Why People File a Quitclaim Deed in Pitkin County
Just Got Married
If the goal is simply to add your spouse's name and nothing else about the property is changing, a quitclaim deed is the right, minimal document for that.
Going Through a Divorce
A divorce settlement and a title update are two different things — a quitclaim deed is what connects them.
Inherited Property
If a sibling is signing over their inherited share to you, a quitclaim deed is the typical document used for that.
Gifting to Family
A property given informally within a family for years sometimes still needs a quitclaim deed to formally catch the title up.
About the Pitkin County Clerk and Recorder
Aspen began in 1879 as a silver-mining camp originally called Ute City, and Pitkin County was carved out in 1881, named for then-governor Frederick Walker Pitkin. Silver fortunes and rail connections briefly made Aspen the nation's leading silver producer, but the Panic of 1893 gutted the local economy and shrank the county's population by nearly two-thirds within a few years. The county reinvented itself first around agriculture and, after the 1927 completion of the Independence Pass highway, around tourism -- a transformation that turned Aspen and Snowmass Village into one of the country's best-known ski and resort economies.
Cities and Communities Served
Recording jurisdiction runs countywide, not by city limits — if the property sits anywhere within Pitkin County, this is the Pitkin County Clerk and Recorder that will accept the deed. That includes:
Incorporated cities: Aspen (county seat), Snowmass Village, Basalt (partial - straddles the Pitkin/Eagle county line).
Unincorporated communities: Woody Creek, Old Snowmass (Snowmass), Redstone.
Basalt sits mostly in Eagle County; only a small portion of the town lies within Pitkin County.
Office Details
Address: 530 East Main Street, Suite 104, Aspen, CO 81611
Phone: 970-429-2716
Hours: Monday - Friday, 8:30 AM - 4:30 PM
Recording Fee: a flat statewide per-document recording fee set by Colorado state statute, plus a separate documentary fee calculated as a percentage of the sale price when property is conveyed for consideration, with certain transfers exempt
E-recording: Pitkin County accepts e-recording through Simplifile, CSC, ePN (eRecording Partners Network), and Indecomm Global Services
Good to know before you go: Pitkin County's Recording Department operates out of Suite 104 at 530 E. Main St. in Aspen and offers both walk-in service and scheduled appointments for recording documents; the department can also be reached directly at 970-429-2716 or recordingdepartment@pitkincounty.com rather than the county's general clerk line.
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 Pitkin 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 Pitkin 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 Pitkin 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 Pitkin County Clerk and Recorder?
Ask below and get an instant answer on Colorado quitclaim deeds.
Other Counties in Colorado
Filing somewhere else in the state? Here are a few other county pages:
You are not on the official Pitkin County government website. ColoradoQuitclaimDeed.com is a privately owned website and is not affiliated with any government agency.