How to contact us:
106 Fourth Avenue East
Polson, MT. 59860
Phone: (406) 883-7208 and 883-7210
Fax: (406) 883-7283

Hours: Monday thru Friday, 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
 

The Recording Department records or files all public documents pertaining to property in Lake County, as well as various miscellaneous documents. A document for recording must have a notarized signature and a full legal description, If applicable.

A document is recorded as quickly as possible. The date, time, fee, and recording number a re placed on the document as soon as it is presented for recording. The information is then entered daily into our computer index, scanned, and zipped to our web site. The images are converted to microfilm for archival purposes. Each week the original paper documents are returned to the address give when the document is recorded.

Click Here for New Recording Fees

7-4-2636. Standards for recorded documents -- exemptions. (1) Unless accompanied by the appropriate fee required in 7-4-2637, a document submitted for recording must:

(a) be legibly printed or typed in blue or black ink on white paper that is either 8 1/2 x 11 inches or 8 1/2 x 14 inches in size;

(b) provide the names of the parties to the conveyance on the first or second page of any document with more than one page;

(c) provide a description of the property if the document conveys an interest in real property;

(d) have all signatures, initials, dates, or handwriting in blue or black ink;

(e) except as provided in subsection (1)(f) and except for page numbers, initials, or other designations, have margins that are clear of all markings in the following dimensions:

(i) at least 3 inches at the top of the first page and at least 1 inch at the top of the second and any subsequent pages;

(ii) at least 1 inch on the bottom of each page;

(iii) at least 1/2 inch on the sides of each page; and

(f) include the name and mailing address of the person to whom the document is to be returned in the upper left-hand corner of the first page between the 1/2-inch side margins of each document submitted and may include legibly printed or typed transactional information.

(2) (a) Except as provided in subsection (2)(b), only documents submitted for recording and filing that conform to the provisions of this section are considered standard documents for the purposes of 7-4-2637.

(b) Documents that are acknowledged as having been executed prior to April 28, 2007, must be accepted for recording and considered standard documents, regardless of whether they conform to the provisions of this section.

(3) (a) An acknowledgment by a notary is exempt from the color and margin requirements of this section.

(b) Page numbers, the name and mailing address of the person to whom the document is to be returned, and other administrative information or designations may appear in the margins.

(c) If the notarial seal is made by impression of an embosser, the seal is exempt from the margin requirements of this section.

(4) An officially certified court or other government document, whether from an in-state or out-of-state office, is exempt from the provisions of this section.

Documents we record are:

• BILL OF SALE
• CORONER RECORDS
• DEEDS DISCHARGES Discharges from Military Service
• DECREES Court orders and Decrees
• CONTRACTS Contracts for deed
  Notices of Purchasers’ Interest and similar documentation Assignments of Interest in Contracts for deeds
• MORTGAGES Mortgages or Trust Indentures
  Deeds of Trust
  Mortgage Extension Agreements
  Mortgage Subordination Agreements
  Assignments of Mortgages, Deeds of Trust, etc.
  Appointments of Successor Trustee
  Notices of Trustee’s Sale
  Assignments of Beneficiary’s Interest
  Mortgage foreclosures or documents relating thereto
• POWERS OF ATTORNEYS
• RELEASES Satisfactions, Terminations or Deeds of Reconveyances
  Partial Reconveyances
  Partial Releases and Partial Satisfactions of Mortgages
  Termination of Trust Indentures, Deeds of Trust, etc.
  Notices of Cancellation and all documents relating thereto
• EASEMENTS Easements and Rights of Way
  (does not include “deeded” rights of way when land is being conveyed).
• LEASES Oil, Gas, Mineral, General

FILING DOCUMENTS

Filing a document costs$5.00 for the entire document. The original is retained in our office. It is indexed, scanned and microfilm is created for archival purposes. A filed document must have a original signature.

Documents we file include but are not limited to :

• FEDERAL TAX LIENS
• FINANCING STATEMENTS
  Amendments
  Continuations
  Terminations
  Partial releases
• LIENS, MECHANICS, ETC.
• LIEN RELEASES
• LIS PENDENS
• MINING CLAIMS
• MISCELLANEOUS
• NOTICES OF RIGHT TO CLAIM A LIEN
• OIL AND GAS LEASES
• PLATS
• SURVEYS
• BIRTH AND DEATH RECORDS

The Clerk and Recorder’s Office is where you can get copies of Births in the State of Montana. Death records for deaths that occurred in Lake County can also be obtained.

Certified Birth Certificates are available for $5.00 for a paper copy.

Montana law allows a certified copy of a birth certificate to be issued to the registrant, the registrant’s spouse, children, or parents. A guardian or an authorized representative may also receive copies upon proof of their authority. GRANDPARENTS, FORMER SPOUSES, OR A FATHER WHO’S NAME DOES NOT APPEAR ON THE BIRTH RECORD, ARE NOT AUTHORIZED TO RECEIVE COPIES.