Clear Money Guide
What this state guide covers
A quick view of the questions, practical details and source notes below.
Updated August 3, 2026. Quick answer: Washington adopted the Uniform Real Property Transfer on Death Act in 2014. The deed must be recorded with the county auditor before you die — and the statute is explicit that the beneficiary need not be told.
Recording, with the county auditor
Must state that the transfer to the designated beneficiary is to occur at the transferor’s death; and must be recorded before the transferor’s death in the public records in the office of the auditor of the county where the property is located.
— RCW ch. 64.80 (Uniform Real Property Transfer on Death Act) (subsections joined for readability; no words added)
Washington records with the county auditor rather than a recorder or clerk — a small difference that matters when you are trying to work out where to take the document.
No notice, no delivery, no acceptance, no consideration
RCW 64.80.070 is headed exactly that: notice, delivery, acceptance, consideration not required. The beneficiary does not need to know the deed exists, does not need to accept it, and pays nothing. The owner keeps complete control and complete privacy during life.
The corollary is worth stating plainly: a beneficiary who does not know cannot act. If nobody knows the deed was recorded, nobody may think to look for it, and the property can sit unclaimed while the family assumes it must go through probate.
Capacity, revocability and effect during life
The chapter sets out capacity of the transferor (64.80.050), revocability (64.80.030), revocation (64.80.080) and the effect during the transferor’s life (64.80.090). The pattern matches the Uniform Act: fully revocable, no interest passes before death, and the owner may sell or encumber the property freely.
There is a prohibited use
RCW 64.80.020 is headed authorized — prohibited use. The chapter both authorises the deed and limits it, so a Washington deed drafted from a generic form should be checked against that section rather than assumed to be fine.
The prohibited use, resolved
This page flags RCW 64.80.020 as a section to check a generic form against, and it is narrow. The section reads: an individual may transfer property to one or more beneficiaries effective at the transferor death by a transfer on death deed, and a transfer on death deed may not be used to effect a deed in lieu of foreclosure of a deed of trust (RCW 64.80.020, read from app.leg.wa.gov on 2026-09-02). For an ordinary transfer to a family member it is not a barrier. LawDepot builds a Washington transfer on death deed. Record it with the county auditor before death.
LawDepot prices a single document at $7.50 to $119, and its category subscriptions start at $107.88 a year, with the all-documents plan at $155.88 a year (LawDepot pricing page, read 2026-09-02).
Create a transfer on death deed
LawDepot pays us a commission if you buy through this link, and it costs you nothing extra. We are not a law firm and this is not legal advice. Affiliate Disclosure.
What a transfer on death deed does not do
- It moves one parcel, not an estate. It avoids probate on that property. Bank accounts, vehicles and everything else are untouched, so it is not a substitute for a will.
- It does not take effect until death, so the owner keeps full control — and can sell, mortgage or revoke without the beneficiary’s agreement or knowledge.
- It does not clear debts. A mortgage, lien or judgment against the property passes with it.
- It does not decide what happens if the beneficiary dies first. That is governed by statute and is one of the most common surprises.
Honest gaps
We have quoted the recording requirement from RCW 64.80.060 and read the section headings across chapter 64.80. The full text of the prohibited-use, revocation and creditor provisions is not reproduced here, and the prohibited-use section in particular should be read directly before drafting. This is the statute, not legal advice. Deed drafting, title and recording practice vary by county, and a property with a mortgage, co-owners or a disputed title is one to take to a lawyer in the state.
Source note. Read from https://app.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=64.80&full=true on 2026-08-04.
Related: transfer on death deeds by state · how it compares with a living trust · what it actually avoids.
General information drawn from state statutes and official state or court forms, not legal advice. These instruments are governed by the law of the state where the property sits or the document is signed, and formalities differ from state to state — execution, witnessing and recording requirements are the parts that void a document when they are missed. Your own state’s current statute governs.