Find Norfolk County Property Records

Norfolk County property records are maintained at the Norfolk County Registry of Deeds in Dedham. The registry covers 28 communities south and west of Boston, and its land records date back to 1793. You can search Norfolk County property records online for free through the registry's own research portal or through MassLandRecords.com. Whether you need a copy of your deed, want to check for liens, or are tracing the history of a parcel, the Norfolk County Registry has the documents. The office holds over 13.1 million land records in its system.

Norfolk County Registry of Deeds

The Norfolk County Registry of Deeds is at 649 High Street in Dedham. Register William P. O'Donnell runs the office. The phone number is 781-461-6101, and the fax is 781-461-6103. You can email the register at registerodonnell@norfolkdeeds.org. The building is open from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM on weekdays. Recording hours run from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM. Customer service is available from 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM.

Norfolk County property records cover a wide area. The 28 communities include Quincy, Brookline, Weymouth, Braintree, Milton, Needham, Wellesley, Canton, Dedham, Norwood, Foxborough, Franklin, Medfield, Medway, Millis, Walpole, Westwood, Dover, Sharon, Stoughton, Randolph, Holbrook, Avon, Bellingham, Cohasset, Norfolk, Plainville, and Wrentham. Each of these towns files all deeds, mortgages, and liens at the Dedham office. The registry has been in operation since 1793, making it one of the older registries in the state.

Like all Massachusetts registries, Norfolk County handles both recorded land and registered land. Recorded land uses the book and page system and makes up about 80 percent of Norfolk County parcels. Registered land falls under M.G.L. Chapter 185 and uses Certificates of Title. Original documents for registered land stay at the registry.

Search Norfolk County Records Online

Norfolk County property records are free to search online. The registry runs its own research portal at norfolkresearch.org. That site offers a full set of tools: Name Search by grantor or grantee, Book and Page Search, Property Address Search, Date Range Search, and Document Type filtering. There is also a simplified "Search for Your Deed" tool on norfolkdeeds.org where you just enter your name and town. It is designed for homeowners who need a quick look at their deed without digging through the full system.

You can also access Norfolk County land records through MassLandRecords.com, the statewide portal run by the Secretary of the Commonwealth. Both portals are free. Both let you view and print documents at no charge. The Norfolk County system is one of the more user-friendly setups in the state, and the registry has been pushing to make records more accessible for years.

One standout feature of the Norfolk County Registry is its transcription project. Documents from 1793 to 1900 have been transcribed from the original handwritten cursive into typed format. That makes it much easier to read old deeds and mortgages. The transcriptions are believed to be accurate, though the registry notes they are not formally warranted.

Note: Non-certified copies are free to view and print from the Norfolk County website.

Norfolk County Deed Copies

You can get copies of Norfolk County property records in person, by mail, or online. In-person copies cost $1.00 per page. Visit the Customer Service Center at 649 High Street in Dedham during business hours, Monday through Friday, 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM. Bring the owner's name and town, or the book and page number if you have it.

For mail requests, send a letter to Norfolk County Registry of Deeds, 649 High Street, Dedham, MA 02026. Include the owner's name, street address, and town. If you know the book and page, include that too. The fee is $2.00 for the first page and $1.00 for each page after that. Make your check payable to Norfolk County Registry of Deeds. Online, you can view and print non-certified copies for free from the website. A subscription service is available if you need official unmarked copies on a regular basis.

The Norfolk County online research portal gives free access to all Norfolk County property records including deeds, mortgages, and plans.

The research portal lets you search by name, address, book and page, date range, or document type at no cost.

Norfolk County Recording Fees

Norfolk County follows the statewide fee schedule for recording documents. A deed costs $155. Mortgages run $205. Mortgage discharges are $105. A Declaration of Homestead is $35, and a Declaration of Trust costs $255. Plans cost $105 per sheet. Most other documents are $105 each. The excise tax on deeds is $4.56 per $1,000 of the sale price. On a $500,000 home in Quincy, for instance, that comes to $2,280 on top of the recording fee. Under M.G.L. Chapter 183, all deeds must be recorded at the registry to be valid against later claims from third parties.

Certified copies at the Norfolk County Registry cost $1.00 per page. Registered Land certificates are $5.00 each. Mortgage discharge recordings cost $106. These fees are the same at every registry in the state, so there is no advantage to filing in one county over another.

Norfolk County Fraud Alerts

The Norfolk County Registry offers a free Consumer Notification Service. Sign up and you get an email alert any time a document is recorded in your name or against your property address. You can register up to three properties. It is a simple way to keep watch on your Norfolk County property records without checking the website yourself. If you get an alert that looks wrong, call 781-461-6101 right away.

Filing a Declaration of Homestead adds another layer of protection for Norfolk County homeowners. Under M.G.L. Chapter 188, your primary home is shielded from forced sale by most creditors up to $1,000,000 as of August 2024. The filing fee is $35. The Norfolk County Registry strongly encourages all homeowners to file one. If you need help with the form, the registry staff can assist you during business hours. All recorded documents at Norfolk County are public records under M.G.L. Chapter 66.

Norfolk County Extra Resources

The Norfolk County Registry has a few services you will not find at every office. Genealogy researchers can access death certificates, plans of land, and old city and town atlases through the registry. The office also partners with the Norfolk County Engineering Department to provide county bridge plans, highway plans, turnpike records, and railroad crossing documents. These are useful for anyone researching the history of infrastructure near a property.

If your deed was not returned after your home purchase, check with your closing attorney first. The attorney should have it. If not, get a copy from the Norfolk County Registry for free. Adding someone to your deed requires creating a new deed and recording it. The registry recommends consulting an attorney before doing this to avoid title problems down the road.

Cities in Norfolk County

Several Norfolk County communities have their own property records pages on this site. All of them file land records at the Norfolk County Registry of Deeds in Dedham.

Nearby Counties

These counties border Norfolk County. If your property is near a county line, confirm which county it falls in before searching for records.