Increase in Home Prices Drives Income Growth at Registry of Deeds

John O’Brien, Register of Deeds.

The Southern Essex District Registry of Deeds, which records property ownership records, collected more than $36 million during the year that ended June 30—more than a million more than last year—mostly because of a rise in house prices.

At the same time, Essex County Register of Deeds John O’Brien said this morning, office expenses dropped 1.3 percent, or $40,403. It cost $3,048,768 to manage the registry of deeds. The income increase amounted to 3.1 percent.

“The rise of home prices is reflected in the increase in the amount of Excise Transfer Tax collected by the Registry of deeds which is calculated based on the sales price of property,” O’Brien’s office said.

The number of documents recorded totaled 143,243—an increase of 5,101 over 2016. That reflects an additional 471 deeds recorded and an additional 2,023 mortgages over the prior year.