Why People File a Quitclaim Deed in Custer County
Just Got Married
After a wedding, adding a spouse to an existing title is usually quick — a quitclaim deed is the document that makes it official.
Going Through a Divorce
Divorce settlements decide who gets the property; a quitclaim deed is the separate step that actually updates the recorded title.
Inherited Property
Estates get settled in probate, but the title itself often still needs a quitclaim deed to formally reflect the new owner.
Gifting to Family
Some people use a quitclaim deed to gift a share of the property to a child or sibling, well ahead of any estate planning.
About the Custer County Clerk and Recorder
Custer County was established in 1877 and named for Gen. George Armstrong Custer, who had died at the Battle of the Little Bighorn the previous year. A silver strike in 1878 sparked a boom in Silver Cliff, which by the 1880 census had grown to roughly 5,000 residents — briefly making it Colorado's third-largest city, behind only Denver and Leadville. Silver Cliff served as county seat from 1886 until 1928, when the seat shifted to neighboring Westcliffe as mining gave way to the ranching and agriculture that still define the Wet Mountain Valley today.
Cities and Communities Served
Recording jurisdiction runs countywide, not by city limits — if the property sits anywhere within Custer County, this is the Custer County Clerk and Recorder that will accept the deed. That includes:
Incorporated cities: Westcliffe (county seat), Silver Cliff.
Unincorporated communities: Rosita (largely a ghost town), Colfax (ghost town).
Office Details
Address: 205 S 6th St, Westcliffe, CO 81252
Phone: 719-783-2441
Hours: Monday - Thursday, 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM (documents accepted for recording until 4:45 PM)
Recording Fee: a flat, statewide per-document recording fee set by state statute (which includes a small technology/records-modernization surcharge), plus a separate documentary fee calculated as a small percentage of the property's sale price on deeds transferring real estate for value
E-recording: Yes — Custer County is a live jurisdiction for Simplifile e-recording, and the county also provides online document access through iCounty.org.
Good to know before you go: Although the office is open until 5:00 PM Monday through Thursday, documents for recording must be submitted by 4:45 PM to be processed that day, and the office is closed on Fridays.
How to File a Document
- Sign in Front of a Notary: Colorado requires the grantor's signature to be acknowledged before a notary public before the Custer County Clerk and Recorder will accept a deed for recording. No witnesses are required beyond the notary, and the grantee doesn't need to sign at all -- just the person giving up their interest in the property.
- Attach a Full Legal Description, Not Just an Address: A street address alone won't satisfy Colorado's requirements -- the deed needs the property's actual legal description (a metes-and-bounds description, a government survey reference, or a platted lot and block, depending on how the parcel was originally surveyed). You can usually copy this directly from the deed that transferred the property to you.
- Complete a Real Property Transfer Declaration (TD-1000): Colorado requires a separate Real Property Transfer Declaration (TD-1000) to accompany most deeds when they're filed, signed by the buyer or seller. It's a distinct form with its own signature, not a box you check on the deed -- the Custer County Clerk and Recorder can provide the current version and confirm whether your situation qualifies for an exemption.
- Consider Online Notarization if an In-Person Visit Is Hard: Colorado has permitted remote online notarization since Senate Bill 20-096 took effect on December 31, 2020 (C.R.S. § 24-21-514.5) -- so if getting to a notary's office in person is inconvenient, a signer may be able to complete the acknowledgment over live video with a Colorado-commissioned online notary instead.
- Record with the County Clerk and Recorder: Bring, mail, or (where the county supports it) e-file the signed, notarized deed and its Transfer Declaration with the Custer County Clerk and Recorder for the county where the property sits. Colorado's recording fee is set by state statute -- a flat rate per document -- and on top of that, Colorado charges a documentary fee calculated as a small percentage of the sale price, separate from the flat recording fee.
Still Have Questions About Filing With the Custer County Clerk and Recorder?
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Other Counties in Colorado
Filing somewhere else in the state? Here are a few other county pages:
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