Affidavit of Surviving Joint Tenant Title-Clearance Requirements in North Dakota
At a glance
| Covered survivorship title | Joint tenancy in land and any land estate, title, interest, or lien limited to a named person's life (N.D.C.C. § 47-19-06) |
|---|---|
| Instrument or filing | Permitted duly certified death-certificate copy with attached legal description; no survivor affidavit (§ 47-19-06) |
| Who may sign or file | No survivor, personal-representative, interested-person, or other filer/signature class stated; route records the certified official death certificate |
| Required contents | Legal description of each affected property attached to death certificate; no survivor name/address, vesting-deed reference, book/page, death-place, no-severance, or title-request recital (§ 47-19-06) |
| Death evidence | Copy of death certificate certified by officer required to keep death records in the state or country where record was made (§ 47-19-06) |
| Execution formalities | No survivor affidavit, oath, acknowledgment, witness, perjury declaration, or personal-knowledge rule; certified official instrument records without acknowledgment or further proof (§ 47-19-02) |
| Office and deadline | Recorder for county where land is situated; no post-death filing deadline (§§ 47-19-06 to -07) |
| Statewide companion filings | Present document to county auditor before recording for tax-roll updates; no auditor's certificate required (N.D.C.C. § 11-18-03(3)) |
| Recording effect | Certified death certificate or its recorded/certified record is prima-facie evidence of death and termination of joint tenancy or life-limited interest (§ 47-19-06) |
Requirements one by one
Record the certified certificate, not an affidavit
North Dakota Century Code § 47-19-06 covers every joint tenancy in land and every land estate, title, interest, or lien that continues only for a named person's life. Its instrument is a duly certified copy of that person's death certificate.
The statute does not require a survivor affidavit. It states no survivor, personal-representative, interested-person, or other filer class and no survivor signature, oath, acknowledgment, witnesses, personal-knowledge statement, or post-death deadline. Section 47-19-02 separately allows a certified official instrument to be recorded without acknowledgment or further proof.
Attach the legal description
The required property identification is concise. A legal description of every property to which the recording relates must be attached to the death certificate. Section 47-19-06 does not add a parcel ID, property address, vesting-deed reference, survivor identity, no-severance recital, or request to vest or clear title.
The recording goes to the recorder for the county where the affected land is situated under § 47-19-06 and § 47-19-07.
Present it to the auditor first
The packet has a separate administrative step. N.D.C.C. § 11-18-03(3) lets a document terminating joint tenancy or a life estate be recorded without the auditor's certificate that otherwise applies to specified instruments. But the document must first be presented to the county auditor so the auditor can make necessary tax-roll changes.
What trips people up
“No auditor's certificate” does not mean “skip the auditor.” Presentation to the auditor's office remains mandatory before recording.
The legal description is an attachment to the certificate. The statute does not turn that attachment into a survivor affidavit or require a separate jurat.
The stated effect is evidentiary. The certified death certificate, its record in the recorder's office, or a duly certified copy of that recorded record is prima-facie evidence of death and termination. The statute does not call it conclusive proof or guarantee marketable or insured title.
Common questions
Must the surviving joint tenant sign an affidavit? No. Section 47-19-06 uses the certified death certificate plus legal-description attachment.
Where is it recorded? With the recorder for the county where the land is located, after presentation to the county auditor.
Is there a statewide filing deadline? The surveyed provisions state none.
Statutes and sources
- N.D. Cent. Code §§ 47-19-02, 47-19-06, 47-19-07 — recordable certified official instrument, death-certificate route, legal-description attachment, office, and prima-facie effect. https://ndlegis.gov/cencode/t47c19.pdf (accessed 2026-08-03).
- N.D. Cent. Code § 11-18-03 — auditor presentation without an auditor's certificate. https://ndlegis.gov/cencode/t11c18.pdf (accessed 2026-08-03).
Source links
Every statute quoted above, linked, with the date we checked it.
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