Montana Quitclaim Deed

About the Chouteau County Clerk & Recorder

Chouteau County's Clerk & Recorder serves Fort Benton — the county seat and one of Montana's oldest towns, sitting on the Missouri River — along with Big Sandy and Geraldine out across the surrounding farm country. It's a quieter office serving a rural, agricultural county, so there's usually room for a question or two if you're not sure your paperwork is right.

Cities and Communities Served

Recording jurisdiction runs countywide, not by city limits — if the property sits anywhere within Chouteau County, this is the Clerk & Recorder’s office that will accept the deed. That includes:

Incorporated city: Fort Benton (county seat).

Incorporated towns: Big Sandy and Geraldine.

Unincorporated communities: Floweree, Highwood, Loma, Square Butte, Big Sag, Coal Banks Landing, Shonkin, and Virgelle.

Part of the Rocky Boy’s Indian Reservation (shared with neighboring Hill County) reaches into Chouteau County — Boneau, Parker School, and Rocky Boy West sit on that trust land and aren’t included above.

Office Details

Address: 1308 Franklin St, Fort Benton, MT 59442

Phone: Not listed — see the county's website

Hours: Not listed on the county's website — call ahead to confirm current hours.

Recording Fee: A flat statewide fee set by Montana law (MCA § 7-4-2637) — not a Chouteau-specific rate, and not a percentage of the property's value.

No additional county fees beyond the statewide rate were found for Chouteau County.

Official Website Get Directions

How to File a Document

  1. Prepare Your Document: Make sure your deed meets Montana's formatting and content requirements before you file.
  2. Get It Notarized: Have the document signed in front of a Montana notary public or other authorized official. No notary nearby in Fort Benton? Montana allows remote online notarization — you can notarize your Chouteau County deed online instead.
  3. Complete a Realty Transfer Certificate: Montana law requires a completed Realty Transfer Certificate (Form RTC) to accompany every deed submitted for recording — even transfers that don't require disclosing the sale price still need the form filed.
  4. Record It: You can file in person at the Chouteau County Clerk & Recorder's office; call ahead to confirm whether mail-in filing is accepted.
  5. Pay the Recording Fee: A flat statewide rate for the first page, with a lower rate for each additional page.
  6. Keep Your Receipt: Your recorded document (or a certified copy) is your proof of filing.

Still Have Questions About Filing With the Chouteau County Clerk & Recorder?

Ask below and get an instant answer on Montana quitclaim deeds.

Filing? Get a Deed the Chouteau County Clerk & Recorder Will Accept

FREE generic forms are the most common reason Montana deeds get rejected — usually over formatting, the legal description, or notary acknowledgment.

Two ways to avoid that:

Download the form yourself $14.95 Have it prepared for you $39.95

Both are built to meet Montana's recording requirements, tailored to what the Chouteau County Clerk & Recorder asks for.

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