Cole County Formatting Standards
Effective January 1, 2002: Documents that do not meet the requirements
set forth in 59.005, 59.310 and 59.313 RSMo may be recorded for an
additional fee of twenty-five ($25.00) dollars.
Format Standard
- Top margin (first page only) shall be at least three (3) inches of vertical
space from left to right--all other margins should be 3/4 inch.
- Page shall not be larger than 8 1/2 inches in width and 11 inches in height
(excluding Plats & Surveys).
- All Signatures shall be in black or dark ink.
- Use of white or light colored paper less than 20 lbs. weight without visible inclusions.
- Print shall not be smaller than 8 point type and shall be black or dark ink.
- Print shall be included on ONE side of paper only.
- There shall be no continuous forms or permanent binding.
- Do not staple, tape or glue attachments.
First Page Designations
Every document containing any of the items listed in this subsection that is presented for
recording, except plats and surveys, shall have such information on the FIRST PAGE
below the three inch margin:
- The title of the document
- The date of the document
- All grantors' names
- All grantees' names
- Any statutory addresses
- The legal description of the property
- Reference book and pages for statutory requirements, if applicable
If there is not sufficient room on the first page for all of the information, the page reference
within the document where the information is set out shall be stated on the first page.
Exemptions
Documents which are exempt from format requirements and which the Recorder of Deeds may
record include the following:
- Documents which were signed prior to January 1, 2002
- Military separation papers
- Documents executed outside the U.S.
- Certified copies of documents, including death certificates
- Any document where one of the original parties is deceased or otherwise incapacitated
- Judgments or other documents formatted to meet court requirements
Rejections
Any document rejected by a Recorder of Deeds shall be returned to the preparer or presenter
accompanied by an explanation of the reason it could not be recorded.
Larry D. Rademan
Cole County Recorder of Deeds
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