Recording, Notice, Priority and Chain of Title

For the New York salesperson exam, ask: Was there a prior interest, did the later party pay value without notice, and which qualifying instrument was first duly recorded?

What is the fastest recording and notice comparison?

Do not collapse the three notice categories into the same fact. An exam question can provide actual knowledge, a recorded instrument or a visible warning that calls for inquiry.

Official source map

The New York State Department of State Real Estate Salesperson 77-Hour Curriculum places recording, notice, priority and chain of title in Subject 3, Legal Issues.

Real Property Law section 290 defines purchaser and conveyance for Article 9. Real Property Law section 291 states the core recording rule: an eligible conveyance may be recorded where the property is situated, and an unrecorded conveyance can be void against a qualifying later good-faith purchaser for value whose instrument is first duly recorded.

Real Property Law section 316 addresses grantor, grantee and mortgage indexes. Real Property Law section 317 states when an eligible instrument is considered recorded. CPLR section 6501 provides the separate constructive-notice effect of a properly filed and indexed notice of pendency.

New York courts supply the working notice rules. Gerow v Sinay explains that a good-faith mortgagee must lack actual, constructive and inquiry notice. Schulz v Dattero explains when facts can trigger a duty of inquiry. The Court of Appeals decision Faison v Lewis confirms that recording a forged deed does not make it valid.

What is the exam testing?

You should be able to:

• state why eligible conveyances are recorded;
• distinguish signing, delivery, acknowledgment and recording;
• apply every part of New York's race-notice rule;
• distinguish actual, constructive and inquiry notice;
• identify a good-faith purchaser or mortgagee for value;
• explain why a donee does not receive the same recording-act protection;
• read a priority timeline in the correct order;
• recognize the importance of “first duly recorded”;
• distinguish the direct chain of title from an instrument outside that chain;
• identify a gap, break or cloud in the chain;
• explain the effect of a notice of pendency;
• recognize that recording does not validate a forged deed;
• separate recording priority from marketable title and title insurance;
• identify when a salesperson should stop interpreting and refer the issue to the attorneys and title professionals.

This guide teaches the exam decision framework. It does not determine title or priority in a live transaction.

Why are real estate documents recorded?

Recording serves two connected purposes. It creates a public record of conveyances and encumbrances, and it helps decide priority when interests conflict.

The New York Court of Appeals has described Article 9 as protecting innocent purchasers who acquire without knowledge of prior interests while creating a public record that gives later parties notice of earlier conveyances and encumbrances. A buyer, lender, attorney or title examiner can use that record to trace ownership and find interests that may affect the property.

Commonly recorded instruments include:

• deeds;
• mortgages and assignments of mortgage;
• satisfactions and discharges;
• easements and declarations;
• contracts that qualify for recording under the applicable statute;
• powers of attorney used in a conveyance;
• court documents and notices authorized for filing or recording.

The public record is essential, but it is not a government warranty of title. The recording officer receives and indexes eligible documents. The officer does not adjudicate every question about fraud, delivery, authority, capacity, boundary location or competing rights.

Where is a New York conveyance recorded?

Real Property Law section 291 directs recording in the office for the county where the real property is situated. The local system and office name can vary. The New York City Department of Finance recording guide states that the Office of the City Register records documents for the Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan and Queens, while the Richmond County Clerk records property documents for Staten Island. Elsewhere in New York, the county clerk ordinarily maintains the land records.

For an exam question, focus on the location rule: record where the land is located. A deed concerning Albany County land does not give Albany County chain-of-title notice merely because someone placed a copy in a different county's records.

If one conveyance covers parcels in more than one county, transaction counsel addresses the recording requirements for each affected county.

Is signing a deed the same as recording it?

No. A deed can move through several legally different events:

1. Execution: the grantor signs the instrument with the required intent and form.
2. Acknowledgment or proof: the signer acknowledges execution before an authorized officer, or the instrument is proved through an authorized method.
3. Delivery and acceptance: the deed is delivered with present intent to transfer and accepted by the grantee.
4. Recording: an eligible instrument is delivered to the proper recording office and entered into the public records.

These events answer different questions. Execution concerns making the instrument. Delivery concerns whether the conveyance takes effect between the parties. Acknowledgment generally makes the instrument eligible for recording. Recording concerns public notice and priority against later interests.

Review what makes a deed valid in New York when a question asks about execution or delivery rather than priority.

Does an unrecorded deed transfer title between the parties?

It can. Recording is not the event that necessarily creates the conveyance between grantor and grantee. A validly executed and delivered deed may transfer the grantor's interest between those parties before it is recorded.

The danger is priority. Real Property Law section 291 can make the earlier unrecorded conveyance ineffective against a protected later purchaser for value who takes in good faith and records first.

Exam cue: do not choose “the first buyer owns nothing because the deed was not recorded” without examining delivery and the competing purchaser. The better statement is that the first buyer's unrecorded interest is exposed to a qualifying later interest.

What does New York's race-notice rule require?

New York is commonly called a race-notice jurisdiction because the later party needs both protection from notice and victory in the recording race.

For the basic deed-versus-deed problem, test these elements:

1. There is an earlier conveyance that was not duly recorded before the later transaction.
2. The later party acquired the same property or affected portion from the same vendor or the statutory successor identified in Real Property Law section 291.
3. The later party gave valuable consideration.
4. The later party acted in good faith.
5. The later party lacked actual, constructive and inquiry notice when the later interest was acquired.
6. The later party's qualifying instrument was first duly recorded.

If a required element is missing, the later party cannot use section 291's basic purchaser protection in the ordinary way.

How does race-notice differ from a pure race rule?

Under a pure race rule, winning the recording race can control without a no-notice requirement. That is not the New York rule.

Suppose Owner delivers a deed to Ari. Ari does not record. Owner then wrongfully conveys the same parcel to Blake. Blake knows about Ari's deed but rushes to record first. Blake won the physical race, but Blake did not take in good faith without notice. The New York recording rule does not reward Blake merely for reaching the recording office first.

Memory line: New York asks who lacked notice and recorded first, not simply who recorded first.

How does race-notice differ from a pure notice rule?

Under a pure notice rule, a later good-faith purchaser for value might prevail upon acquiring the interest without notice even if the later party records after the first buyer. New York also requires the later protected conveyance to be first duly recorded.

Suppose Owner conveys to Ari, who does not record. Owner later conveys to Blake, who pays value without notice. Before Blake records, Ari records. Blake began without notice, but Blake did not record first. The race-notice conditions are not complete.

The exam may hide this point by emphasizing Blake's innocence. Innocence alone does not replace the recording requirement.

What is actual notice?

Actual notice means the person actually knows the relevant fact or earlier interest. The knowledge can come from a document, a direct statement, correspondence, transaction history or another credible source.

Examples include:

• the seller tells the later buyer that a prior deed was delivered;
• the later lender receives a copy of an earlier mortgage;
• the contract identifies an existing easement;
• the later buyer attended the earlier conveyance;
• the buyer's authorized attorney learns the relevant fact within the agency relationship.

Actual notice is about real knowledge, not whether the document was recorded. A person can have actual notice of an unrecorded deed.

What is constructive notice?

Constructive notice means the law treats a person as knowing an interest because the interest appears in the legally relevant public record, even if the person did not personally read it.

For the ordinary title problem, an eligible instrument that is properly recorded and indexed within the purchaser's chain of title can charge later purchasers with notice of its contents and effect. The point is to let purchasers rely on a searchable public record while requiring them to examine that record.

Constructive notice is not a claim that every filed paper reaches every person for every purpose. The instrument must be legally effective for the claimed purpose and located where the title-search rules require a purchaser to look. Indexing system, property identification, chain position and statutory language can matter.

What is inquiry notice?

Inquiry notice arises when known facts would lead a reasonably prudent purchaser or lender to investigate a possible conflicting right. A party cannot preserve good-faith status by ignoring a warning that calls for inquiry.

In Schulz v Dattero, the Appellate Division applied the principle that knowledge of a fact sufficient to put a purchaser on inquiry can create a presumption that the purchaser investigated and learned the prior right, or failed to investigate with consequences fatal to bona fide purchaser status. The case also explains that the inference is fact dependent and may be answered by proof of proper diligence that did not discover the right.

Possible inquiry triggers include:

• a person in visible possession who is not the record owner;
• a driveway, path or utility use suggesting an easement;
• a contract describing the new mortgage as “second” when no first mortgage appears of record;
• a recorded deed referring to another agreement or restriction;
• inconsistent names, signatures, dates or legal descriptions;
• a physical boundary or occupancy pattern that conflicts with the documents.

The presence of one unusual fact does not decide every case. The exam question should tell you enough to see that a prudent person would ask more.

What is the difference between constructive and inquiry notice?

Constructive notice ordinarily comes from the legally relevant public record. Inquiry notice begins with a warning fact that calls for further investigation.

Example:

• A recorded easement in the direct chain creates constructive notice.
• A visible shared driveway with no easement found in the first search may create inquiry notice.
• A buyer who was handed the unrecorded easement agreement has actual notice.

All three categories can defeat the later party's claim of taking without notice. The route to knowledge is what differs.

Does possession create inquiry notice?

Possession can create inquiry notice when it is open, visible and inconsistent with the record title or the seller's claimed rights. A prudent purchaser may need to ask the occupant what right supports the possession.

Do not turn that into an automatic rule for every occupied property. A seller living in the seller's own home is consistent with record ownership. A tenant whose lease is disclosed presents a different inquiry from an unknown person claiming ownership. The facts determine whether possession signals a conflicting interest.

Exam cue: unexplained possession by someone other than the record owner is a warning fact, not background decoration.

Who is a good-faith purchaser for value?

A good-faith purchaser for value, often called a bona fide purchaser, acquires the interest honestly, provides valuable consideration and lacks disqualifying notice of the earlier claim.

Real Property Law section 290 defines purchaser in relation to an estate or interest acquired for valuable consideration. Courts apply the recording rule to qualifying mortgagees as well as deed purchasers.

Three exam filters work well:

• value: did the later party pay or extend value rather than receive a gift?
• good faith: did the later party act honestly in the transaction?
• notice: did the later party know, have record notice or face facts requiring inquiry?

A later gift recipient ordinarily lacks the valuable-consideration element. Recording the gift deed first does not turn the donee into a protected purchaser for value.

When must the later purchaser lack notice?

The critical focus is the later party's good faith when the interest is acquired. A person who learns of the earlier interest before completing the purchase cannot erase that knowledge by recording quickly afterward.

Likewise, if the earlier deed is recorded before the later party acquires the interest, the later party can be charged with constructive notice through the record. The later party cannot qualify by saying the title search was skipped.

A dense fact pattern may separate contract date, deed delivery, payment, closing and recording. Put every event on a timeline before deciding priority.

What does first duly recorded mean?

The statute does not merely say “first mailed” or “first signed.” It says first duly recorded.

Real Property Law section 317 states that an instrument entitled to be recorded must be recorded in the order and as of the time it is delivered to the recording officer during the office's business hours. A digitized paper document or electronic record is treated as delivered at the date and time shown on the recording officer's notification of receipt.

The word “duly” matters. The instrument must be entitled to recording and delivered through a method the office accepts. A cover letter, unconfirmed mailing or rejected submission does not prove that an instrument was duly recorded.

Exam cue: when two valid instruments arrive on the same day, use the legally established delivery or recording time given in the facts, not an assumption about the date printed on each deed.

How do grantor and grantee indexes work?

Real Property Law section 316 requires recording officers to maintain indexes that allow conveyances and mortgages to be found. Traditional indexes organize records through the names of grantors, grantees, mortgagors and mortgagees. Some local systems also use numerical, block or lot indexes.

A simplified grantor-grantee search works in two directions:

1. Search backward through grantee entries to identify how the current owner acquired title.
2. Search forward through grantor entries during each owner's period of ownership to find deeds, mortgages, easements or other interests that owner granted.

This is a conceptual exam model. A professional title search applies county-specific indexing rules, date ranges, name variations and document standards.

What is chain of title?

Chain of title is the connected history of ownership and interests affecting a parcel. Each valid transfer should connect a grantor who held an interest to a grantee who received it.

A simple chain might read:

State grant to Owner A, deed from Owner A to Owner B, deed from Owner B to Owner C, mortgage from Owner C to Lender D, satisfaction from Lender D, deed from Owner C to Owner E.

The chain is not only a list of owners. Recorded easements, mortgages, restrictions, judgments and other interests can affect what each owner held or conveyed.

A legal description links the instrument to the land. Review legal descriptions, surveys, metes and bounds and lot and block when the chain contains a parcel-identity problem.

What is a break or gap in the chain of title?

A break or gap appears when the record does not show a reliable connection between consecutive interests.

Examples include:

• a deed from a person who does not appear to have received title;
• a missing estate or fiduciary instrument;
• an inconsistent legal description that seems to omit part of the parcel;
• a deed signed under a power of attorney that cannot be found or verified;
• an unreleased mortgage or missing satisfaction;
• an entity conveyance with unresolved authority;
• a name variation that cannot be connected to the record owner;
• a recorded instrument that depends on an unrecorded prior transfer.

A gap does not tell a salesperson who wins. It tells the salesperson that the title professionals and attorneys need to investigate before the transaction proceeds.

What is a wild deed?

“Wild deed” is common title-search shorthand for a recorded deed that cannot be found through the ordinary direct chain because a prior connecting instrument is missing or the deed is indexed under someone outside that chain.

Example: Owner conveys to Ari, but Ari does not record. Ari then conveys to Casey, and Casey records. A search from Owner forward may not lead to Casey because the missing Owner-to-Ari deed leaves Casey's deed outside the apparent chain.

New York cases generally state that a purchaser is not charged with notice of conveyances outside the direct chain of title. Local block and lot indexing rules can affect the analysis, so the exam-safe approach is narrower: a recorded instrument outside the searchable chain may fail to provide ordinary constructive notice.

Avoid assuming that the recording stamp alone proves constructive notice to every later purchaser.

Can a recorded reference create a duty to inquire?

It can. A deed, mortgage or declaration in the chain may refer to another agreement, right or restriction. That reference may give actual information or call for further inquiry.

New York also has a targeted rule in Real Property Law section 291-e concerning certain vague recitals of an unidentified prior conveyance. The statute prevents a qualifying recital from creating notice or a duty of inquiry when its conditions are met, unless the prior conveyance is identified and recorded as the statute requires.

The exam lesson is not to memorize every clause of section 291-e. It is to avoid two extremes:

• a recital can be ignored because the referenced instrument was not attached;
• any vague recital creates constructive notice of any possible claim.

Read the specificity of the reference and the statutory facts given.

Does recording prove that a deed is valid?

No. Recording provides a public record and may affect priority. It does not prove that the grantor owned the interest, delivered the deed, had capacity and authority, used a valid signature or conveyed the described parcel.

In Faison v Lewis, the New York Court of Appeals held that a forged deed is void from its inception and conveys no title. Real Property Law section 291 does not transform the forgery into an effective conveyance merely because it reached the public record.

This distinction defeats a common exam trap:

• unrecorded but valid deed: may transfer between the parties but face priority risk;
• recorded forged deed: remains void and conveys nothing through the forgery.

Does recording prove marketable title?

No. A complete set of recording stamps is not the same as marketable title. The chain can contain an unreleased lien, boundary conflict, forged instrument, estate-authority problem, adverse claim or other defect.

Marketable title concerns whether the title is reasonably free from doubt and unacceptable litigation risk under the governing contract and law. Title insurance concerns a policy's covered risks, exclusions, exceptions and conditions. Those are the focus of title searches, abstracts, marketable title and title insurance, not a substitute for the recording-act analysis here.

Keep the concepts separate: recording is evidence and notice infrastructure, not a title warranty.

How does a notice of pendency affect later parties?

A notice of pendency, sometimes called a lis pendens, is a filing connected to an action in which the requested judgment would affect title, an encumbrance, possession, use or enjoyment of real property.

Under CPLR section 6501, the action gives constructive notice from the time the notice is filed and properly indexed. A person whose conveyance or encumbrance is recorded after the filing is bound by later proceedings in the action to the same extent as a party, as the statute states.

A notice of pendency is not itself a money judgment and does not decide who wins the lawsuit. It warns that the litigation may affect the property. Review general liens, specific liens and notices of pendency for filing, duration and lien distinctions.

Does first recording decide every lien priority question?

No. The race-notice rule is a central priority rule, but other statutes and doctrines can govern particular interests. Property taxes, federal tax liens, mechanics' liens, purchase-money mortgages, condominium liens, subordination agreements, equitable subrogation and notices of pendency can involve different priority rules.

For an exam question:

1. identify the type of each interest;
2. look for a statute-specific rule in the facts;
3. check notice and recording;
4. check for subordination, satisfaction or release;
5. avoid applying “first in time” without classifying the lien.

The recording article supplies the default framework. It does not replace the law assigned to a special lien.

How should you solve a New York recording-priority timeline?

Write the events in chronological order and label five facts for each party:

Then apply the rule rather than choosing the sympathetic party.

What is a worked race-notice example?

Owner delivers a valid deed to Ari on June 1. Ari pays the price but does not record. On June 8, Owner delivers a second deed for the same parcel to Blake. Blake pays fair value, has no actual knowledge, finds no prior deed in the chain and sees no inquiry warning. Blake records on June 9. Ari records on June 10.

Analysis:

1. Ari received the earlier deed.
2. Ari left it unrecorded when Blake acquired the later interest.
3. Blake paid valuable consideration.
4. The facts give Blake no actual, constructive or inquiry notice.
5. Blake recorded before Ari.
6. Blake satisfies the stated race-notice conditions and can prevail against Ari under Real Property Law section 291.

Change one fact: Blake received an email attaching Ari's deed before closing. Blake now has actual notice. Recording first does not restore good-faith purchaser status.

What is a worked constructive-notice example?

Owner grants a recorded driveway easement to Neighbor. Years later, Owner sells the burdened parcel to Buyer. Buyer says the easement was not mentioned during the showing and Buyer did not read the title report.

If the easement was properly recorded and appears in the relevant chain, Buyer is charged with constructive notice. The failure to read the record does not erase the recorded interest.

Buyer may have separate claims based on contract language, disclosure duties or professional conduct, but the recorded easement does not disappear because Buyer missed it.

Review easements, licenses, encroachments and adverse possession for how the underlying property right works.

What is a worked inquiry-notice example?

The record shows Seller as the sole owner of a two-family house. During every visit, Pat occupies the entire second unit, tells Buyer that the unit was “left to me,” and refuses access without seeing an agreement. Buyer closes without asking Pat, Seller or the attorneys about the claim.

Pat's statement and possession do not automatically prove that Pat owns an interest. They do provide specific warning facts that a prudent purchaser would investigate. Buyer may be charged with what a proper inquiry would have revealed and may lose good-faith purchaser status.

The exam distinction is between proof of the right and notice requiring inquiry. A warning can trigger investigation before the underlying claim has been proved.

What is a worked chain-gap example?

The record shows a deed from Dana to Eli and, years later, a deed from Farah to Gia. No recorded instrument connects Eli to Farah. Gia now wants to sell.

The problem is not solved by saying Gia's deed has a recording stamp. The chain lacks a visible link explaining how Farah acquired the interest that Farah purported to convey. The missing link may involve an estate, court order, entity change, prior unrecorded deed or error.

The salesperson should flag the title issue and let the attorneys and title professionals determine what evidence or corrective instrument is needed.

What should a salesperson do when a title problem appears?

A salesperson can recognize and communicate facts without giving a legal opinion about ownership or priority.

Useful steps include:

• preserve the document and timeline;
• notify the supervising broker;
• identify the exact mismatch without announcing who owns the property;
• direct the parties to their attorneys and title professionals;
• avoid drafting a corrective deed or legal release;
• avoid promising that recording will cure the defect;
• update transaction deadlines through attorney-approved documents;
• document what was communicated and when.

A salesperson can say, “The record owner and proposed signer do not match, so the attorneys and title company need to review authority before closing.” That is clearer and safer than saying, “The deed is invalid.”

Which recording misconceptions cause wrong answers?

Misconception: The first deed signed has priority

Correction: Signing order is not the complete analysis. Delivery, value, notice, validity and recording order matter.

Misconception: The first instrument recorded wins in New York

Correction: The later party also needs good faith, valuable consideration and no disqualifying notice under the applicable rule.

Misconception: An unrecorded deed is invalid between grantor and grantee

Correction: A valid delivered deed can operate between the parties while remaining exposed to a qualifying later purchaser.

Misconception: A recorded deed must be valid

Correction: The recording office does not make a forged or void instrument effective.

Misconception: Constructive notice means the buyer actually read the deed

Correction: Constructive notice is knowledge charged by law from the relevant public record.

Misconception: Inquiry notice requires a recorded document

Correction: It begins with facts that would lead a prudent person to investigate, including physical possession or a document inconsistency.

Misconception: Every recorded paper gives notice to every purchaser

Correction: The instrument's legal effect, indexing and position in the searchable chain can matter.

Misconception: Recording proves marketable title

Correction: Recording creates a public trail. Marketability requires a broader title analysis.

Can you apply the rule to original exam-style scenarios?

Scenario 1: The later purchaser knew

Owner deeds the parcel to First Buyer, who does not record. Owner then deeds it to Second Buyer. Before paying, Second Buyer sees a copy of First Buyer's deed. Second Buyer records first.

Answer: Second Buyer has actual notice and does not satisfy the good-faith no-notice condition. Winning the recording race alone is insufficient.

Scenario 2: The later recipient received a gift

Owner deeds the parcel to First Buyer, who does not record. Owner then gives a deed to Owner's cousin as a gift. The cousin lacks notice and records first.

Answer: The cousin did not provide valuable consideration and does not fit the ordinary protected-purchaser-for-value rule.

Scenario 3: The earlier deed was recorded first

Owner deeds the parcel to First Buyer. First Buyer records. Owner then purports to deed the same parcel to Second Buyer.

Answer: The recorded first deed gives constructive notice through the chain. Owner also lacks the same interest to convey a second time.

Scenario 4: Visible driveway use

The record does not show an easement, but a paved driveway visibly crosses the parcel to a neighbor's garage. Buyer makes no inquiry.

Answer: The physical use can place Buyer on inquiry notice. The facts call for investigation of a possible easement.

Scenario 5: Forged deed recorded first

A fraudster records a deed bearing Owner's forged signature, then conveys to an innocent purchaser who records.

Answer: Under Faison v Lewis, the forged deed is void and cannot convey title. Recording does not make the forgery effective.

Scenario 6: Notice of pendency filed before deed recording

A title action affecting the parcel begins, and a notice of pendency is properly filed and indexed. A later grantee records afterward.

Answer: CPLR section 6501 charges the later party with constructive notice and binds that party to later proceedings as the statute provides.

Scenario 7: A recorded deed outside the apparent chain

A recorded deed names a grantor who does not appear anywhere in the apparent ownership chain. A later buyer's ordinary direct-chain search does not reveal it.

Answer: The recording stamp does not by itself settle constructive notice. An out-of-chain instrument may not provide ordinary record notice, subject to the indexing system and specific facts.

What should you memorize?

• New York uses a race-notice recording rule.
• The protected later party must give value, act in good faith, lack notice and record first.
• Actual notice is real knowledge.
• Constructive notice is knowledge charged from the legally relevant public record.
• Inquiry notice comes from facts that call for a prudent investigation.
• A valid delivered deed can operate before recording but face priority risk.
• “First duly recorded” is more precise than “first mailed.”
• Recording in the county where the land is located builds the public record.
• A chain of title connects one holder's interest to the next.
• A missing link can create a gap or cloud.
• A recorded forged deed remains void.
• A notice of pendency gives constructive notice from filing when statutory conditions are met.
• Special liens and interests may have their own priority statutes.
• Salespersons identify warning facts; attorneys and title professionals resolve title.

Practice questions

1. What makes New York a race-notice state?

A. The first purchaser to sign receives priority in every dispute
B. A later protected purchaser must take for value without notice and record first
C. The purchaser with the largest down payment receives priority
D. Recording validates any deed accepted by the clerk

Answer: B. New York requires both no disqualifying notice and being first to duly record for the basic later-purchaser protection.

2. A buyer receives a valid delivered deed but does not record it. Which statement is best?

A. The deed cannot operate between the parties
B. The buyer has no possible ownership interest
C. The interest may operate between the parties but is exposed to a qualifying later purchaser
D. The deed becomes a lease

Answer: C. Recording primarily affects public notice and priority against later interests.

3. A purchaser sees an unexplained occupant claiming a lifetime right but refuses to ask questions. Which notice concept fits best?

A. Inquiry notice
B. Legislative notice
C. Automatic title insurance
D. Escheat

Answer: A. The facts would lead a prudent purchaser to investigate a possible conflicting right.

4. Which person best fits a protected later purchaser for value?

A. A donee who receives the deed as a gift
B. A buyer who pays value, lacks notice and records first
C. A buyer who knows of the earlier deed and records first
D. A fraudster who records a forged deed

Answer: B. Value, good faith, lack of notice and first recording are the key facts.

5. What does constructive notice usually arise from in a basic title question?

A. A qualifying instrument properly recorded in the relevant chain
B. A buyer's private intention
C. A seller's unspoken thought
D. A salesperson's estimate of value

Answer: A. The public land record can charge later purchasers with knowledge of recorded interests.

6. What is the effect of recording a forged deed?

A. The deed becomes valid after 30 days
B. The forgery becomes a voidable deed only
C. The recording transfers title to an innocent later purchaser
D. The forged deed remains void

Answer: D. Faison v Lewis confirms that recording cannot give legal effect to a forged deed.

7. What is a chain-of-title gap?

A. A period when the brokerage office is closed
B. A missing or unreliable connection between consecutive interests
C. A difference between list price and sale price
D. A late mortgage payment

Answer: B. The record must connect each grantor's interest to the interest later conveyed.

8. When does CPLR section 6501 make a notice of pendency constructive notice?

A. From the time the qualifying notice is filed and indexed
B. From the date the plaintiff first considered a lawsuit
C. Only after a final judgment
D. Only after the property is sold

Answer: A. The statutory notice effect begins with filing under the stated indexing conditions.

Frequently asked questions

Is New York a race, notice or race-notice state?

New York is a race-notice state. A later purchaser seeking the basic protection of Real Property Law section 291 must take in good faith for valuable consideration without disqualifying notice and be first to duly record.

What are the three types of notice in New York real estate?

Actual notice is real knowledge. Constructive notice is knowledge charged from the legally relevant public record. Inquiry notice arises from warning facts that would lead a reasonably prudent purchaser to investigate.

Does an unrecorded deed have any effect in New York?

A validly delivered unrecorded deed can operate between grantor and grantee. It may lose priority to a qualifying later good-faith purchaser for value who lacks notice and records first.

Does recording a deed prove ownership?

No. Recording creates a public record and can affect notice and priority. It does not prove delivery, authority, capacity, authenticity or the grantor's ownership.

Does a buyer have to search the public record?

The recording system can charge a buyer with constructive notice of qualifying interests in the relevant chain whether or not the buyer personally reads them. Transaction attorneys and title professionals perform the detailed search.

Can visible possession count as notice?

Visible possession inconsistent with the record can create a duty to inquire. Whether it does depends on what the purchaser knew and what a prudent investigation would have revealed.

What does first duly recorded mean?

It means the instrument was entitled to recording and received by the proper recording officer through an accepted process at the legally recognized time. Signing or mailing first is not the same fact.

What is a wild deed?

A wild deed is title-search shorthand for a recorded deed outside the apparent direct chain, often because a connecting conveyance is missing. Its recording may not give ordinary constructive notice to later purchasers.

Does a notice of pendency transfer title?

No. It gives notice of litigation that may affect the property. The lawsuit and later court proceedings determine the parties' rights.

Who decides a real title-priority dispute?

The parties' attorneys, title professionals and, when contested, a court apply the governing documents, statutes and evidence. A real estate salesperson should identify the warning and refer the legal determination.

Sources and verification notes

This article was checked against primary New York sources in effect or published through August 27, 2026. The principal authorities are:

• New York State Department of State, Real Estate Salesperson 77-Hour Curriculum, Subject 3;
• New York Real Property Law section 290, Article 9 definitions;
• New York Real Property Law section 291, recording and later-purchaser priority;
• New York Real Property Law section 291-e, certain recitals and inquiry notice;
• New York Real Property Law section 316, indexing;
• New York Real Property Law section 317, order and time of recording;
• New York CPLR section 6501, notice of pendency and constructive notice;
• New York City Department of Finance, Recording Documents, borough recording offices and ACRIS scope;
• Gerow v Sinay, 28 Misc 3d 990 (Sup Ct, Onondaga County 2010), notice categories and inquiry facts;
• Schulz v Dattero, 104 AD3d 831 (2d Dept 2013), inquiry notice and diligence;
• Picard v Fish, 139 AD3d 1331 (3d Dept 2016), constructive notice from a recorded deed;
• Faison v Lewis, 25 NY3d 220 (2015), forged deeds and the limits of recording;
• Unlimited Assets, Inc. v PennyMac Corp., 75 Misc 3d 1238(A) (Sup Ct, Bronx County 2022), race-notice and proof of recording.

The article uses “wild deed” and “chain gap” as practical title-search terms rather than names of separate statutory interests. County indexing methods and a particular instrument's record-notice effect can vary. Live title and priority questions require document-specific legal review.