1. a. There is imposed on each deed, instrument, or writing by which any lands, tenements, or other realty in this state are granted, assigned, transferred, or otherwise conveyed, a tax determined in the following manner: 

 (1) When there is no consideration or when the deed, instrument, or writing is executed and tendered for recording as an instrument corrective of title, and so states, there is no tax.
 (2) When there is consideration and the actual market value of the real property transferred is in excess of five hundred dollars, the tax is eighty cents for each five hundred dollars or fractional part of five hundred dollars in excess of five hundred dollars.
 b. The term “consideration”, as used in this chapter, means the full amount of the actual sale price of the real property involved, paid or to be paid, including the amount of an encumbrance or lien on the property, if assumed by the grantee.
 c. It is presumed that the sale price so stated includes the value of all personal property transferred as part of the sale unless the dollar value of personal property is stated on the instrument of conveyance. When the dollar value of the personal property included in the sale is so stated, it shall be deducted from the consideration shown on the instrument for the purpose of determining the tax.
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Terms Used In Iowa Code 428A.1

  • Agricultural land: means land in tracts of ten acres or more excluding any buildings or other structures located on the land, and not laid off into lots of less than ten acres or divided by streets and alleys into parcels of less than ten acres, lying within a school corporation and in good faith used for agricultural or horticultural purposes. See Iowa Code 425A.2
  • Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
  • Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
  • Deed: The legal instrument used to transfer title in real property from one person to another.
  • deed: is a pplied to an instrument conveying lands, but does not imply a sealed instrument; and the words "bond" and "indenture" do not necessarily imply a seal, and the word "undertaking" means a promise or security in any form. See Iowa Code 4.1
  • Director: means the director of the department of revenue. See Iowa Code 453A.42
  • following: when used by way of reference to a chapter or other part of a statute mean the next preceding or next following chapter or other part. See Iowa Code 4.1
  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
  • Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
  • Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
  • Partnership: means an entity subject to taxation under subchapter K of the Internal Revenue Code and the regulations thereunder and includes but is not limited to a syndicate, group, pool, joint venture, or other unincorporated organization through or by means of which any business, financial operation, or venture is carried on and which is not, within the meaning of this chapter, a trust, estate, or corporation. See Iowa Code 422.25A
  • Personal property: All property that is not real property.
  • personal property: include money, goods, chattels, evidences of debt, and things in action. See Iowa Code 4.1
  • property: includes personal and real property. See Iowa Code 4.1
  • Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
  • real property: include lands, tenements, hereditaments, and all rights thereto and interests therein, equitable as well as legal. See Iowa Code 4.1
  • Sale: means any transfer, exchange, or barter, in any manner or by any means whatsoever, for a consideration, and includes and means all sales made by any person. See Iowa Code 453A.42
  • state: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the territories, and the words "United States" may include the said district and territories. See Iowa Code 4.1
  • year: means twelve consecutive months. See Iowa Code 4.1
 2. When each deed, instrument, or writing by which any real property in this state is granted, assigned, transferred, or otherwise conveyed is presented for recording to the county recorder, a declaration of value signed by at least one of the sellers or one of the buyers or their agents shall be submitted to the county recorder. However, if the deed, instrument, or writing contains multiple parcels some of which are located in more than one county, separate declarations of value shall be submitted on the parcels located in each county and submitted to the county recorder of that county when paying the tax as provided in section 428A.5. A declaration of value is not required for those instruments described in section 428A.2, subsections 2 through 5, 7 through 13, and 16 through 21, or described in section 428A.2, subsection 6, except in the case of a federal agency or instrumentality, or if a transfer is the result of acquisition of lands, whether by contract or condemnation, for public purposes through an exercise of the power of eminent domain.
 3. The declaration of value shall state the full consideration paid for the real property transferred. If agricultural land, as defined in section 9H.1, is purchased by a corporation, limited partnership, trust, alien or nonresident alien, the declaration of value shall include the name and address of the buyer, the name and address of the seller, a legal description of the agricultural land, and identify the buyer as a corporation, limited partnership, trust, alien, or nonresident alien. The county recorder shall not record the declaration of value, but shall enter on the declaration of value the information the director of revenue requires for the production of the sales/assessment ratio study and transmit all declarations of value to the city or county assessor in whose jurisdiction the property is located. The city or county assessor shall provide the information the director of revenue requires for the production of the sales/assessment ratio study at times as directed by the director of revenue. The assessor shall retain for three years from December 31 of the year in which the transfer of realty for which the declaration was filed took place. The director of revenue shall, upon receipt of the information required to be filed under this chapter by the city or county assessor, send to the office of the secretary of state that part of the declaration of value which identifies a corporation, limited partnership, trust, alien, or nonresident alien as a purchaser of agricultural land as defined in section 9H.1.
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