Deeds in Pennsylvania
Types of Deeds
{{| class="wikitable" valign="top" style="background-color:#98FB98;"
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| style="width: 25%;" align="center;" style="background:#3CB371;"|National Type
| style="width: 25%;" align="center;" style="background:#3CB371;"|Local Name
| style="width: 25%;" align="center;" style="background:#3CB371;"|Primary Use
| style="width: 25%;" align="center;" style="background:#3CB371;"|Source of Form
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| General Warranty Deed||General Warranty Deed||[rarely used]||Common Law
|-
| style="width: 25%;" valign="top"| Special Warranty Deed
| style="width: 25%;" valign="top"| Special Warranty Deed
| style="width: 25%;" valign="top"| (1) Commercial
(2) Residential
| style="width: 25%;" valign="top"| Common Law
|-
| Fiduciary Warranty Deed||Fiduciary Warranty Deed||(1) Estates||Common Law
|-
| Bargain and Sale Deed||N/A||N/A||N/A
|-
| style="width: 25%;" valign="top"| Quit-Claim Deed
| style="width: 25%;" valign="top"| Quit-Claim Deed
| style="width: 25%;" valign="top"| (1) Railroad
(2) Utilities
| style="width: 25%;" valign="top"| Common Law
|-
| style="width: 25%;" valign="top"| Foreclosure Deed
| style="width: 25%;" valign="top"| Sheriff's Deed
| style="width: 25%;" valign="top"| (1) Mortgage Foreclosures
(2) Judgment Executions
| style="width: 25%;" valign="top"| Common Law (Deed Poll)
|-
| style="width: 25%;" valign="top"| Other
| style="width: 25%;" valign="top"| Statutory Short Form
| style="width: 25%;" valign="top"| [rarely used]
| style="width: 25%;" valign="top"| 21 P.S. § 1
|}
- NOTE: The Statutory Short Form of Deed is almost never used. It can be changed into any type of common Deed above simply by changing the Warranty language. In conjunction with this Statutory Short Form Deed were statutes permitting the substitution of Common Law warranty language with shorter phrases contained in the statutes. These are occasionally used, but are still not as common as the Common Law forms of warranties.
Execution of Deeds
| Witness | Grantor | Not required, but blanks for witness are customarily included in most deeds. |
| Grantee | N/A. | |
| Marital Status | Grantor | Not required, but customarily included. |
| Grantee | Not required, but customarily included. | |
| Marital Rights | Common Law Dower | Abolished. |
| Common Law Curtesy | Abolished. | |
| Statutory Dower | N/A. | |
| Community Property | N/A. | |
| Homestead | N/A. | |
| Equitable Distribution | A non-titled spouse is normally not required to sign any deed. In the event of a pending divorce between the titled and non-titled spouse, the non-titled spouse must join in the conveyance to waive any claim to the potential equity in the property. |
Types of Deeds
| National Type | Local Name | Primary Use | Source of Form |
| General Warranty Deed | General Warranty Deed | ? | ? |
| Special Warranty Deed | Special Warranty Deed (Most Often used) | ? | |
| Fiduciary Warranty Deed | Executor's Deed Administrator's Deed |
? | ? |
| Bargain and Sale Deed | ? | ? | ? |
| Quit-Claim Deed | Quit Claim Deed (Rare) | ? | ? |
| Foreclosure Deed | ? | Mortgage | ? |
Execution of Deeds
| Witnesses | Grantor | Not Required |
| Grantee | ? | |
| Marital Status | Grantor | Not Required but preferred custom and practice |
| Grantee | ? | |
| Marital Rights | Common Law Dower | Abolished |
| Common Law Curtesy | Abolished | |
| Statutory Dower | No? | |
| Community Property | Not Recognized | |
| Homestead | No | |
| Equitable Distribution | ? |
