCAD) Owner, account and appraisal data
- Owner, account and appraisal data from HCAD
- Deeds, deeds of trust and releases recorded with the Harris County Clerk
- Texas and federal court records matched to the owner
- FEMA flood zone and EPA-listed sites near the parcel
AZArizona
Maricopa County
- Maricopa County Recorder Records deeds, deeds of trust, releases and liens
- Maricopa County Assessor Owner, parcel (APN) and valuation data
- Owner, APN and vesting deed from the Maricopa County Assessor
- Deeds of trust, releases and liens recorded with the Maricopa County Recorder
- Federal court records matched to the owner
- FEMA flood zone and EPA-listed sites near the parcel
ARArkansas
Pulaski County
- Pulaski County Circuit Clerk Records deeds, mortgages and liens (the Circuit Clerk is the ex officio recorder in Arkansas)
- Pulaski County Assessor Owner, parcel and assessment data
- Deeds, mortgages, releases and liens recorded with the Pulaski County Circuit Clerk
- Owner and assessment from the Pulaski County Assessor
- Federal court records matched to the owner
- FEMA flood zone and EPA-listed sites near the parcel
NCNorth Carolina
Durham County
- Durham County Register of Deeds Records deeds, deeds of trust, satisfactions and liens; free online index of real estate records
- Durham County Tax Administration Owner, parcel and assessment data; property tax bills
- Owner, parcel number and the vesting deed's book and page from the county tax parcel (NC OneMap)
- The vesting deed read directly from the Register of Deeds' index, and deeds, deeds of trust, satisfactions, assignments, substitutions of trustee and foreclosure notices under the owner's name
- Liens and City of Durham code-enforcement orders recorded with the Register of Deeds, listed as name matches to verify
- Federal court records matched to the owner
- FEMA flood zone and EPA-listed sites near the parcel
Forsyth County
- Forsyth County Register of Deeds Records deeds, deeds of trust, satisfactions and other real estate documents; 201 North Chestnut Street, Winston-Salem; open 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday to Friday; free online search of the recorded index and images at forsythdeeds.com
- Forsyth County Tax Administration Owner, parcel and assessment data; property tax bills
- Owner, situs address and the vesting deed's book and page from the county tax parcel (NC OneMap)
- The vesting deed read directly from the Register of Deeds' index, and deeds, deeds of trust, satisfactions, assignments, substitutions of trustee and foreclosure notices under the owner's name
- Each deed of trust matched to its satisfaction through the index's own cross-references
- Liens and other notices recorded with the Register, listed as name matches to verify
- Federal court records matched to the owner
- FEMA flood zone and EPA-listed sites near the parcel
SCSouth Carolina
Myrtle Beach (Horry County)
- Horry County Register of Deeds Custodian of the county's land records: deeds, mortgages, plats and other recorded documents
- Horry County Register of Deeds records search The Register's online index of recorded documents by name, book and page, document type and legal description
- Horry County Assessor Appraises and lists all real property for taxation and maintains ownership information
- Owner of record, mailing address, legal description and the vesting deed's book and page from the county's public GIS parcel layer, and the situs address from its address-point layer
- The vesting deed read directly from the Register of Deeds' index by book and page, then deeds, mortgages, satisfactions, assignments and modifications under the owners' names
- Each mortgage's cross-referenced satisfaction, read from the Register's own related-document links
- Tax liens, mechanics' liens, condominium liens, child-support liens and foreclosure notices recorded with the Register, listed when indexed under the owner's name
- Federal court records matched to the owner
- FEMA flood zone and EPA-listed sites near the parcel
Measured results
Each county was tested on random samples drawn from its own parcel data, through the live searches, before it was offered. These are the documented runs, with their dates and samples.
Sample: 200 random single-family homes. Method: Live searches of the city's recorded documents and property data.
- 0 errors, after capping requests to the city's data API (11.5% failed under uncapped load)
- 5.5% returned no documents: parcels last sold before the 1974 start of the index, which reports now state
Sample: The same 200 random single-family parcels, run three times while the rules were fixed. Method: Live searches of the Assessor's parcel layer and the Recorder's public API.
- 0 errors on the shipped run
- Vesting deed not found on 1.0% of parcels (5.5% on the first run)
- Median 12.7 seconds per search
Sample: 200 random residential parcels (PINs). Method: Live searches of the Cook County Clerk's recordings, which are kept by PIN.
- 0 errors
- Loan amount found on 99% of open loans
- Median 1.3 seconds per search
Sample: 100 random single-family parcels. Method: Live searches of the Florida tax roll and the Duval Clerk's official records.
- 1 error, fixed afterwards
- Vesting deed found on 94%
- Median 3 seconds per search
Sample: 100 random one-family homes (New York property class 210). Method: Live searches of the state tax parcel layer and the Erie County Clerk's index.
- 0 errors
- Lien rows on 19% of reports: name-indexed tax warrants and judgments, flagged to verify identity
- Median about 8 seconds per search
Sample: 100 homes. Method: Live searches of the Pasco Clerk's official records.
- 0 errors
Sample: 60 homes. Method: Live searches of the Okaloosa Clerk's official records.
- 0 errors
Sample: 130 random residential parcels in Waco and nearby towns, a held-out sample not used for tuning (the last of seven runs). Method: Each address through the Census geocoder, the parcel search and the County Clerk's records search, with production time limits.
- 0 errors; owner resolved on 130 of 130
- Vesting deed found on 117 of 130 (90.0%); 78% to 90% across the strict runs, so a range rather than a point
- Median 9.7 seconds per search
- About 35 parcels inspected by hand against the Clerk's own index rows
Sample: 130 random single-family parcels, held out (the fifth of five runs, 630 parcels in all). Method: Sequential live searches of NC OneMap parcels and the Register of Deeds, with production time limits.
- 0 errors across all 630 parcels
- Final run: address resolved to its own parcel and owner on 129 of 130; vesting deed found on 129 of 130
- Address test on 400 more random parcels: 399 resolved to their own parcel, 0 to a wrong one
- Median 10.5 seconds per search
Sample: 110 random single-family parcels, held out. Method: Sequential live searches of NC OneMap parcels and the Register of Deeds, with production time limits.
- 1 error (0.9%): the Register stopped answering for about 75 seconds
- Owner resolved on 110 of 110; vesting deed found on 105 of 109 (96%)
- 8 reports checked by hand against a second search path: 7 matched on the first run, 1 defect found and fixed
- Address test on 400 random parcels: 400 resolved to their own parcel
Sample: 140 random residential addresses. Method: The full order path, each address as its own order.
- 0 scraper or source errors
- 137 of 140 resolved to a parcel; the other 3 were refused because several parcels share the address, never guessed
- Vesting deed read from the Register for 134 of 137
- Median 25 seconds per search (90th percentile 40 seconds)
- 8 reports checked by hand against the document pages and county layers
An error is a search that failed with a scraper or source fault. Resolved means the address returned its own parcel and owner. The vesting deed is the deed under which the owner holds title. These runs measure whether a search lands on the right parcel and finds the records; they are not an audit of every finding, and hand checks read the same public index a second way rather than an independent source. Code changed after several runs, so each figure stands for its date.
No measured figure is published here yet for the five New York City boroughs; Hillsborough, Brevard and Manatee counties in Florida; Harris County, Texas; or Pulaski County, Arkansas.
What no records search can tell you
- Only what is recorded or indexed. An unrecorded deed or easement, a boundary problem or anything only a survey would show is outside any records search.
- Names in the index. A document indexed under a misspelled, maiden or different name can be missed, and a namesake can be matched; name matches are marked so you can check them.
- Recording lag. Online indexes trail the paper record; Philadelphia's open data, for example, runs about six weeks behind.
- A missing release is not proof of an unpaid loan. Some lenders never record one, or record it under another name; such a loan is reported as open of record, which is what the record shows.
- County differences. Loan amounts, delinquent taxes and state court judgments are not available in every county. Each county page lists what its report does not cover.
- Forgery. A forged deed that was recorded looks like any other deed in the index.
- No legal judgment. The report says what the record shows; whether a title is marketable or insurable is for a title insurer or an attorney.
More in what an automated title search misses and is that mortgage actually open.
HeritageDeed provides public-record search reports only. Reports do not constitute title insurance, an attorney opinion of title, or a title insurance commitment.
