Substitution of Trustee & Full Reconveyance

A full reconveyance is the recorded instrument that releases a deed of trust from the property once the underlying note is paid. Until it records, the public record still shows an active lien — the payoff itself changes nothing on title. A title company searching the record sees your deed of trust and treats the property as encumbered, regardless of what the parties know to be true.

Because only the trustee named in the deed of trust can reconvey it. On institutional loans that trustee is an active title company. On private loans it is frequently a company that has dissolved, an entity that never really acted, or someone unwilling to sign years later. The substitution lets you, as beneficiary, appoint a trustee who will — and without it, the reconveyance is signed by someone the record does not recognise as having authority.

Yes. The substitution must record before, or in the same package as, the reconveyance. Record them out of order and you have a reconveyance executed by a party the record did not yet show as trustee, which is exactly the defect a future title examiner will flag. We submit them together, in sequence, as a single package.

Nothing, until it matters — and then it matters urgently. The lien stays on the record indefinitely, and it surfaces when the borrower tries to sell or refinance. Escrow stops the file, and someone has to locate a lender from years earlier and obtain a reconveyance under time pressure. The work is the same; the difference is whether it happens on your schedule or on a closing deadline.

Yes, and it is worth doing as a batch. Send us the list with the recorded deed of trust for each — or the property addresses and APNs and we will pull them — and we quote the set rather than per file. Clearing a backlog proactively is far cheaper than doing them one at a time when each borrower calls in a panic.

The recorded deed of trust is the document that governs the lien, and that is a public record we can pull. A missing original note is a separate issue between you and the borrower, and whether it affects your ability to reconvey is a legal question we cannot answer — that is one for your attorney. Tell us what you have and we will tell you what we can prepare from it.

A full reconveyance releases the entire deed of trust. A partial reconveyance releases only part of the secured property — used where a loan covers several parcels and one is being sold or released. Partial reconveyances need the released parcel described precisely, so tell us at the outset if that is what you need rather than a full release.

We prepare both instruments within 24 hours of receiving the recorded deed of trust, and once signed and notarized we e-record the same business day in counties that accept electronic recording. If a borrower’s closing is waiting on this, tell us the date at first contact — that sets the schedule, and we would rather say it is not achievable than take the fee and miss it.

The beneficiary — the lender or current note holder — signs the substitution of trustee. The newly substituted trustee signs the full reconveyance. Where a lender is an entity, the signer must have authority to bind it, and the entity name has to match the recorded deed of trust exactly. Both signatures are notarized. If the note has been assigned since it was made, tell us, because that affects who the current beneficiary is.

Yes, at the same flat fee — what matters is where the property is. We prepare the documents and email them with signing instructions. From another state you sign before any notary licensed where you live. From abroad the acknowledgment is normally taken at a U.S. embassy or consulate, and California also accepts a notary of that country, though some counties want the signature authenticated first. Out-of-state note holders are a large share of who uses this.

All 58 California counties, at the same flat fee. Where a county accepts electronic recording we submit directly and a signed package received before the afternoon cutoff can be on record the same business day. Where a county still requires paper it takes longer — we tell you which applies before you commit.

Yes. Private lenders, note funds, and law offices sending regular volume can arrange standing pricing with a single point of contact and a consistent turnaround commitment. There is no minimum and no subscription — the flat $500 stands on its own if you only ever send one. See deed services for lenders for how we work with lenders across the whole loan lifecycle.

Yes. We prepare deeds of trust and promissory notes at funding, entity vesting deeds where the borrower holds in an LLC, and title searches before you commit capital. Using one office across the lifecycle means the payoff documents reference the funding documents correctly, because we prepared both.

The recorded deed of trust — or the property address and APN and we will pull it — the exact name of the current beneficiary, confirmation the obligation has been satisfied, and any assignment if the note changed hands. If a title company or escrow officer has told you what they need recorded, send their written note; it is the fastest starting point.

A flat $500 for the pair, quoted before you commit, plus county recording fees at cost — typically $40 to $130 depending on county and page count. There are no court fees, because nothing is filed with a court. Batches of multiple payoffs are quoted together and priced below the per-file rate.

Not for the documents. Preparing and recording a substitution and reconveyance is document work a California Registered Legal Document Assistant does at your direction under Business and Professions Code §6400. TruPoint Legal is LDA #268, registered and bonded in Santa Clara County. An attorney is the right call where the payoff is disputed, where the borrower claims the debt was satisfied and you disagree, or where the loan is in default and you are considering foreclosure — none of which are document preparation.