Why People File a Quitclaim Deed in Benewah County
Just Got Married
Just got married and want your spouse's name on the title? A quitclaim deed is the standard way to add them — no sale, no mortgage payoff, just an updated deed on file with the county.
Going Through a Divorce
Going through a divorce and need an ex's name off the title? A quitclaim deed handles that cleanly, once your settlement or court order says who keeps the property.
Inherited Property
Inherited property from a family member? Depending on how the estate was handled, a quitclaim deed may be how ownership formally moves into your name.
Gifting to Family
Adding an adult child to the title, or gifting property to family outright? A quitclaim deed is the usual way to make that transfer official.
About the Benewah County Auditor-Clerk (recording function performed by this combined office)
Benewah County was created on January 23, 1915 out of land partitioned from Kootenai County, and is named for a historic chief of the Coeur d'Alene Tribe. St. Maries, its county seat, developed as a timber and river-shipping town at the confluence of the St. Joe and St. Maries Rivers, and logging remains central to the county's identity alongside the Coeur d'Alene Reservation lands that cover a large share of the county.
Cities and Communities Served
Recording jurisdiction runs countywide, not by city limits — if the property sits anywhere within Benewah County, this is the Benewah County Auditor-Clerk (recording function performed by this combined office) that will accept the deed. That includes:
Incorporated cities: St. Maries, Plummer, Tensed.
Unincorporated communities: De Smet, Fernwood, Santa, Emida, Chatcolet.
Plummer and Tensed sit within the Coeur d'Alene Indian Reservation, home to the federally recognized Coeur d'Alene Tribe; land status there can affect which recording/title rules apply, so parcel-specific questions in that area are worth a direct call to the office.
Office Details
Address: 701 W College Ave, #101, St. Maries, ID 83861
Phone: (208) 245-3212
Hours: 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. (posted as Pacific time)
Recording Fee: Recording fees are set by Idaho state statute and charged per document rather than based on property value, with a base fee for standard instruments and per-page charges for longer documents.
E-recording: Simplifile
How to File a Document
- Sign in Front of a Notary: Idaho law requires a deed to be acknowledged before a notary public before the Benewah County Auditor-Clerk (recording function performed by this combined office) can record it (Idaho Code § 55-805). The deed is actually valid between you and the person you're transferring to as soon as it's signed and delivered — the notarized acknowledgment is what makes it eligible for recording, which is the step that protects you against someone else claiming the property later.
- Give the Grantee's Full Mailing Address: Idaho requires the deed itself to state the complete mailing address of the person receiving the property, not just their name. This is a simple detail that's easy to miss and a common reason a deed gets sent back.
- Attach a Full Legal Description, Not Just an Address: A street address alone isn't enough — Idaho deeds need the property's actual legal description (the metes-and-bounds, government survey, or platted-lot description used in the county's own records). You can usually copy this directly from the deed that transferred the property to you.
- Consider Online Notarization if an In-Person Visit Is Hard: Idaho has allowed remote online notarization since 2020, so if getting to a notary's office in person is difficult, a signer may be able to complete the acknowledgment through video with an Idaho-commissioned online notary instead.
- Record with the County Recorder: Bring, mail, or (where the county supports it) e-file the signed and notarized deed with the Benewah County Auditor-Clerk (recording function performed by this combined office) for the county where the property sits. Idaho charges a flat recording fee set by state statute and based on the document and page count, not a percentage of the property's value — and unlike some states, Idaho has no separate real estate transfer tax or transfer declaration form to file alongside the deed.
Still Have Questions About Filing With the Benewah County Auditor-Clerk (recording function performed by this combined office)?
Ask below and get an instant answer on Idaho quitclaim deeds.
Other Counties in Idaho
Filing somewhere else in the state? Here are a few other county pages:
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