Deed Guides
How to Add a Spouse to a Florida Deed
Direct answer
Adding a spouse to a Florida deed takes a new deed, not a rewrite of the old one. The current owner conveys to both spouses — often as tenants by the entirety. Time to Close Title usually prepares that transfer as a quitclaim deed, sometimes searched as a quick claim deed. If the house is homestead, Florida law generally requires the spouse to join the conveyance even when only one name is on the current title. The grantor signs before two witnesses and a notary. The legal description, not just the street address, has to be on the instrument. We prepare the deed. The client records it with the clerk of the county where the land sits. A deed does not add anyone to the mortgage or take anyone off the loan.
Key takeaways
- A new recorded deed adds the spouse. You do not amend the deed already in Official Records.
- Married Florida owners often take title as tenants by the entirety.
- Homestead usually means both spouses join the deed, even if only one is on title now.
- Time to Close Title prepares the quitclaim. The client records it with the county clerk.
- The mortgage and the note do not change because a name was added to the deed.
Can you just add a name to the deed you already recorded?
No. The clerk does not edit a recorded deed. A new instrument has to be signed, witnessed, notarized, and recorded. That new deed is what title examiners will read after the current owner.
The usual path is a quitclaim deed from the current owner to the owner and the spouse. A warranty deed is the tool for an arm's-length sale, not for adding a spouse after marriage.
| Item | On the new deed | Not changed by the deed |
|---|---|---|
| Ownership in Official Records | Spouse can be added as an owner | The old deed is not rewritten |
| Homestead | Spouse often must join the conveyance | Homestead tax exemption is a separate filing |
| Mortgage / note | Does not add the spouse to the loan | The lender can still require the original borrower to pay |
| Title insurance | A search is still worth doing | The existing owner's policy may not name the new spouse |
Why does the spouse often have to sign, even to be added?
Florida homestead is not only a tax exemption. The Florida Constitution generally requires the owner of homestead, joined by the spouse if married, to convey that homestead. That is why a spouse who is not on the current deed still appears on many of the deeds we prepare.
Tell us if the property is your permanent residence, if either of you has a prior marriage or a trust, and who is on the last recorded deed. Skipping joinder is how a later sale or refinance finds a defect.
New deed
The clerk records a new instrument. The old one stays as it was.
2 + notary
The grantor signs before two witnesses and a notary.
You record
Time to Close Title prepares the quitclaim. The client records it.
How do you add a spouse, step by step?
Start with the last recorded deed and the legal description. Street address alone is not enough. If the file is in Hernando County, that deed is in Official Records with the clerk in Brooksville — see our Hernando County page.
Florida documentary stamp tax can still be due. A gift is not automatically stamp-free. If a mortgage remains, stamps may be calculated on the unpaid balance. We do not invent those amounts. Ask for a written estimate before you sign.
Confirm current vesting and homestead
Who is on the last deed, whether this is homestead, and how the couple should take title — often tenants by the entirety.
We prepare the quitclaim
Grantor, grantees, consideration, and the full legal description go on a new deed. See [quitclaim deed services](/quitclaim-deeds).
Sign, witness, and notarize
The grantor signs before two witnesses and a notary. The spouse often joins if the property is homestead. We can arrange that.
You record it
The client records the deed with the clerk of the county where the land sits and pays any documentary stamp tax and the clerk's fee.
Does the mortgage or title insurance change?
No on the loan. Adding a spouse to the deed does not put that spouse on the note and does not take the original borrower off. If the loan itself has to change, that is a refinance, not a deed-only file. Tell the lender you are transferring to a spouse. Federal due-on-sale rules generally protect a transfer to a spouse, but the servicer still needs the facts from you, not from a guess.
An existing owner's title policy names the insured. The new spouse is not automatically the same insured. After the deed is recorded, ask whether a new owner's policy or an update makes sense. A quitclaim does not promise clear title.
Can Time to Close Title prepare the deed?
Yes. We prepare Florida quitclaim deeds to add a spouse, and we can arrange witnessing and notarization. The client records the deed. Call (352) 792-1214 or contact us from our Spring Hill office at 3087 Anderson Snow Road.
Frequently asked questions
Can I write my spouse's name on the old deed?
No. Official Records are not edited. A new deed has to be signed, notarized, and recorded.
Do both spouses have to sign to add one spouse to title?
Often yes on homestead. Florida generally requires the spouse to join a conveyance of homestead even when that spouse is not on the current deed.
Does adding a spouse to the deed add them to the mortgage?
No. The note and the mortgage stay with the people who signed them unless the lender refinances or formally assumes the loan.
What kind of deed is used to add a spouse in Florida?
Usually a quitclaim deed from the current owner to both spouses. Time to Close Title prepares it. The client records it.
Where is the new deed recorded?
With the clerk of the county where the property sits. Hernando County Official Records are in Brooksville. We prepare the deed; you record it.