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

Humphreys County is surrounded by three rivers: the Tennessee ( widened to become Kentucky Lake on the western border), the Duck (on the southern border), and the Buffalo (roughly in the middle). Records from the first to the third room of the Rawlings Building, 102 Thompson Street, Waverly, span the space. The space between them is represented by records within the first to third rooms of the Rawlings Building, 102 Thompson Street, Waverly. The Register of Deeds is in Room 3, the Assessor of Property in Room 4, and the County Trustee in Room 5. The books date back to when the county was founded in 1809.

Loretta Lynn's ranch and the county's most prolific address have become Hurricane Mills, and her ranch continues to support the county tourism industry along with Kentucky Lake. Tennessee homes move in 30 to 60 days, from in-town homes in Waverly and McEwen to lake homes in New Johnsonville and farms along the Buffalo River. Steady demand comes from the industry and the recreation activities on the lake associated with the TVA.

Recent records reveal the underlying factors influencing the local real estate market, with a median home value of $182,000 and median rent of $826, alongside a median household income of $56,764 and a median real estate tax rate of 0.48 as a percentage of the property’s assessed value.

How to Look Up Humphreys County Property Records

Almost everything is covered by three stops. The Map-Group-Parcel number, owner, and appraised value of each parcel are available for free at the state assessment site. Balances are carried forward in the Trusteeship of the state Trustee system. The Register of Deeds lists their records via TitleSearch and encourages all landowners to take one free step: sign up for My Land Alert.

Who Keeps Humphreys County Property Records

The Public Records Act makes Tennessee property records accessible to the public, and the state of Tennessee keeps these records at the county level. Humphreys County's work is done in 3 departments, all in the Rawlings Building.

• Deeds, deeds of trust, liens, and plats are recorded at the Register of Deeds, Room 3, Stephanie Gunn. She has microfilmed copies of the older books and accepts copy requests by email and mail. The fraud-alert pitch is quite straightforward: sign up now; it's free and takes only a minute to start protecting assets that are most important to you.

• The Assessor of Property appraises every parcel at market value, Monday through Friday, 8 to 4:30, and maintains the record cards, giving the Map-Group-Parcel number.

• Room 5 is where the County's property taxes are collected by the County Trustee. The Trustee is the tax collector in Tennessee. There's nothing more enigmatic than that.

The Clerk & Master in Chancery Court has jurisdiction over delinquent tax suits. Waverly, McEwen, and New Johnsonville have their own city taxes.

How to Search Humphreys County Property Records Online

Do this sequence and the chain forms itself!

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

• Draw the boundary lines on TNMap and along creeks and rivers; mark the sections where the bottoms are flooded prior to becoming enamored with a property.

• Use TitleSearcher to search the Register's index and search Room 3 for Title (grantor and grantee sides of all sales). The older books are housed in microfilm.

• Trace back the chain of title for all grants, deeds of trust, liens, and releases. The price is written on the value of each deed.

• When leaving, verify taxes are up to date with the Trustee in Room 5 (931) 296-2144, and register for My Land Alert.

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

An elected official, the Register of Deeds keeps the records for Waverly, McEwen, New Johnsonville, and all river communities in between. Mortgages are not used in Tennessee to secure home loans, so the instrument used is typically a deed of trust. The Register’s collection of the state recordation tax at recording also includes the state recordation tax.

Document types recorded include:

• Warranty deeds, quitclaim deeds, and other conveyances

• Deeds of trust, releases, and modifications.

• Liens, judgments, and amendments.

• Power of attorney and plats

• Military discharges and UCC fixture filings.

Assessor of Property: Ownership, Values, and Parcel Data

The Assessor appraises each parcel at market value (from Room 4), and Tennessee taxes a fraction based on the class of the parcel. The office assigns the Map-Group-Parcel number, maintains the record cards, and provides values to the state's assessment database at each state-scheduled reappraisal.

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 like square footage, year built, and acreage

County Trustee: Tax Bills and Payments

The Trustee bills and collects county taxes from Room 5. 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 disabled veterans. Homes inside the three cities receive separate city bills.

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

There is no state property tax in Tennessee. A Humphreys County bill is county money plus city money in town, and it starts with a fraction.

How the bill is figured

The assessments for residential property are 25 percent, and for commercial and industrial property are 40 percent of the appraised value. A home appraised at $180,000 carries a $45,000 assessed value; at a combined $2.10 rate, the bill is $945. The rate never reaches the full appraisal.

Exemptions and relief

Appealing your value

Contact the Assessor in Room 4 at (931) 296-2919, as corrected information resolves many cases. The formal appeal will be to the County Board of Equalization in June and then to the State Board of Equalization, and will be based on similar sales.

GIS Maps and Parcel Viewer

The state maintains the county's parcel mapping. The TNMap assessment viewe r maps all Humphreys County boundaries over aerial imagery (as well as the Three Rivers Plain) and correlates to the data provided by the Comptroller's assessment.

Details available include:

• Parcel boundaries with ownership and acreage

• Appraised and assessed values by parcel

• Kentucky Lake, the Duck, and the Buffalo in aerial view

• Property classes and record-card data

• Statewide layers through TNMap

Foreclosure and Tax Sales

Two sales, two trustees, no relation between them.

Deed-of-trust foreclosure

When a loan defaults, the substitute trustee named under the deed of trust advertises and sells at public auction under Title 35 of the Tennessee Code. No court order is required. That private trustee is not the tax collector in Room 5.

Chancery Court tax sale

The delinquent taxes pass through the courthouse. The suit is filed in Chancery Court by the county; the Clerk & Master holds the sale, and after most sales, there is a 1-year right of redemption. The property is not sold under a tax lien, but is sold by the court in Tennessee.

Costs to Access Property Records

The state portals are free, and so is the fraud alert. Fees attach to copies, TitleSearcher images, and recording.

The Register collects both recordation taxes at recording, and the sworn value on the deed becomes the public record of the price.

How to Record a Document

The recording is a part of Title 66, Chapter 24 of the Tennessee Code. Four steps:

• Create in a manner acceptable to Tennessee: notarized signatures, a complete property description, and preparer/return addresses.

• Enter the deed requirements: tax parcel number and the notarized Oath of Consideration that accompanies the deed.

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

• Document on the spot to the extent possible or by mail with a fee. E-recording arrives soon. These are the original values, before the index adjustment.

FAQs

Quick Reference: Your Humphreys County Property Records Checklist

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