West Virginia transfer tax: rates, who pays and exemptions

What is the West Virginia transfer tax?

Article 22 of Chapter 11 of the West Virginia Code imposes an “excise tax upon the privilege of transferring title to real estate.” It is charged when a deed is delivered, accepted or presented for recording. The amount depends on the “value” of the deed: the full consideration paid, including any lien the buyer assumes (§ 11-22-1). The tax applies to each $500 of value “or fraction thereof,” so a price is rounded up to the next $500 step.

There are two layers:

Only one state-level tax and one county tax are paid on any one document, in the county where the deed is first recorded. The statute says the county commission must vote, after published notice, before it raises its rate. I could not find Kanawha County’s current rate on an official page, so confirm it with the Kanawha County Clerk at (304) 357-0130 before you budget.

Who pays the transfer tax?

By statute, “the tax shall be paid by the grantor,” meaning the seller, unless the buyer accepts the deed without the tax having been paid. Then the buyer pays. When a trustee or a county clerk transfers property sold for taxes, the grantee pays. Your sales contract can shift the cost between buyer and seller, but the county looks to the grantor first.

The tax also has priority in a judicial sale: it must be paid out of the first money received, before other claims (§ 11-22-3).

What does it cost on a $200,000 home?

This is an example, not a quote. The value is $200,000, which is exactly 400 steps of $500.

So the tax on this sale falls between $660 and $1,100, plus $20, depending on the county’s rate. For a $200,250 sale, the extra $250 counts as one more $500 step.

Which transfers are exempt?

Section 11-22-1 lists documents that are not taxed. The most relevant ones for home owners include:

• Transfers where the value is $1,000 or less (measured as assessed value divided by 0.60).
• Transfers between spouses; between parent and child, grandparent and grandchild, or siblings, when there is no consideration. “Child,” “grandchild” and “sibling” include adopted children, stepchildren and their descendants.
• Deeds into or out of trusts, deeds of partition and wills.
• Deeds without consideration between a person (or a trust) and a limited liability company that the person or trust wholly owns.
• Corrective or confirmatory deeds without consideration.
• Transfers to or from the United States, the state or their agencies and political subdivisions.
• Mortgages and deeds of trust given as security for a debt.

A deed that qualifies still has to be recorded, and the clerk may ask for a declaration of the exemption. Ask the clerk which form to use.

Recording fees are separate

The county clerk charges $30 to record a deed or a deed of trust, with or without a plat. The statute adds $1 for each additional page on documents with more than five pages (§ 59-1-10). A purchase with a loan therefore records at least two documents. See closing costs in West Virginia for the full list, and the Charleston guide for the local picture. The closing costs explained guide covers how the lines appear on your forms.