Highland County Recorder: Deeds & Records

Highland County has an elected Recorder responsible for preserving public land records and indexing documents presented for recording.

The Recorder maintains documents affecting real-property interests. Property values, parcel records and conveyance processing are handled by other county departments.

Highland County provides an official land-record search through the Recorder’s website.

The public records system is powered by CountyFusion/Kofile and provides access to recorded property documents.

After opening: select CLICK HERE for Records Search, follow the portal’s access instructions and use the available search fields.

Find a recorded deed step by step

1. Open the county’s public-records portal.

   Begin on the official Recorder homepage and select Records Search.

2. Choose a public search option.

   Follow the CountyFusion login or public-access instructions shown on screen.

3. Enter a grantor or grantee name.

   Start with the person who sold or received the property.

4. Use additional information.

   Narrow your results using a recording year, document type or known recording reference where those options are provided.

5. Review matching records.

   Compare the names, recording date, instrument type and available property information.

6. Save the recording reference.

   Keep the instrument number or book-and-page information for future research or copy requests.

Which record should you search?

Ohio expanded its electronic public-record access requirements for County Recorders.

Under Ohio Revised Code Section 317.13, counties were required by June 30, 2026 to provide online electronic indexes and electronic versions of qualifying instruments recorded on or after January 1, 1980.

Veterans’ discharge papers and legally protected information are excluded from the general online disclosure requirement.

A county may require a username and password, but it cannot charge for creating the account or accessing the qualifying electronic index and instruments.

If a document is missing from the online portal, contact the Recorder about the original record rather than assuming it was never filed.

After opening: read Division F of Section 317.13 for the online-index and public-access requirements.

If you only know a property’s street address, the Highland County Auditor’s property database is a useful starting point.

The Auditor’s search supports property owner names, parcel numbers, house numbers, street names and other property characteristics.

Find the deed from an address

1. Open the Auditor’s Advanced Search.

   Choose the available address-search fields.

2. Enter the house number and street.

   Use the address details shown on the property-tax bill if possible.

3. Confirm the correct parcel.

   Compare the owner, parcel number, location and municipality.

4. Review property and transfer information.

   Note the owner name, buyer or seller details, and relevant sale dates when available.

5. Return to the Recorder search.

   Search the parties’ names or a known recording reference to locate the actual deed.

Need the parcel on a map?

The Highland County Auditor provides a GIS Parcel Viewer for locating county parcels.

After opening: select the GIS Map option, search for the property and review its mapped parcel location.

The Recorder is in the county government building on Governor Foraker Place in Hillsboro.

The Auditor and Tax Map offices also provide services at this address, making it useful for property transactions requiring multiple approvals.

What should you bring?

After opening: confirm the physical address, phone, office hours and same-day recording cutoff before traveling.

Recording a deed makes the instrument part of Highland County’s official land records.

Before a deed transferring real property can be recorded, the transaction may need review under the county’s conveyance standards and processing by the Auditor.

Follow the deed recording process

1. Prepare the correct deed.

   Identify the grantor, grantee, legal description and interest being conveyed.

2. Complete execution and notarization.

   Confirm that the document contains all legally required signatures and a valid acknowledgment.

3. Check the county’s conveyance standards.

   Make sure the legal description and parcel information satisfy the applicable Auditor and Engineer standards.

4. Prepare the required DTE form.

   DTE 100 generally applies to taxable transfers. DTE 100EX is used for qualifying conveyance-fee exemptions.

5. Complete the Auditor’s transfer process.

   Pay any applicable conveyance fees or provide the required exemption documentation.

6. Submit the instrument to the Recorder.

   Bring the appropriately processed deed and recording fee to Suite 108.

7. Retain the recorded reference.

   Keep the instrument number or book/page reference for future property transactions.

After opening: find Conveyance Standards, download the county requirements and review the rules for existing descriptions, surveys and parcel splits.

The Highland County Engineer’s Tax Map Office maintains parcel mapping and reviews applicable land descriptions and surveys.

It is especially relevant when a property is being divided, surveyed or transferred using a new legal description.

When should you contact Tax Map?

After opening: review the Tax Map Office’s services, contact information and GIS mapping resources.

The Highland County Auditor provides official forms used in real-estate transfers, agricultural valuation and homestead-related transactions.

After opening: find Real Estate Conveyance Forms and choose the form appropriate for your transaction. Review other forms if homestead or CAUV requirements apply.

Highland County’s official recording fee schedule lists rates effective January 1, 2025.

The county’s posted charge for ordinary recorded documents is $39 for the first one or two pages and $8 for each additional page.

Additional recording charges

Example: Recording a four-page deed

The $55 example excludes Auditor conveyance fees, marginal references, nonstandard charges and other document-specific costs.

After opening: scroll to the fee table effective January 1, 2025. Check the page count, marginal notation fees and nonstandard charges.

When real property changes ownership, the Auditor may collect conveyance and parcel-transfer fees in addition to the Recorder’s filing charge.

Highland County’s commonly published taxable real-property conveyance rate is $3 per $1,000 of taxable value.

This includes Ohio’s mandatory component and the county’s permissive conveyance fee.

Illustrative $200,000 property sale

This example is for an ordinary taxable sale. The final amount can depend on the nature of the conveyance, exemptions and applicable parcel charges.

Because local rates and transaction requirements can change, confirm the current calculation directly with the Highland County Auditor.

After opening: enter the Parcel Count and Sale Price, then select Compute. Confirm the final amount with the Auditor before payment.

Highland County follows Ohio’s document standardization requirements.

Documents covered by the rules can incur an additional $20 charge if they do not comply.

The Recorder specifically states that instruments notarized after July 1, 2009 must comply with the Ohio standards or may incur the additional charge.

Certain statutory exceptions apply to specific record types.

After opening: compare the page dimensions, margins, ink and type-size requirements with your original document.

The Recorder makes land records available for public research and provides document-copy services.

If the document is available through the online records portal, review the electronic record before requesting a paid paper copy.

These charges follow the ordinary Ohio statutory schedule. Ask the office to confirm the total for your request.

Request a deed copy in five steps

1. Find the recorded document.

   Search the Recorder’s public land-records system.

2. Confirm the recording reference.

   Note the parties, recording date and instrument or book/page information.

3. Choose the copy type.

   Decide whether you need an ordinary copy or a certified document.

4. Contact the Recorder.

   Ask about the current per-page, certification and mailing charges.

5. Complete payment and delivery.

   Follow the office’s instructions for pickup or mail delivery.

Regular copy or certified copy?

Highland County accepts qualifying documents for recording by mail.

Use the Recorder’s dedicated mailing address rather than assuming the physical office address is the correct destination.

Before mailing, check your package

Since recording payments are accepted by cash or check, contact the office about the proper check amount and payee before mailing.

Do not send cash through ordinary mail.

After opening: check the P.O. Box, recording fees, payment restrictions and return-envelope requirement before sending original documents.

Highland County Recorder offers FraudSleuth, a free property-recording alert service.

The service can notify you when a new instrument is recorded under a name included in your monitoring profile.

How to register for FraudSleuth

1. Open the Recorder’s Records Search.

   Start from the county’s official Recorder homepage.

2. Find the FraudSleuth option.

   Select FraudSleuth from the public land-records portal.

3. Create an account if necessary.

   Enter the required account information and a valid email address.

4. Open FraudSleuth Preferences.

   Existing users can sign in and select Configure FraudSleuth Profile.

5. Add the names to monitor.

   Include relevant spelling variations and applicable trust or trustee names.

6. Save the monitoring profile.

   Complete the setup and review any future recording notifications.

After opening: select Fraud Sleuth Instructions or Fraud Sleuth Step-by-Step with Pictures, then follow the account and profile setup.

Ohio law requires county recorders to provide an electronic-recording method for qualifying instruments.

The statewide implementation deadlines fell in 2026.

However, the Highland County Recorder’s public office page does not list specific approved eRecording vendors or submission instructions.

After opening: review the electronic-recording provisions in Section 317.13. Contact the Highland County Recorder for its actual vendor and filing process.

Several county offices handle different parts of property ownership, transfer and taxation.

Which Highland County communities use this Recorder?

The Recorder serves qualifying property instruments throughout Highland County.

This includes real estate in Hillsboro, Greenfield, Leesburg, Lynchburg, Mowrystown, Sinking Spring and other communities and townships within the county.

If you need very old documents, historical county records or information that cannot be found through the modern search portal, additional county research resources may help.

The Highland County Records Center & Archives preserves historical government documents and directs researchers to the correct record-holding department.

The Records Center asks researchers to submit record requests by 3 PM so staff have time to retrieve and reshelve materials.

For land instruments, start with the Recorder. If the records belong to another department, the Archives can help identify the correct repository.

After opening: review the county’s list of record repositories and identify which office holds the document you need.

The following county and Ohio government resources provide the information, forms and services discussed in this guide.