• Both buyers and sellers of property in Florida need to be aware of state regulations.House For Sale image by TMLP from Fotolia.com
  
  Florida has a variety of laws regulating the buying and selling of real property, more commonly referred to as real estate. When a piece of real estate changes hands, proper documentation is necessary to prove legal ownership and recognize the transfer of possession. The state also imposes various taxes on transactions involving real property.
  
  

Title

• A title is involved in any type of real estate transaction. This document is legal proof of ownership and must be cleared, or verified, as part of the sale of real estate. Both the seller and buyer benefit from having a clear title. A procedure called a title search prior to the sale will determine if any issues are present within the title that may lead to litigation. One such issue is a gap in the real estate's ownership. If the title contains a period with no ownership listed, it is possible for another party to lay claim to the property once the sale is completed. When a title has a deficiency, the seller is responsible for solving the issue. Once a title is verified, it becomes a marketable title.
  
  

Deed

• The deed is a legal document officially stating that the title has been transferred from one property owner to another. A warranty deed is most common and holds the seller liable for being truthful about the transaction. The seller is responsible for any unforeseen issues that may arise in the future, such as a bank's attempt to collect an outstanding lien against the real estate. If the property title contains any defects, the warranty deed places legal obligation on the seller to correct the problem. A quitclaim deed does not protect the property buyer from the possibility of a defective title. Furthermore, quitclaim deeds release the seller from any responsibility over the property once the transaction is completed. Quitclaim deeds are all that is necessary to transfer the title if the seller owns the real estate herself and are common in property settlement during a divorce.
  
  

Document Stamp Tax

• When real estate ownership transfers in Florida, the state levies a document stamp tax. This tax is placed on warranty and quitclaim deeds at a rate of $.70 per $100 statewide; in Miami-Dade County, the rate is $.60 per $100 on any property transfer document. Miami-Dade County also places an additional $.45 per $100 tax on the transfer of any real estate that is not a single-family residence. The money, in most cases, is paid to the county clerk in the jurisdiction where the transfer paperwork is recorded. The document stamp tax also applies to mortgages and liens on real property filed in the state at a rate of $.35 per $100. If five or more instances requiring payment of a document stamp tax occur per month, the business or individual paying the fee must register with the Florida Department of Revenue.