Our office was recently advised that easements must be conveyed per Ohio Attorney General Opinion 2016-006. This Opinion states “The phrase ‘deed of absolute conveyance of land,’ as it is used in R.C. 317.22, includes a deed transferring an easement.”

As such, all easements shall now be required to include a conveyance fee statement and will be charged a transfer fee $0.50. If the price paid for the easement is less than $1,000, the conveyance fee statement submitted to the Auditor’s Office should be DTE 100(EX) and exemption code “P” should be selected as the reasoning for exemption. If the price paid for the easement is greater than $1,000, the conveyance fee statement submitted should be the DTE 100 and a conveyance fee of $4.00/thousand must be paid in addition to the $0.50 transfer fee.

If you should have any questions or concerns, please contact the Real Estate Department of the Muskingum County Auditor’s Office at (740) 455-7109, option 1.