What Is a Deed of Assignment?

A deed of assignment is a document that is used to assign the ownership of a piece of property. There are two primary situations in which this type of deed is used, which are for a real estate property and for the exportation of goods or products.

The most common use of this type of deed is to transfer the ownership of a piece of real estate from one owner to another. This deed is a legal document that proves ownership of the real estate property that the deed is for. When it comes to real estate, typically the deed is recorded with the local country courthouse where the property is located. While this is not a requirement, if the deed of assignment is recorded with the county, then the deed becomes of a matter of public record.

Whether or not a deed is recorded with the county, a copy of the deed should be kept in a safe place. Since it is proof of ownership for the property, the property owner may be required to produce the deed of assignment when selling the property or for various other reasons.

The deed contains very pertinent information for a real estate transaction. For one, it spells out the date when the ownership of the property transfers from one owner to the other. The deed also gives a specific description of the property that is included in the transfer of ownership.

A deed of assignment may also be used when a company is exporting goods to another company. In these situations, the deed is typically accompanied by a letter of credit from the bank of the purchaser. The deed stipulates the date on which the buyer of the goods becomes the owner of the goods.

The deed of assignment date coincides with the date that the money transfers from the buyers bank to the sellers bank, according to the letter of credit, which is the guarantee letter that the money transfer will occur when specific requirements are met by each of the parties involved in the transaction. For example, if a tile company in China exports tile to a tile store in the U.S., the two companies should use a letter of credit and a deed of assignment. This protects the seller from releasing the goods to the purchaser and the purchaser from releasing their money to the seller until the tile is received by a third-party and the deed is complete.