What are Minnesota's deed tax and mortgage registry tax?
Answered by Chris Deutsch, Founder & Editor
Licensed Minnesota Realtor #20382264 ·
The short answer
They're Minnesota's two transfer taxes, and they land on opposite sides of the table. The deed tax is the seller's — about a third of one percent of the sale price, or 0.33%, per the Minnesota Department of Revenue. It's paid when the deed is recorded. The mortgage registry tax is the borrower's — about a quarter of one percent, or 0.23%, of the new loan amount, not the price. It's paid when the mortgage is recorded. Hennepin and Ramsey counties each add a small environmental-fund surcharge.
On stage The 60-second answer
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The longer answer
In practice: sellers see the deed tax as a line on the settlement statement. Buyers see the registry tax inside closing costs — and cash buyers skip it entirely, since there's no mortgage to record. Neither is negotiable; they're statutes, not fees.
(I'm not your CPA, and this isn't tax advice — the title company calculates both to the penny.) As closing surprises go, these are the polite kind: known, flat, and visible in advance on your Loan Estimate or net sheet.
Program notes
Where this answer comes from
- Minnesota Department of Revenue — deed tax and mortgage registry tax
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