Do I have to come into the office to look up property?

Property records are online. Property can be located by owner name, address, or parcel number. However, those wishing to research our transfer books must still visit our plat room. Plats and aerial photos of all properties are now digitized and available online.

Maintenance of maps now done digitally. The paper maps are no longer updated. You can also find online: original survey scans of plat books. Visit the GIS pages for questions or information about GIS.

What kind of information is included on the tax system?

Our tax system property record includes: owner’s name, owner’s mailing address, parcel site address, legal description, property value and taxes, taxing district, credits and/or exemptions, tax sale/special assessment information, limited transfer history, “split from/to” parcels in the case of a property split or consolidation.

How do I research the history of ownership of property?

The Plat Room houses all of the transfer books for the county. These books trace back the history of land ownership of all property in Scott County. One must come to the plat room to research a property in these books. Many of our books go back to the early 1900’s. Plat room staff are available to assist customers with this task. Upon conversion to a new tax system in 2002, transfer records became automated, meaning that transfers 2002 to present are now computerized and on the tax system, but transfers before that must still be located in the books. Transfers are not located on the website at this time.

How can I change a name on my record? Add or remove a name?

Adding or removing a name to the title of a property requires a recorded deed or document which should be prepared by a real estate lawyer. The exception to this is a deceased spouse, in which case an “Affidavit of Surviving Spouse” can be filed by the surviving spouse to remove the deceased person from title. This can be completed and recorded at the Recorder’s Office and would include a filing fee of at least $14 (an additional $5 is required for each additional property to be transferred). In the case of a name change, the Plat Room staff can prepare an affidavit which changes an existing owner’s name. The filing fee for this affidavit is $1.00.

How can I get a copy of my deed?

The plat room can provide the customer with a document number of the deed, or, in the case of an older deed, a “book and page” designation. This number is then given to the Recorder’s Office where the copy of the deed is obtained.

How is my tax bill calculated?

The respective Assessor establishes a value for each property; and the Auditor’s office staff then calculates the taxes based upon that value. The Auditor’s Office also creates a “levy sheet”, which shows the dollar amount, per thousand, per taxing district, that the citizen pays in property tax. The State of Iowa establishes the levy rates for every county in the state.