Fayette County Recorder of Deeds: Search & Office

The Recorder handles recorded legal instruments. Other county offices handle property assessments, tax bills and court judgments.

Choose your task to reach the right resource without searching several websites.

The Recorder provides an online land-record search for deeds, mortgages and other recorded instruments.

The existing system allows free index searches for most documents recorded from 1950 onward. Most document images require paid access.

Which search field should you use?

Can you search by property address?

The online portal offers street-related search fields, but the Recorder’s official guidance says its document records are principally indexed by names.

Many older documents do not include a recognizable street address or tax parcel number.

For a reliable starting point, find the owner through Fayette County Tax Assessment. Then use that name in the deed index.

Fayette County’s Recorder says its land records begin in 1784.

Earlier property-history research may require records from Westmoreland County, which included this area before Fayette County was established.

Using the Online Archive Viewer

Fayette County provides a separate Archive Viewer with historical index images.

The county lists deed and mortgage indexes for 1950–1974, plan indexes for 1791–1988, and agreement indexes for 1854–1949.

The Archive Viewer is primarily for finding index references. It does not provide the corresponding document images for those indexes.

The office is located in the Fayette County Courthouse complex in downtown Uniontown. Check parking, building-entry and holiday arrangements before traveling.

The office records and preserves many kinds of documents related to real property.

Recording a deed involves more than signing it. Fayette County requires proper document identification, acknowledgment, parcel information and payment.

The Recorder does not prepare deeds or provide legal advice about ownership transfers.

1. Prepare the correct deed

   Verify the grantor, grantee, consideration, property description, signatures and acknowledgment.

   Use a Pennsylvania attorney or qualified settlement professional if the correct deed type is uncertain.

2. Find every required parcel number

   The county requires applicable Parcel Identification Numbers on the document’s first page.

   Obtain the correct PIN information through Fayette County Tax Assessment before recording.

3. Check the acknowledgment

   Make sure the acknowledgment contains the required location, date, appearing parties and notarial information.

   The acknowledgment date should not be earlier than the document date.

4. Confirm transfer tax or exemption

   State the consideration or the reason for an applicable realty transfer-tax exemption.

   A Pennsylvania Statement of Value may be required when that information is not included in the document.

5. Calculate the recording fees

   Include the correct instrument fee, applicable UPI charges, extra pages and any other required fees.

   Check the county’s current fee schedule before preparing payment.

6. Submit the original document

   Deliver or mail the completed instrument with the proper fees.

   If submitting by mail, include return instructions and a self-addressed stamped envelope.

The county’s fee schedule lists charges by document type. A deed, mortgage, release and subdivision plan may have different base fees.

Some instruments also require additional charges based on parcel count, number of pages, names or marginal notations.

The $20 parcel fee is not included in the displayed base fee for many applicable document types.

A deed affecting multiple parcels may therefore cost more than a similar deed covering only one parcel.

Pennsylvania real-estate transfers can be subject to state and local realty transfer taxes.

Fayette County’s Recorder lists a 1% state tax and a 1% local tax for applicable transfers.

The taxable value may depend on the consideration, fair market value, common level ratio and applicable legal exemptions.

This illustration excludes Recorder fees, UPI charges and other transaction costs.

It is not a closing estimate. The actual amount may differ because of the taxable value or a valid exemption.

Who pays the transfer tax?

Buyers and sellers often divide transfer-tax costs in their sale agreement.

The Recorder’s FAQ emphasizes that payment must be addressed at recording, regardless of how the parties agreed to divide the expense.

Statement of Value

A Pennsylvania Realty Transfer Tax Statement of Value may be required when the recorded deed does not provide consideration or an acceptable exemption explanation.

The county requires the original statement with an additional copy when applicable.

When you only know a street address, the Tax Assessment Office is generally the best starting point.

It maintains assessment and parcel information used to identify properties for recording and tax purposes.

Fayette County Tax Assessment Office

Address: 2 West Main Street, Suite 212, Uniontown, PA 15401

Phone: 724-430-1350

Office: Department of Assessment

Director of Assessments: Rebecca L. Cieszynski

Start by finding the deed in the online index and saving its recording reference.

If you need the document for personal research, an ordinary copy may be sufficient.

A bank, court or government agency may instead require a certified copy from the Recorder.

A certified copy confirms the recorded document copy. It does not establish that the property has clear title.

A mortgage can remain visible in the public records even after a borrower pays the loan.

The lender normally initiates the recording of a mortgage satisfaction.

Search for a satisfaction or release referencing the original mortgage before concluding that the lien remains outstanding.

Fayette County has announced a modernized recording and public-access system with a target launch date of December 1, 2026.

Planned improvements include faster document imaging, better online access, property-fraud notifications and additional electronic services.

The county says the new system will be technically capable of eRecording, but electronic submission is not planned to launch automatically on the modernization date.

Fayette County is preparing Fraud Guard, a free notification service for recording activity involving a registered name.

The county currently describes registration as coming soon. Do not assume an enrollment account is already active.

Once available, the service is intended to notify residents when a document is recorded under a monitored name.

Fraud alerts provide notice. They cannot prevent an instrument from being recorded or replace legal assistance.

These departments perform different functions. A deed may be recorded correctly even when an assessment, tax or court-related issue requires separate review.

These county resources provide the recording information, contact details and research tools used in this guide.