What are Rhode Island Property Records?
Rhode Island property records are legal documents that pertain to the purchase/sale of real estate or land in the state, as well as liens/releases, easements, subdivision maps, and other essential information. Real estate owners in the state create these records at the clerk's office of the municipality where the property is located. In turn, the municipality clerk's offices make these records publicly available according to R.I. Gen. Laws § 38-2-2 (4)(N).
Property buyers and owners use property records to find undisclosed information about a property, such as land use restrictions and undisclosed liens. Property record also reports on a property's valuation and physical and financial condition.
Rhode Island is divided into 39 municipalities; each municipality clerk's office individually maintains property records of lands and real estate within their city and make these record available to the public. Property tax records are, however, maintained separately from other property records. These records are maintained by the tax assessor's office of the municipality where the property is located.
Are Rhode Island Property Records Public?
Yes, Rhode Island property records are subject to the state Access to Public Record Act (R.I. Gen. Laws § 38-2-2). As a result, records custodians make them available to the public upon request. In Rhode Island, each municipality's real estate records are maintained and distributed by the municipality's clerk's office.
Besides government agencies, third-party aggregate websites also provide access to Rhode Island property records. Records seekers must be able to supply certain information about the property, such as the property's address and owner details, in order to find Rhode Island property records through third-party aggregate websites.
Property records are available for public viewing through government agencies or third-party aggregate websites. Accessing property records through third-party sites is typically straightforward, and the records are not geographically limited. However, because the sites are not government-affiliated and run independently, the information contained in the records may vary. Searching parties should include the following information to obtain complete property records:
- The property’s exact location.
- The property owner’s details.
What Information is Included in Rhode Island Property Records
Information about a property that is included in its Rhode Island property records includes and is not limited to the following:
- Mortgages
- Liens/release
- Plat/lot map
- Deeds.
A property's mortgage records provide information on loans a property owner has taken from a lender, using their property as collateral. These records provide the names of both the mortgagee and mortgagor, the loan amount, interest rate, legal description of the property, and the date when the mortgage was filed and recorded.
At the conclusion of a civil court case, a judgment is usually passed for one litigant to pay money to the other. However, the debtor may not be able to pay the judgment immediately. In such cases, a lien would be placed against a property the debtor owns to ensure the creditor is paid what they are owed. The lien gives the creditor the right to a portion of the proceeds gotten from the sale of the property regardless of whether the property changes owners. This can decrease the real value of the property for new owners.
A lien release is a legal document that signifies a lien has been removed from the property following a debtor's complete payment of relevant judgments. A plat/lot map provides the legal boundaries of the property concerning the surrounding area. A plat map also provides a property's land size as well as physical features, such as flood zones, nearby streets, and easements (if any).
A deed is a legal document used to transfer property ownership rights from one person to another. A property transaction is incomplete until the buyer receives the property deed. A deed typically contains the names of both the property's buyer and seller and the property's legal description. A deed may also contain grantees a property owner wishes to provide a prospective buyer. There are several types of deeds held by municipal clerk offices in Rhode Island. Two of the most common include quit claim deeds and warranty deeds.
A quit claim deed transfers the full property rights of a property from one person to another without guaranteeing the extent of interest transferred. If there are any liens on the property, they may be undisclosed. This type of deed is most common in divorce proceedings where one spouse grants their property rights to the other. A warranty deed provides the best possible protection for buyers. A warranty deed transfers ownership of a property and guarantees the seller has a good property title and there are no undisclosed encumbrances against the deed.
Where to Search Rhode Island Public Property Records
Record seekers can search property records of a particular property in Rhode Island by querying the clerk's office of the municipality where the property is located. Municipalities clerk's offices only maintain deeds, mortgages, liens, releases, property ownership, and property sale records of lands and real estate in their local municipality. On the other hand, tax records for a property in Rhode Island are maintained by the tax assessor's office of the municipality where the property is located.
For instance, interested persons can query the town of Narragansett clerk's office to obtain local property deeds, mortgages, sales, and ownership records. Meanwhile, Narragansett town's tax assessor office should be queried for tax records for a property situated in the municipality.
How to Do a Property Records Search in Rhode Island
Interested persons can conduct a property records search in Rhode Island by making a formal APRA (Access to Public Record Act) request. The APRA request may be made in person or in writing at the clerk's office of the municipality where the property is located during regular business hours, Monday to Friday. The request must contain information about the property in question, such as the property's address and the name of the company or person that owns the property. Following Rhode Island General Law 38-2-4, a municipality clerk's office may charge up to $0.15 per page for copies and $15 per hour after the first hour of searching.
Some municipality clerk's offices also accept APRA requests for a property records search by email and phone. For instance, the city of Newport clerk's office accepts APRA sent by mail at lswistak@cityofnewport.com and by phone at (401) 845-5351. Most municipality clerk office also maintains an online database of public property records they maintain. These databases are free to use and can be used by inquirers to search relevant property records. Example of these database includes the town of Smithfield property records webpage, Middletown land evidence record webpage, and Narragansett land evidence records database.
Alternatively, record seekers can use third-party aggregate websites that offer Rhode Island or U.S. land records search services to conduct property records searches.
How to Find the Owner of a Rhode Island Property Using Public Records
A standard due diligence performed by prospective property buyers before purchasing a property is looking up the property owner's details. Provided an inquirer knows the address or plat/lot number of a Rhode Island property, they can find the owner's information by looking up the property's tax records. Rhode Island property tax records are maintained at the municipality level by each municipality tax assessor's offices.
Each Rhode Island municipality tax assessor's office also maintains an online database containing tax records of properties in their municipality. These databases are free to use, and searches may be performed by providing a property's address or plat/lot number. Links to each Rhode Island municipality tax assessor's office online property tax records database are available on the Rhode Island state website's land records resource webpage.
What are Rhode Island Property Records Used For?
Rhode Island property records provide pertinent information about lands and real estate located in the state. There are several types of information about land or real estate property records provided; each information type has its unique use cases.
Property deeds contain and provide information about the date and details of how two parties transferred a real estate property interest. These include the grantees a property seller offered prospective buyers. A property plat is a map that provides information about the legal boundaries of a property. Property plat maps are used by land owners, real estate agents, prospective buyers, and attornies to determine the actual size of a piece of property and features included in the plot, like a lake or pond. Other information provided by property record includes liens and mortgages, which is used to assess a property's current value.
How to Find Rhode Island Property Tax Records
Interested persons can find Rhode Island property tax records by querying the tax assessor's office of the municipality where the property is situated. Each assessor's office maintains an online database containing tax records of properties in their municipality records seekers can use to find property tax records online.
What to Do When You Can't Find Property Records in Rhode Island
Suppose a particular property's records are unavailable online through databases maintained by the clerk's office or tax assessor's office of the municipality where the property is located. In that case, a third-party aggregate website may be used to uncover these records.
Alternatively, the record seeker may visit the municipality's clerk or assessor's office to query in person. Record seekers can also search other public records to find public information about the property in question. For example, bankruptcy records to discover if a lien was placed on the property during its previous owner's bankruptcy proceedings.
