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A bargain and sale deed is a deed that transfers real property. Under Or. Rev. Stat. § 93.860, an Oregon bargain and sale deed carries no covenants of title. The deed suits sellers unsure of past liens, especially lenders after foreclosure and estate administrators. This page explains what the deed promises, how it differs from a quitclaim deed, what to put in it, and how to fill out the form below.
Key facts
A bargain and sale deed is a deed with limited or no warranties of title: it transfers the grantor's interest in real estate, and what it promises about the title depends on where the land lies.
An Oregon deed in the statutory form carries no covenants of title (Or. Rev. Stat. § 93.860). Wyoming implies no covenant in any conveyance of real estate other than a conveyance of oil, gas or other minerals (Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 34-1-135).
In Texas, unless the deed expressly provides otherwise, the word "grant" or "convey" in a fee simple conveyance implies that the grantor has not conveyed the estate to anyone else and that the estate is free from encumbrances when the deed is executed (Tex. Prop. Code § 5.023(a)).
In Washington, Nevada and Alabama, the deed itself is read as a covenant against encumbrances done or suffered by the grantor, unless express words in the deed limit it (Wash. Rev. Code § 64.04.040; Nev. Rev. Stat. § 111.170(1); Ala. Code § 35-4-271).
In Arkansas, unless express words in the deed limit them, the words "grant, bargain and sell" mean the grantor is seized of an indefeasible estate in fee simple, free from encumbrance done or suffered from the grantor, with quiet enjoyment against the grantor, the grantor's heirs and assigns and against the claim and demand of all other persons (Ark. Code Ann. § 18-12-102(b)).
Deeds vary in how much they protect the new owner. A general warranty deed promises good title against everyone. A bargain and sale deed usually promises less, so a buyer under it can take on the risk of earlier liens that no covenant reaches, which can become an obstacle to obtaining title insurance coverage.
Terms you will see in a deed:
The deed comes in two kinds: without covenants and with covenants against the grantor's acts. Both are described below; other deed forms cover the stronger and weaker types.
A bargain and sale deed without covenants makes no promise about the title: under Or. Rev. Stat. § 93.860, an Oregon deed in the statutory form conveys the entire interest the deed purports to convey and does not operate to provide any covenants of title in the grantee.
The same Oregon section adds that the deed passes any after acquired title, and the grantor is estopped from claiming a smaller interest than the deed purported to convey (Or. Rev. Stat. § 93.860).
A bargain and sale deed with covenants adds one promise: that the grantor has not encumbered the property. Under N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 253(6), a covenant that the grantor "has not done or suffered anything whereby the said premises have been incumbered" means the grantor has done no act by which the premises are charged or encumbered.
New Jersey reads the covenant "that he has done no act to encumber the said lands" the same way: the grantor has not done, or knowingly suffered, any act that encumbers the lands conveyed (N.J.S.A. 46:4-6).
This covenant reaches only the grantor's own period of ownership. A deed with it protects the buyer less than a general warranty deed, which also covers claims from before the grantor owned the property.
In several states, the words of a bargain and sale deed imply covenants by statute, even when the deed states none, unless the deed limits them by express words. Oregon is the exception among the states below: its statutory bargain and sale deed carries no covenants of title.
| State | What the deed's wording implies | Section |
|---|---|---|
| Oregon | No covenants of title for the grantee | Or. Rev. Stat. § 93.860 |
| Washington | Grantor was seized in fee simple, free from encumbrances done or suffered from the grantor, with quiet enjoyment against the grantor, unless limited by express words in the deed | Wash. Rev. Code § 64.04.040 |
| Nevada | Grantor has not conveyed the property to anyone else, and it is free from encumbrances done, made or suffered by the grantor, unless restrained by express terms in the conveyance | Nev. Rev. Stat. § 111.170(1) |
| Arkansas | Grantor is seized of an indefeasible estate in fee simple, free from encumbrance done or suffered from the grantor, with quiet enjoyment against the grantor and against the claim and demand of all other persons, unless limited by express words in the deed | Ark. Code Ann. § 18-12-102(b) |
| Alabama | Grantor was seized in fee simple, free from incumbrances done or suffered by the grantor, unless it otherwise clearly appears from the conveyance | Ala. Code § 35-4-271 |
A seller who wants to give no promise at all in these states uses express words that limit the covenants; a buyer reads the deed for such words before closing.
A bargain and sale deed is used when the seller never controlled the property's full history and does not want to answer for liens it cannot know about. Buyers prefer stronger deeds, so the bargain and sale deed shows up in a narrower set of sales:
In each case the grantor, be it a government office, a bank, an estate administrator or an individual owner, may not know about liens placed on the property. The deed lets the grantor convey what it holds without vouching for the past.
A bargain and sale deed gives the buyer little recourse against the seller if an old lien or claim surfaces. A deed with covenants against the grantor's acts narrows that gap for the grantor's own years of ownership; a title search and title insurance cover the rest.
A quitclaim deed differs from a bargain and sale deed in that it does not imply the grantor owns the property: it transfers only whatever interest the grantor might have.
The person signing a quitclaim deed gives up any claim to the property and passes it to the grantee. That makes it the deed with the least to offer a buyer, and it is usually limited to:
Thus, quitclaim deeds are not common for buying and selling real estate.
In Oklahoma, the quitclaim deed form is the warranty deed form with the word "quitclaim" inserted before "grant, bargain, sell and convey" and the words "and warrant the title to the same" omitted (Okla. Stat. tit. 16, § 41).
In Wyoming, a deed of quitclaim and release passes all the estate the grantor could lawfully convey by deed of bargain and sale (Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 34-1-107).
In New Jersey, the grantee of a quitclaim deed executed and delivered after July 4, 1931, is presumed a bona fide purchaser to the same extent as the grantee in a deed of bargain and sale, when nothing in the deed shows the grantor meant to keep part of the interest (N.J.S.A. 46:5-3).
A bargain and sale deed in its simplest form is one paragraph naming the parties, the price and the land. Washington's statutory form reads: "The grantor (here insert name or names and place of residence), for and in consideration of (here insert consideration) in hand paid, bargains, sells, and conveys to (here insert the grantee's name or names) the following described real estate (here insert description) situated in the county of . . . . . ., state of Washington" (Wash. Rev. Code § 64.04.040).
Oregon's statutory form follows the same pattern: the grantor "conveys to" the grantee the described property, followed by a statement of "the true consideration for this conveyance" and the date (Or. Rev. Stat. § 93.860).
New York lists statutory short forms of deeds in N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 258, and that section says the use of other forms is not invalidated.
Example only: Jane Doe, of 12 Elm Street, Salem, for and in consideration of $150,000 in hand paid, bargains, sells, and conveys to John Roe the real estate described in Exhibit A.
A bargain and sale deed needs the parties, the property and the grantor's signature at a minimum, plus whatever acknowledgment or witnesses the state of the property asks for. A deed usually covers:
Some states set out the wording in a statutory form: Oregon (Or. Rev. Stat. § 93.860) and Washington (Wash. Rev. Code § 64.04.040) both print a bargain and sale deed form in their codes.
The number of witnesses a deed needs depends on the state, and in some states witnesses stand in for, or add to, the notary's acknowledgment. The table lists the states whose statutes in our sources set a witness rule for deeds; the other states' sources here set none, so check with the local land records office there.
| State | Witness rule | Section |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | One witness attests the deed, or two witnesses who can write where the party cannot write | Ala. Code § 35-4-20 |
| Arkansas | Two disinterested witnesses in every case: the deed is executed in their presence or, failing that, the grantor acknowledges it in the presence of two such witnesses, who then subscribe it | Ark. Code Ann. § 18-12-104 |
| Connecticut | Two witnesses attest the deed with their own hands | Conn. Gen. Stat. § 47-5 |
| Florida | Two subscribing witnesses to the signature of the party conveying | Fla. Stat. § 689.01 |
| Georgia | One witness in addition to the attesting officer | O.C.G.A. § 44-5-30 |
| New York | At least one witness to its execution and delivery, only if the deed is not acknowledged before delivery; a deed neither acknowledged nor witnessed does not take effect against a later purchaser or incumbrancer until it is acknowledged | N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 243 |
| South Carolina | Two or more credible witnesses for the statutory fee simple form | S.C. Code Ann. § 27-7-10 |
| Texas | Two or more credible subscribing witnesses, only when the deed is proved by witnesses instead of acknowledged before an officer | Tex. Prop. Code § 12.001 |
The bargain and sale deed form is filled out in nine steps across three pages, from the preparer block at the top of the first page to the Exhibit A page at the end. The steps for a form with or without covenants are the same.
The screenshots under each step show the FormsPal Bargain and Sale Deed template filled with sample entries in blue, so you can see where each answer goes. The names, addresses, dates and amounts are examples only.
Have these details ready before you start:
At the top of page 1, enter the mailing address and the Attn name for the person or office that prepared the deed.
Enter the mailing address and the Attn name for the person who should get the deed back after it is recorded.
Type the property’s tax or assessor parcel number on the line under the return-to block.
Under the GRANT, BARGAIN AND SALE DEED title, enter the full name and the address of the Grantor, the seller.
In the next part of page 1, enter the full name and the address of the Grantee, the buyer. The property description and the “Subject to” items are already printed on the form.
On page 2, fill in the day, month and year on the DATED line. Then the Grantor signs and completes the By, Name and Title lines.
Fill in the STATE OF and COUNTY lines with the place where the acknowledgment is taken, the day, month and year of the acknowledgment, and the name on the “by” line.
Then, the notary public signs the deed and includes his/her commission expiration date. The date goes on the “My commission expires” line under the Notary Public signature.
On page 3, repeat the Tax Parcel Number on the Exhibit A line. Page 1 points to this exhibit for the property description. It also specifies the legal description of the property conveyed, including the unit number, lot, block, and section.
The bargain and sale deed template is a fillable PDF, so it can be completed on screen or on paper. The tips below cover the small points that most often lead to a second draft.
A bargain and sale deed takes effect against later buyers once it is signed, acknowledged and recorded on the land records where the property lies, the town's records in Connecticut (Conn. Gen. Stat. § 47-10); New York's rule below shows why the recording step matters.
In New York, a deed that is acknowledged may be recorded in the office of the clerk of the county where the property is situated, and a deed not so recorded is void against a later good faith purchaser for value whose own conveyance is first duly recorded (N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 291).
Most problems with a filled-in bargain and sale deed come from small slips in names and numbers. A slow read-through of every page before anyone signs catches most of them.
If you spot one of these after the deed is signed, do not write over the page. Fill in a fresh copy of the template and have it signed again, so the final paper stays neat and easy to read.
No, a quitclaim deed is weaker: it does not even imply that the grantor owns the property, while a bargain and sale deed does. A general warranty deed is the strongest of the three.
A bargain and sale deed is a deed that transfers real property with limited or no warranties of title. Sellers who never controlled the property's full history, such as lenders after foreclosure, use it most.
The Grantor signs on page 2, right below the DATED line, and then completes the By, Name and Title lines. The notary signs in the acknowledgment block lower on the same page.
Exhibit A is the last page of the template. It has a Tax Parcel Number line, and page 1 points to it for the property description.
Yes. Print the pages and write in each field in clear, dark ink. A typed copy is easier to read, so many people fill in the PDF on screen first and print it afterwards.
Once the notary has finished, two things are left to do.
Yes. The sample entries in the screenshots are only examples, so enter your own details in the real form.
General information, not legal or tax advice.
