Fentress County, TN Property Records: Search Deeds, Owners, Tax Records, and Maps

Returning from the First World War, Sgt. Alvin C. York arrived home to his farm in Pall Mall, and the deed to the land is still in the same office that registers Fentress County property today. The county was formed in 1823 from the counties of Morgan, Overton, and White. It occupies an area of 499 square miles on the Upper Cumberland plateau and includes only a small amount of water, which amounts to less than a square mile. The offices of the Register of Deeds, Assessor of Property, and County Trustee are located in Jamestown on Main Street.

Fentress County is the southern access point to Big South Fork; there is no county-wide zoning, and the Assessor records mineral rights with surface parcels. Properties from Jamestown and Allardt town lots to the acreage on a plateau or hunting tract move within Tennessee's normal 30- to 60-day window. Demand remains relatively stable for timber, tourism, and small manufacturing. Before his birth, Mark Twain's family owned land here.

Recent records reveal the underlying factors influencing the local real estate market, with a median home value of $128,400 and median rent of $743.5, alongside a median household income of $43,167 and a median real estate tax rate of 0.4 as a percentage of the property’s assessed value.

How to Look Up Fentress County Property Records

The state assessment site provides the owner, assessment value, and Map-Group-Parcel number for free for each parcel. The Trustee's balances are kept in the state Trustee system. The Register of Deeds accepts documents for service in person, by mail, and by subscription to TitleSearcher.

Who Keeps Fentress County Property Records

Tennessee keeps property records at the county level, and the Public Records Act opens them to Tennessee citizens. Fentress County splits the work three ways:

• The Assessor of Property maintains property records and maps of current ownership, tracks improvements and property accounts, and maintains mineral right assessments, a plateau specialty.

• The Register of Deeds makes and keeps a record of all instruments of which the law requires or permits. This includes deeds, deeds of trust, plats, wills, court orders, and military discharges.

• The County Trustee collects the County's property taxes. The Trustee is the tax collector in Tennessee.

Delinquent tax cases are heard by the Clerk & Master in the Chancery Court. Jamestown and Allardt bill any city taxes separately.

How to Search Fentress County Property Records Online

Work it in this order so nothing slips past you.

• Locate the parcel on the state assessment site. Type in the address or owner's name in the Fentress County field and copy the Map-Group-Parcel number, value, and class.

• On TNMap, map the boundary where large blocks of land meet with the Big South Fork.

• You can search the Register's index either in person, by mail, or by subscribing to TitleSearcher. Searches can be conducted by name, book and page, file number, subdivision, instrument number, legal description, and type.

• Trace back the grantor on each deed, lien, and release, using the same index. While on plateau land, look for broken mineral rights.

• Verify taxes are up to date by discussing with the Trustee at (931) 879-7717.

Register of Deeds: Deeds, Deeds of Trust, and Plats

Jamestown, Allardt, Clarkrange, Pall Mall, and the plateau between have an elected Register of Deeds. On most financed purchases, Tennessee gets home loans by deeds of trust, in lieu of mortgages. The Register also collects the state recordation tax.

The types of documents recorded include:

• Warranty deeds and quitclaim deeds (and other conveyances)

• Deeds of trust, releases, assignments and modifications

• Liens, contracts, leases, and judgments

• Powers of attorney, wills, and court orders.

• Plats, military discharges, and UCC fixture filings are the only filing types that are exempt from the regulations.

Assessor of Property: Ownership, Values, and Parcel Data

The Assessor's value is the market value of each parcel, and Tennessee taxes a fraction based on the parcel class. By its own description, the office maintains the ownership maps, tracks improvements and accounts, and keeps mineral right assessments. There can be two records on a plateau tract: one is the surface, one is what is underneath it.

Use the state assessment site or call to find:

• The current owner of record for any parcel

• The Map-Group-Parcel number and legal description

• The appraised value and the assessed value after the class ratio

• The property class, such as residential, farm, or commercial

• Characteristics, improvements, and mineral right assessments

County Trustee: Tax Bills and Payments

The Trustee bills and collects county taxes from Jamestown. Taxes come due the first Monday in October, and the last day of February closes the window before monthly interest begins.

The Trustee administers the state Tax Relief program for qualifying seniors, disabled homeowners, and veterans.

Property Tax in Fentress County: Classification, Exemptions, and Appeals

There is no state property tax in Tennessee. A Fentress County bill includes taxes billed by the county and city of residence, if applicable.

How the bill is figured

Residential and farm property is assessed at 25% of its appraised value, while commercial and industrial are assessed at 40% of the appraised value. A home appraised at $150,000 carries a $37,500 assessed value; at a combined 2.10% rate, the bill is about $788.

Exemptions and relief

Appealing your value

First call the Assessor; corrected information resolves many cases. The formal appeal is made to the County Board of Equalization in June, and then to the State Board of Equalization, using similar sales as evidence.

GIS Maps and Parcel Viewer

The TNMap assessment viewer overlays all Fentress County boundaries on aerial imagery and connects to the Comptroller's assessment data. The Planning Offices of the cities respond to land-use questions within that jurisdiction, as there is no countywide zoning.

Details available include:

• Parcel boundaries with ownership and acreage

• Appraised and assessed values by parcel

• The plateau, the gorges, and the Big South Fork edge in aerial view

• Property classes and record-card data

• Statewide layers through TNMap

Foreclosure and Tax Sales

Tennessee allows two kinds of tax sales:

Deed-of-trust foreclosure

In case of default, the substitute trustee named in the deed of trust advertises and sells the loan in accordance with the provisions of Title 35 of the Tennessee Code. There is no need to obtain a court order.

Chancery Court tax sale

Unpaid taxes go through the court. A suit is filed in the Chancery Court, conducted by the Clerk & Master, and most sales then result in a 1-year right of redemption. In Tennessee, the property is not sold at a tax lien sale.

Costs to Access Property Records

The state portals do not charge. Copies, a subscription index, and recording are subject to fees.

Recordation taxes are collected by the Register at recording, and the sworn value on the deed is the public record of the price.

How to Record a Document

Recording follows Title 66, Chapter 24 of the Tennessee Code. There are four steps:

• Prepare the document to Tennessee standards: notarized signatures, a full property description, and preparer and return addresses.

• Add the deed requirements: the tax parcel number on any conveyance, and the signed Oath of Consideration.

• Bring the recording fee plus the recordation taxes: $0.37 per $100 on the transfer, $0.115 per $100 on secured debt over $2,000.

• Record at the Register’s office by mail with fees. The originals are returned after indexing.

FAQs

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