Albany Living Trust: Albany County Surrogate's Court and Deed Recording

By Rozsa Gyene, California estate planning attorney, State Bar of California #208356. Published October 1, 2026. Last reviewed October 1, 2026.

Which county this page covers

This page covers Albany County. SCPA 205 places an estate proceeding in the Surrogate's Court of the county where the decedent was domiciled at death, and the Albany County Clerk's About page explains that outside New York City every county clerk is the land records recorder for their own county. If your address is in a different county, use that county's Surrogate's Court and County Clerk instead of the offices below.

The Albany County Surrogate's Court

The court's page says it hears cases relating to individuals who have passed away, including disagreements about wills and the proper way to manage or divide the estate (total assets and liabilities), and is authorized to handle adoptions. It lists the judge, law clerk and chief clerks and gives driving directions from I-787; it does not list fees or department instructions.

Probate in the court system's own description

The CourtHelp page on probate says that when the person who died had a will, the will must be filed in Surrogate's Court and admitted, meaning approved, for probate, and that probate is the process of proving the will is valid. The executor files the original will, a certified death certificate and a probate petition with supporting documents in the county where the person lived and had their primary residence, lists the distributees, and serves them with a citation; beneficiaries under the will must be notified. The page notes the papers may be filed through the court system's electronic filing system where the county participates, and that the filing fee is based on the dollar value of the estate. SCPA 2402's schedule is $45.00 for an estate under $10,000, $75.00 from $10,000, $215.00 from $20,000, $280.00 from $50,000, $420.00 from $100,000, $625.00 from $250,000 and $1,250.00 at $500,000 and over; filing a will for safekeeping is $45.00 unless the county reduces it, and a certificate of letters is $6.00. Without a will, an administration proceeding is filed on the same schedule.

Voluntary administration of a small estate

SCPA 1301 defines a small estate as the estate of someone who dies leaving personal property having a gross value of $50,000 or less, exclusive of property set off under EPTL 5-3.1(a). The CourtHelp small estate page says a house or land in the decedent's name alone means it is not a small estate anymore, while real property owned jointly with another person does not count against the $50,000. The court appoints the executor, or the closest relative if there is no will, as voluntary administrator and issues a certificate for each asset; the filing fee is $1.00, and a do-it-yourself form program produces the papers. Both procedures are walked through in the probate process guide and the voluntary administration guide.

Recording a deed to your trustee with the Albany County Clerk

The clerk's About page says the County Clerk is responsible for the receipt, indexing, storage and retrieval of documents, including legal records pertaining to ownership of real property, and that deeds and mortgages are available on its website. The deed from you to yourself as trustee is recorded here.

Recording fees on the clerk's schedule

The Schedule of Fees, effective March 1, 2012, states the recording charge in words: for recording any instrument required by statute to be recorded, forty-five dollars and, in addition thereto, five dollars for each page or portion of a page to be recorded, and fifty cents for each cross reference. The $45 includes the $5 cover page fee in effect since March 16, 2009.

Other requirements on the schedule: any deed that mentions a map or survey must be filed simultaneously if the map is not already filed; all personal checks must have the name and telephone number of the attorney or title company on the reverse; and checks for the recording fee must be for the exact amount. The schedule does not state a transfer tax figure or say how a deed to your own trustee is treated, so ask the office before you file.

E-recording and mail

The About page says the clerk accepts eRecordings and that land records received by mail are accepted for processing. Because of limited staff, the clerk encourages mailing nonessential transactions; requests for copies by mail need a self-addressed stamped envelope and a check or money order payable to the Albany County Clerk. The page does not name e-recording vendors, so a filer should ask the office which submitters it is registered with.

What a living trust changes

With only a will, the Albany home stays in your name until the Surrogate's Court in Room 123 admits the will and appoints the executor. With a living trust, the change of title happens in Room 128 while you are alive: you sign the trust, which EPTL 7-1.17 requires to be in writing and either acknowledged as a deed is for recording or signed before two witnesses who also sign, and record a deed to yourself as trustee at the fees above. Title then rests with the trustee under the trust's terms, so the home is not real property in your name alone at death and your successor trustee acts without letters from the court. For the single property alternative New York records, see the transfer on death deed guide.