Real Estate Documents

How to Obtain a Copy of Your Recorded Real Estate Document

Due to the continuing public health emergency, our office is operating differently from the past. Copies of recorded real estate documents may be acquired in one of the following ways:

Online Using Our Tapestry Application

Use the Tapestry application to search our archive and print your document from the convenience of your home or office computer. A step-by-step instruction guide may be found here.

Use Tapestry

VIA US Mail

All requests will be processed on the date received by our office. Document copies are mailed via first-class mail on the next business day. To request a document, mail a written request including the following:

• The type of document you are seeking (and the recorded Document Number, if you have it)
• Specify if you would like a certified copy (must include additional $1 fee for certification)
• Your full name
• Property address
• Telephone number
• Check payable to “Milwaukee County Register of Deeds” for the cost of your request. See Fees & Costs
  In lieu of a check, you may contact us by phone and pay by credit/debit card. This service results in an additional $2.50 processing fee or 3% per transaction, whichever is greater.

Milwaukee County Register of Deeds
901 N. 9th St., Room 103
Milwaukee, WI 53233

By Appointment

You may obtain copies of real estate records in person with an appointment scheduled at least 24-hours in advance.

Schedule Appointment

All visitors to our office are required to socially distance from others, wear a mask and pass a brief health and security screening upon entering the building. We are unable to accommodate visitors without an appoinment.

Fees & Costs

Note that most deeds will cost a total of $14. Copies of mortgages vary considerably depending on the length of the lender’s mortgage document. If you would like a precise price quote for your request that includes a mortgage, contact our office during office hours at (414) 278-4001.

Copy charge: $2 for the first page $1 for each additional page of the same document.

Search fee: $10 (only charged if you do not provide the recorded document number).

Certification: $1 per document (optional, please specify if you would like a certified copy).

Credit/Debit Card Payments: There is a fee of $2.50 or 3% (whichever is greater) for credit and debit card payments.

Historical Research Requests

Searches of real estate ownership dating back many years through a succession of owners require an appointment made at least 24-hours in advance. Searches of this nature can be very complex and may require many hours of research. Register of Deeds staff will provide guidance to help you use the archive but cannot do the research for you.

Schedule Appointment

All visitors to our office are required to socially distance from others, wear a mask and pass a brief health and security screening upon entering the building. We are unable to accommodate visitors without an appointment.

Access to Records for Professional Searches

Laredo is a subscription-based service with a monthly fee paid to the Milwaukee County Register of Deeds for access to only Milwaukee County real estate records. The fee is $800 per month. This solution is intended for use by real estate professionals and other industry partners that conduct a significant number of real estate searches, and need access to document images on a regular basis. Email Teresa Sarnowski to establish a subscription.

Digitized Records for Tapestry and Laredo

• All recordings from 1962 to present (via grantor/grantee/tract/Document Number search)
• Deeds from 1949 to present (via grantor/grantee/tract/Document Number search)
• Deeds from 1835-1948 (via Document Number or Book & Page search ONLY)
• Plats from 1835-6/1991 (via Document Number or Plat Book & Page search ONLY)
• Plats from 7/1991-present (via Document Number/grantor/grantee/tract/Document Number search)

Note: Tapestry is not designed to conduct complex searches. Contact our office directly at (414) 278-4001 if you experience difficulty and need assistance locating a record using Tapestry.

Digital Reel

Digital Reel is a copy of a grantor/grantee index by tax key number that the Milwaukee City Tax Assessor maintained from the 1920s through 1989.

Other Inquiries

Documents that were sent to us electronically are returned electronically to the submitter. No paper copy of an electronic document is mailed out from the Register of Deeds office. It takes a few weeks for a recorded paper document to be returned in the mail.

To inquire about a document that has not been received within three weeks after recording, call us at (414) 278-4001.