County clerk · mail-in or e-recording · 2026
What the Tompkins County Clerk needs in the envelope to record a deed, what it charges, and whether you can skip the envelope and e-record. Every fee below comes from the same data DeedScribe uses to write the clerk cover letter.
Where to record
Tompkins County Clerk
Tompkins County Courthouse320 N. Tioga StreetIthaca, NY 14850The typical estate-planning transfer: an individual deeds a residence to the trustee of their own revocable trust for no consideration. Filled dots are required; hollow dots are good practice. The RP-5217 filing fee is $125.00 for residential or farm property and $250.00 for everything else (Real Property Law § 333(3)(ii), § 333(1-e)(iv)).
1. Sign and notarize
Print the Quitclaim Deed and have the grantor sign before a notary
Original signatures and an original acknowledgment; the Tompkins County Clerk records the original (mail-in) or its scanned image (e-recording).
Sign the TP-584 (grantor and grantee)
Both parties sign Schedule D; the RP-5217 is signed by buyer and seller too.
2. Forms to enclose
Form TP-584, Combined Real Estate Transfer Tax Return
Filed with every deed whether or not tax is due.
Form RP-5217-PDF, Real Property Transfer Report — barcoded original
Print the barcoded PDF on legal-size paper; never photocopy or hand-fill it. The clerk scans the barcode. Do not flatten or rasterize this PDF when e-recording.
Cover letter to the Tompkins County Clerk with the enclosure list and return address
A one-page letter listing the enclosures, the check amount and where to return the recorded deed. Mail-in only.
Self-addressed stamped envelope for the recorded deed (mail-in)
3. Page format
Deed on 8.5 x 11 paper, one side, black ink, with a blank recording margin at the top of page 1
Fonts must be legible at recording resolution (CPLR § 8019(e)); the e-recording export is 300 DPI black-and-white for the same reason.
Count the pages (fees assume 3); each extra written side is $5
4. Fees and payment
Check for $200.00 payable to "Tompkins County Clerk"
Deed recording (3 pages) $60.00; Deed Notice (all residential deeds, effective 3/11/2020) $10.00; TP-584 filing fee $5.00; RP-5217 filing fee (residential/farm) $125.00; NYS transfer tax $0.00. Based on the Tompkins County Clerk's published fee schedule — verify before mailing.
5. Submit for recording
E-record through Simplifile, CSC eRecording and ePN (eRecording Partners Network)
Tompkins County accepts e-recording through Simplifile, CSC eRecording and ePN (eRecording Partners Network). Register with a vendor first (Admin → Recording), then register with the Tompkins County Clerk through that vendor.
Or mail the original deed, forms and check to the Tompkins County Clerk
Tompkins County Courthouse, 320 N. Tioga Street, Ithaca, NY 14850 · (607) 274-5431
| Item | Basis | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Deed recording (3 pages) | $50.00 first page + $5.00 each additional page | $60.00 |
| Deed Notice (all residential deeds, effective 3/11/2020) | $10.00 | |
| TP-584 filing fee | CPLR § 8021(a)(1) filing fee; return required by Tax Law § 1409(a) | $5.00 |
| RP-5217 filing fee (residential/farm) | Real Property Law § 333(3)(ii), § 333(1-e)(iv) | $125.00 |
| NYS transfer tax | No consideration — $0 (Tax Law § 1402). | $0.00 |
| Check to the Tompkins County Clerk | $200.00 | |
Transfer tax. New York State charges $2 for each $500 of consideration (or fraction), paid by the grantor, plus a 1% mansion tax paid by the grantee on residential conveyances of $1,000,000 or more. A transfer for no consideration — a deed into the grantor's own revocable trust, a gift — owes $0, but the TP-584 is still filed with the exemption claimed on Schedule B. Where tax is due most clerks want a certified or attorney escrow check. (Tax Law §§ 1402(a), 1402-a, 1404(a), 1405(b)(4), 1409(a).)
Change the page count, property type and consideration; the arithmetic is the same function DeedScribe uses for the check amount on the clerk cover letter.
| Deed recording (3 pages) | $60.00 |
| Deed Notice (all residential deeds, effective 3/11/2020) | $10.00 |
| TP-584 filing fee | $5.00 |
| RP-5217 filing fee (residential/farm) | $125.00 |
| NYS transfer tax | $0.00 |
| Check to the Tompkins County Clerk | $200.00 |
|---|
VerifiedListed on the clerk's site or the vendor's official coverage page. A firm opens an account with the vendor, then registers with the Tompkins County Clerk through it; fees and tax are debited by ACH.
E-Recording Information and Forms page lists CSC, Simplifile and ePN; submitters sign up with the vendor and pay its per-document fee.
DeedScribe
Upload the last deed of record; Schedule A is carried over character-perfect, the forms are filled, and the recording package is keyed to this county's rules.
Address (Tompkins County Courthouse, 320 N. Tioga St., Ithaca, NY 14850) and phone read on the clerk department page; the fee schedule PDF footer repeats 320 N Tioga Street, Ithaca NY 14850, (607) 274-5431. E-recording is offered; site does not say e-recording only. SASE requirement on the fee schedule implies mailed submissions.