Canton, MA- Norfolk County Register of Deeds William P. O’Donnell appeared as a guest speaker for the Irish Cultural Centre of Greater Boston in Canton as part of his ongoing efforts to bring the Registry of Deeds directly to the residents of Norfolk County.
Register O’Donnell gave an overview of the Registry, which is Norfolk County’s principal office for real property records, cataloging, and housing more than 13.1 million land documents. The Registry provides secure, accurate, and accessible land record information to homeowners, title examiners, mortgage lenders, assessors, municipalities, and other interested parties.
“The presentation was really informative and greatly appreciated,” said Irish Cultural Centre Executive Director Jerry McDermott, speaking on the topic of the homeowner information seminar. “It’s truly a great service.”
“I welcome any time I can get out into the community and have the opportunity to speak with people about some issues that homeowners might face,” said Register of Deeds William P. O’Donnell. “I was impressed by the audience engagement and truly grateful to have the chance to share some useful homeowner information at the Irish Cultural Centre.”
Register O’Donnell reminded attendees about the importance of filing a mortgage discharge after their mortgage has been paid off. A discharge is a document (typically one or two pages) issued by the lender, usually with a title such as “Discharge of Mortgage” or “Satisfaction of Mortgage.” When a mortgage has been paid off, a mortgage discharge document needs to be recorded with the Registry of Deeds to clear a homeowner’s property title relative to that loan.
“In some cases,” noted Register O’Donnell, “discharges are filed directly by banks or settlement closing attorneys with the Registry as part of a property sale or as a result of a refinancing transaction. In other instances, the mortgage discharge is sent to the property owner, who then becomes responsible for making sure the document is recorded. Whether or not a discharge is recorded by the lending institution or the individual property owner, it is important that the property owner makes sure all necessary documents have been recorded at the Registry of Deeds.”
Register O’Donnell also explained how, through the use of cutting-edge technology, the Registry’s modernization initiatives have made land document research easier. Including the ability to look up land documents dating back to the first ones recorded in 1793 without the need to travel to the Registry’s main office in Dedham through the Registry of Deeds’ online internet research system. Assessing departments and the public can access these records through the Registry’s website, www.norfolkdeeds.org.
“Today,” noted O’Donnell, “our customers, whether it is a Norfolk County resident or a municipal agency, are looking to get their information as quickly and as easily as possible on a 24/7 basis. The information could be viewed in a number of ways: by a tablet, by a cell phone or by a work or home computer.”
The Register also described how the Norfolk County Registry of Deeds has made the genealogy research process easier through its “History Comes Alive” transcription program, where all the Registry documents from 1793 to 1900, totaling more than 250,000 land documents written in old cursive, were transcribed into easy-to-read and print documents.
“The project represents a special effort by the Registry of Deeds to have an accurate representation of these handwritten documents,” stated Register O’Donnell. “Additionally, its mission is to help the public and real estate professionals perform land record research.”
During the speaking program, Register O’Donnell also discussed the genealogical research capabilities of the Norfolk County Registry of Deeds and the recently unveiled Genealogy Research and Resource Center. This new service, which is free to the public, offers a dedicated bank of computers for genealogical use.
“According to an ABC News report, genealogy is ranked the second most popular hobby in the United States,” stated Register O’Donnell. “Researchers may just find that their hunt for clues leads them right to the Norfolk County Registry of Deeds. Thanks in part to our History Comes Alive program.”
The Register noted that the genealogical workstations at the Registry contain the popular databases Ancestry.com, and American Ancestors.
This speaking event for the Irish Cultural Centre is part of a broader effort to work with various communities and organizations throughout Norfolk County to make it easier for residents to have convenient access to the services offered at the Registry of Deeds.
Concluding his remarks, O’Donnell stated, “I first want to thank those who attended the event at the Irish Cultural Centre. They asked great questions, and their attendance was greatly appreciated. I also want to thank Suffolk County Register of Deeds Stephen J. Murphy for joining me at the event and Irish Cultural Centre Executive Director Jerry McDermott for inviting me to speak.”