How to Search Property Records

Property records reveal a property's history. You can see who owns the property, when that person purchased it, whether any other liens have been filed against the property and how many other owners it's had. Sometimes you can even look at mortgage documents. All of this is recorded at the Clerk and Recorder's office in the county in which the property sits and is public information, available for free to anyone who cares to look. If the Clerk and Recorder's information is documented online, you don't even have to leave your home to find out what you want to know.

• 1

  Gain as much knowledge about the property as you can before the search because Clerk and Recorders file property records in different ways. Find out the property address, legal description, property tax ID or owner's name if you can. It's possible to find this online under the county tax information, or you can ask someone at the Clerk and Recorder's office to assist you.

• 2

  Visit the Clerk and Recorder's office or go to the online document search if available. Not all counties are online, and some only offer full online services for a fee.

• 3

  Enter your search criteria if looking online and browse the links that come up. Make sure to match the information such as address, owner's name or legal description to the documents you pull up to ensure that those documents pertain to the correct property. If searching in the Clerk and Recorder's office, flip through the property's files and read the ones that interest you so you gain the information you need.