By Jones Osborn II

An Affidavit of Real Property Value is a written statement under oath giving the sales price or value of a specified parcel of real property. Under Arizona law, an Affidavit of Value must be attached to every deed sent to the County Recorder for recording (with certain exceptions). In addition to value, the Affidavit also provides certain other information about the property, including its size, use, terms of sale, and the address to which the tax bill should be sent.

Normally, the actual sales price is the value entered on the Affidavit. However, when only nominal consideration is paid for the property or where non-cash consideration is received, an estimate of fair market value must be used instead. The Affidavit must be signed by both the buyer and the seller or their agents, and must be notarized. It is available for inspection by the public.

Purpose. The primary purpose of the Affidavit is to assist the County Assessor in valuing property for the property tax. Although the regulations of the County Assessor provide that the values on Affidavits are to be used in establishing valuation levels and valuation formulas in general, experience would indicate that the amount listed on the Affidavit often turns up as the value shown on the next property tax bill for that parcel. Therefore, if the transaction is one where fair market value is estimated, it is good to use a conservative estimate.

Being public, the values shown on the Affidavits are also used by appraisers to obtain "comparables," by newspapers and other publications to gain information about particular sales, and by other members of the public, such as realtors, who have an interest in knowing the sales price of a particular parcel of property.

Exemptions. Certain types of transactions are exempt from the requirement of an Affidavit. If an exemption is claimed, it must be noted on the Deed with the appropriate statutory citation. The exemptions, with citations, are as follows:

1. A deed representing either payment in full or a forfeiture under a recorded contract of sale (A.R.S. § 11-1134(A)(1)).

2. A lease or easement (A.R.S. § 11-1134(A)(2)).

3. A deed to or from a governmental entity (A.R.S. § 11-1134(A)(3)).

4. A quitclaim deed to quiet title (A.R.S. § 11-1134(A)(4)).

5. A conveyance pursuant to court order. (A.R.S. § 11-1134(A)(5)).

6. A deed of gift (A.R.S. § 11-1134(A)(6)).

7. A deed to provide or release security or a trustee's deed after foreclosure of a deed of trust (A.R.S. § 11-1134(B)(1)).

8. A deed to correct an earlier recorded deed (A.R.S. § 11-1134(B)(2)).

9. A deed between husband and wife or parent and child with only nominal consideration (A.R.S. § 11-1134(B)(3)).

10. A sale for delinquent taxes (A.R.S. § 11-1134(B)(4)).

11. A deed to partition real property (A.R.S. § 11-1134 (B)(5)).

12. A deed resulting from a merger of corporations (A.R.S. § 11-1124(B)(6)).

13. A deed by a subsidiary corporation to a parent corporation for no consideration or nominal consideration or solely for cancellation of the subsidiary's stock (A.R.S. § 11-1134(B)(7)).

14. A deed from a person to a trustee or from a trustee to a trust beneficiary with only nominal consideration (A.R.S. § 11-1134(B)(8)).

15. A deed to and from an intermediary for the purpose of creating a joint tenancy estate or some other form of ownership (A.R.S. § 11-1134(B)(9)).

16. A deed from a husband and wife or one of them to both husband and wife to create an estate in joint tenancy with right of survivorship (A.R.S. § 1134(B)(10)).

17. A deed from two or more persons to themselves to create an estate in joint tenancy with right of survivorship (A.R.S. § 1134(B)(11)).

18. A beneficiary deed with only nominal actual consideration (A.R.S. § 11-1134(B)(12)).

In all other cases the Affidavit of Value must be submitted with the deed.

Conclusion. An Affidavit of Property Value must be attached to every deed before it will be accepted for recording, unless an exemption is available. If an exemption is claimed, it must be noted on the deed. The Affidavit is open for public inspection making it impossible to keep the sales price of real property secret once the deed has recorded.