HB427: HB427 Property; notice to owner and deed holder when another deed is filed by another party; provide

Currently, a deed, mortgage, or lien can be recorded with a county superior court clerk without the property's owner being notified, which has raised concerns about fraudulent property transfers. HB 427 addresses this by adding a new Georgia law (O.C.G.A. § 44-2-2.1) requiring clerks to notify the owner or deed holder of record within 15 business days whenever someone other than the owner files such a document, and to hold the filing for 45 days unless the owner formally objects in a notarized affidavit. The waiting period would not apply to filings by attorneys, title insurance agents, banks, mortgage lenders, government officials, licensed land surveyors, or the owner personally, among other exceptions. The bill also updates the state's electronic deed-filing rules, pushing back a self-filer electronic filing requirement from January 1, 2025 to January 1, 2026, and makes small edits to clerks' duties around electronic and paper recordkeeping. The law would take effect January 1, 2026.

• Creates a new 45 day waiting period before a superior court clerk records a deed, mortgage, or lien filed by someone other than the property's owner or deed holder of record.
• Requires the clerk to notify the owner or deed holder of record by mail or electronically within 15 business days when such a filing is made.
• Lets the owner stop the recording by submitting a notarized affidavit within 45 days of the notice, though other legal remedies remain available if they miss that window.
• Exempts filings by attorneys, title insurance agents, banks, credit unions, mortgage lenders, government officials, land surveyors, and the property owner from the notice and waiting period.
• Shields clerks of superior court from liability for good faith discretionary decisions in handling these filings.
• Delays the state's mandatory electronic self-filing requirement for deed, lien, and plat recordings from January 1, 2025 to January 1, 2026.

Property owners and deed holders across Georgia, clerks of superior court who process real estate filings, and professionals who regularly file deeds, mortgages, or liens on others' behalf, including attorneys, title insurance agents, banks, credit unions, mortgage lenders, land surveyors, and government officials.

If someone other than the true owner tries to file a deed or lien on a property, often a sign of fraud, the owner would now get a notice and a 45 day window to object before the filing becomes final, giving them a chance to catch and stop unauthorized transfers before they take effect.

• Section 1 revises O.C.G.A. § 44-2-2 to push the mandatory electronic self-filing deadline for deed, lien, and plat documents from January 1, 2025 to January 1, 2026.
• Section 2 adds new Code Section 44-2-2.1, creating the 45 day waiting period and owner notification requirement for third-party filings on real property.
• Section 2 lists 11 exemptions from the notice and waiting period, including filings by attorneys, insurance agents, banks, mortgage lenders, government officials, land surveyors, and owners themselves.
• Section 2 grants clerks of superior court immunity for good faith discretionary acts related to these filings.
• Section 3 revises O.C.G.A. § 44-2-38 to update clerks' authority over electronic document handling, removing a prior requirement that clerks accepting electronic filings must also continue accepting paper documents.
• Section 4 sets the effective date as January 1, 2026.
• Section 5 repeals conflicting laws.

1. 2025-04-04House Withdrawn, Recommitted (House)
2. 2025-02-26House Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute (House)
3. 2025-02-18House Second Readers (House)
4. 2025-02-13House First Readers (House)
5. 2025-02-12House Hopper (House)

• Teddy Reese (D, HD-140)Primary sponsor
• Gerald Greene (R, HD-154)
• Tyler Smith (R, HD-018)
• Joseph Gullett (R, HD-019)
• Phil Olaleye (D, HD-059)

• property deed fraud
• real estate recording
• title fraud protection
• county clerk procedures
• electronic filing