If you made a mistake when drafting a deed for real estate in Michigan and have now recorded that deed, the error generally can be fixed in one of two ways. However, depending on the circumstances, a deed error may require a court order to remedy.
Michigan Deeds: Corrective Deeds & Affidavits of Error
Depending on what sort of error you’ve made, you may be able to fix the error with an Affidavit of Error.
An Affidavit of Error is a document drafted for recording with your Michigan County Register of Deeds that quickly corrects the record. It enables future title searchers to understand the state of ownership of the parcel, despite your error.
However, not every sort of error can be fixed with an Affidavit.
Recording Affidavits of Error: What Michigan Statute Says
Michigan’s Recording Affidavits Affecting Real Property Act states that the following types of errors may be corrected with an Affidavit:
- Errors and omissions relating to the proper place of recording;
- Scrivener’s errors and scrivener’s omissions.
Importantly, this Act also states that an Affidavit of Error is only valid if it “… does not alter the substantive rights of any party unless it is executed by that party.”
So, if you record a deed with the Wayne County Register that mistakenly references the Oakland County Register, an Affidavit of Error may be used to correct that mistake.
What is a scrivener’s error?
A scrivener’s error is essentially a mere typographical error that is not so significant as to trip over the prohibition above, altering the substantive rights of any party.
A misspelled street name in a Grantee’s address is an example of a scrivener’s error.
Corrective Deeds in Michigan
When an error is not a mere scrivener’s error, you must file a Corrective Deed to fix the problem instead.
A Corrective Deed is an entirely new deed that will replace the old, erroneous deed. It includes all of the correct information, references the erroneous, prior-recorded deed, and describes what was wrong with it.
A Corrective Deed can be used to fix a recorded deed, for example, where the Grantee’s name is misspelled or in other cases where the error is not a mere scrivener’s error or omission. (Misidentifying a Grantor or Grantee renders a deed defective and would not fall into the “scrivener’s error” spectrum.)
Where, however, the wrong party is inserted as Grantee entirely, or the error otherwise alters a party’s substantive rights, this is a bigger problem that neither an Affidavit of Error nor a Corrective Deed can fix.
Beyond Affidavits and Corrective Deeds
To continue with the above example, if you, for instance, accidentally transfer title to the wrong party entirely, a unilateral Affidavit or Corrective Deed will not fix the problem. You cannot record those documents because, at that point, you no longer own the property.
The other party does.
To fix that sort of problem, you will need to hope that the other party is reasonable. You will need to convince that accidental Grantee to sign a deed re-transferring the parcel back to you, so that you can re-record the deed you meant to record in the first place.
You will all need to worry about value uncapping and transfer taxes as well.
If the other party is not reasonable or—as has happened—happens to be a business that has been out of business for years or a person who is dead, you will need to institute a quiet title or other proceeding in the appropriate Michigan Circuit Court to obtain a court order re-titling the property to back to you.
Fixing Errors in Michigan Deeds: The Long Story Short
The long story short is that it is better to do something correctly the first time than it is to have to fix it later. Here, with regard to the recording deeds for real estate in Michigan, that is doubly true.
A Livonia, Michigan real estate attorney can help you ensure that your property transfer is conducted in accordance with state law—and with the right attention to detail. If you have already done-it-yourself and created a problem, a Livonia real estate lawyer presents your best odds of fixing the issue properly.
If it is a bigger error than you realize, you will need a lawyer to effectively obtain the Wayne County, Oakland County, or Macomb or Washtenaw County Circuit Court Order that is likely required.