A paid-off Moffat County deed of trust still needs a release

Sending in that final mortgage payment clears the debt, but it does not by itself clear the public record. In Moffat County the treasurer also wears the public trustee hat, and it is that office which processes foreclosures and records the release of a deed of trust.

The release package runs to four pieces: the original note marked paid in full or proper indemnification, the original deed of trust or a copy carrying its recording information, a completed and notarized release form, and the required fee. Release requests go to the public trustee, the same office that handles the recording end of this.

A homeowner’s job is simply to confirm the release actually records once the loan is paid. Tuck the payoff letter, the recorded release, and the deed of trust details into the house file where they will be easy to find years from now.

A buyer carries the harder version of this. A loan can be long gone in real life while an old, unreleased deed of trust still sits on the parcel in the county records, quietly clouding the title. Asking whether every prior deed of trust was released is how that loose end gets caught before it becomes your problem.