Putting Your House in a Living Trust in Solano County
For a Vallejo, Fairfield, Vacaville, Benicia, Suisun City, Dixon or Rio Vista homeowner, a living trust becomes real at one counter: the Solano County Assessor/Recorder on Texas Street in Fairfield, where your trust transfer deed gets stamped into the public record. A trust that never reaches that counter doesn't own your house. Here's how recording works in this county, which fees apply to a trust transfer and which don't, and what probate would take from a typical Solano County home. Without a recorded trust, probate on a typical home here runs up to ~$29,000.
Quick facts: recording in Solano County
| Recorder | Solano County Assessor/Recorder (Recorder Division) |
| Office | 675 Texas Street, Suite 2700, Fairfield, CA 94533 |
| Hours | Monday to Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Documents are accepted for recording until 3:30 p.m. (the county's current pages list document recording as 9:00 to 3:30; an older county FAQ says recording opens at 8:00); anything presented after 3:30 waits for the next business day |
| Ways to submit | In person at the Fairfield counter (cash, check, debit or credit card), by mail to the Texas Street address (check payable to Solano County Recorder), or electronically through an authorized e-recording submitter |
| Official fee schedule | Solano County Recorder recording fees |
What it costs to record a trust transfer deed here
Solano publishes its recording fee the itemized way: $13 for the first page of a standard 8½ x 11 document (a $10 base fee plus $1 each for micrographics, days of operation and electronic recording) and $3 for each additional page. The $75 SB2 charge sits on the schedule as a separate line, and that is the number to understand before you go, because for most primary-residence trust transfers it does not apply.
| A typical trust transfer deed, itemized | |
|---|---|
| First page (base recording fee) | $13.00 |
| Each additional page | $3.00 |
| Survey monument fee | $10.00 on a deed that does not describe a complete lot from a recorded tract map; $0 on a subdivision lot |
| Real estate fraud fee (DA Fraud Fee) | $10.00 on the county's list of titles (quitclaim deeds among them); a grant deed is not on the list the county publishes |
| SB2, Building Homes & Jobs Act (GC §27388.1) | $75.00, waived with the exemption declared |
| Documentary transfer tax | $0 (exempt, R&T §11930) |
| What a two-page deed with its exemptions declared pays | about $16, or $26 with the monument fee |
- SB2 is the whole difference. Solano's own recording page quotes the statute: the $75 fee "shall not be imposed on any real estate instrument, paper, or notice recorded in connection with a transfer of real property that is a residential dwelling to an owner-occupier," which describes most primary-residence trust transfers. The county adds that "a valid declaration of exemption must be placed on the face of each document prior to depositing with the Recorder, otherwise the fee will be assessed." A deed that says nothing pays the $75; the county publishes an SB2 cover page for the declaration.
- Documentary transfer tax: $0. The county rate under Revenue & Taxation Code §11911 is $0.55 per $500 of value, and a transfer into your own revocable trust is exempt under §11930. Cite the section on the deed. Vallejo adds a city transfer tax of its own (Vallejo Municipal Code, Chapter 3.08), on top of the county's, on transfers for consideration; moving your own home into your own revocable trust is not one, and the exemption belongs on the face of the deed there too.
- The survey monument fee depends on your legal description. Solano charges $10 on a deed transferring ownership (quitclaim deeds, easements and deeds of trust excepted) that does not describe a complete lot created by a recorded tract map. A subdivision home in Vacaville, Fairfield or Vallejo whose deed reads "Lot 14 of Subdivision No. …" pays nothing; a parcel described by metes and bounds, which is most rural land around Dixon, Rio Vista and the Suisun Valley and some older in-town homes, pays the $10.
- The $10 fraud fee follows the title, not the transaction. Solano charges the Real Estate Prosecution Trust Fund fee on a published list of document titles: deeds of trust, quitclaim deeds, affidavits, liens, reconveyances and the like. A trust transfer deed drafted as a grant deed is not a title on that list; one drafted as a quitclaim deed is, and pays $10 more. Most trust transfer deeds are grant deeds.
- Non-conforming pages cost more. If any page isn't 8½ x 11, every page of the document is charged an extra $3, and a page with small print adds $1. Clean, standard pages avoid both.
- PCOR: file it or pay $20. The Preliminary Change of Ownership Report (BOE-502-A) rides along with the deed at no charge. Present a change-of-ownership document without a completed and signed PCOR and the county adds a $20 fee, and the Assessor has nothing telling it not to reassess you.
- Each extra title indexed adds $13. A trust transfer deed is one title; this line is for documents that record more than one.
- The base is still $13 and $3. Solano's recording fees page itemizes those figures and links its schedule in force from July 1, 2026 under them; the county has not moved to the $15 first-page and $4 additional-page figures some counties have adopted under AB 1430. Check the schedule the week you record.
Figures are from the county's recording fees, record official records and recording section pages, read November 2026. Confirm against the official schedule the week you record.
How the deed gets recorded, step by step
- Prepare a trust transfer deed conveying the property from you to you-as-trustee, with the transfer-tax exemption (R&T §11930) and the SB2 owner-occupier exemption written on its face, the Assessor's Parcel Number on the first page (the PCOR asks for it, and it is how the Assessor matches the deed to the roll), and the legal description copied exactly from your current deed. Leave the top 2½ inches of the first page's right side blank for the Recorder's label, with your name and return address on the left, and at least a half-inch margin on each side.
- Complete the PCOR (BOE-502-A).
- Sign before a notary. The county records only what it can photographically reproduce; an unreadable seal is a common rejection.
- Submit deed + PCOR + fees at the Texas Street counter before 3:30 p.m., by mail to the same address, or through an authorized e-recording submitter, which is the fast path. The county gives priority first to documents received over the counter, then to express and overnight mail, then to regular mail, and says a mailed document is recorded within two business days of receipt. Same-day recording at the counter is in groups of five documents or fewer, each group with its own payment. Solano's own pages don't describe electronic recording for the public; the national e-recording submitters list the county, and under California's e-recording rules an individual owner records in person or by mail while title companies and other authorized submitters file electronically.
- Receive the stamped deed back. Solano returns the recorded original to the name and address in the upper-left corner of the first page. The county's pages don't publish how long that mailing takes; the trust holds the house from the moment of recording, not from the day the copy arrives.
This is the step Mantle's activation handles end to end: correct deed, correct exemptions, online notarization, e-recorded with Solano County through an authorized submitter, stamped copy returned and confirmed. A recorded fact, not weekend homework.
How it works · everything upfront
A conversation, not a form. She drafts your living trust, will, power of attorney and healthcare directive as you talk.
Download the documents and read every line. Change anything. Nothing is charged, and nothing expires.
An online video notary session, opened from your dashboard with your documents already loaded.
Your deed filed with the Solano County Assessor/Recorder at 675 Texas Street, Suite 2700 in Fairfield, the stamped copy returned to you — and your accounts walked into the trust, one by one.
Will this raise my property taxes? (The Prop 13 question)
No. A transfer into your own revocable living trust is not a change in ownership under Revenue & Taxation Code §62(d), so your Prop 13 base-year value is preserved. In Benicia, in the older neighborhoods of Vallejo and Fairfield, and on a Suisun Valley or Dixon parcel held since the 1970s, where the assessed value may be a fraction of what the property would sell for, that base is often the most valuable thing about the property, and moving it into your own trust does not disturb it. The PCOR is how the Assessor learns the transfer is excluded; that is why it matters that it goes in with the deed.
What probate costs on a typical Solano County home
A typical Solano County home sells for roughly $575,000. Probate fees under Probate Code §10810 are calculated on gross value, not equity; the mortgage doesn't reduce the fee base:
| On roughly $575,000 gross | |
|---|---|
| 4% of the first $100,000 | $4,000 |
| 3% of the next $100,000 | $3,000 |
| 2% of the next $375,000 | $7,500 |
| Statutory fee | $14,500 |
| × 2 (executor and attorney may each take it) | up to ~$29,000 |
Against about $16 to record the deed that avoids it. Add court filing fees, the probate referee's appraisal, and a year or more of hearings: probate in Solano County belongs to the Superior Court's Probate Division, whose clerk the court lists at the Hall of Justice, 600 Union Avenue in Fairfield, with estate and trust petitions heard in Department 22 at the Old Solano Courthouse, 580 Texas Street, on the same street as the Recorder. Even a simple, uncontested estate runs about a year because of the four-month creditor period and the probate examiner's notes; an average one runs longer. Doing it yourself means repeated trips to Fairfield, every filing a public record.
Run your own address: Mantle's free probate calculator.
Solano County FAQ
The fee schedule lists a $75 SB2 fee. Do I owe it?
Usually not for your own home. Solano's own recording page quotes the exemption for a residential dwelling transferred to an owner-occupier, which is what a primary-residence trust transfer is. The exemption has to be declared on the document itself, and the county publishes an SB2 cover page for exactly that. Write it in, and a two-page deed costs about $16.
I live in Vallejo. Does the city transfer tax apply?
Not to a trust transfer. Vallejo's real property transfer tax, like the county's, is a tax on transfers for consideration. Moving your own home into your own revocable trust is made for no consideration, so the deed owes neither the city nor the county tax, with the exemption cited on its face. The recording fees are the same at the Fairfield counter whichever city the house is in.
Why would my deed pay the $10 fraud fee?
Only if it is drafted as a quitclaim deed. Solano charges its Real Estate Prosecution Trust Fund fee by document title, and quitclaim deeds, deeds of trust and affidavits are on the list while a grant deed is not. Most trust transfer deeds are grant deeds, so most pay $13 for the first page and no fraud fee.
Is there a recorder's counter in Vallejo or Vacaville?
No. The Recorder Division is one counter, at 675 Texas Street, Suite 2700 in Fairfield, and it accepts documents for recording until 3:30 p.m. From Vallejo, Benicia, Vacaville or Rio Vista, mail is the alternative: send the deed, the PCOR and a check payable to Solano County Recorder to the same address, and the county says it records a mailed document within two business days of receipt. The Vallejo courthouse on Tuolumne Street belongs to the court, not the recorder.
Can I record the deed myself?
Yes. The recipe above is complete, and the counter accepts properly formatted documents from any owner. County staff cannot prepare documents or advise on forms, so the deed has to arrive right the first time; imperfect margins, a missing PCOR, a missing exemption declaration, and an illegible notary seal are the common reasons a document comes back.
Does my mortgage prevent this?
No. The Garn-St. Germain Act prevents a lender from enforcing a due-on-sale clause when you transfer your home into your own revocable living trust. The loan continues on the same terms.
You now know exactly how to record this yourself.
Everything above is the complete recipe: the deed, the two exemptions written on its face, the APN, the PCOR, the notary, the Texas Street counter before 3:30 p.m. Plenty of families do it that way.
What we do is steps 3 and 4. The trust itself, and the will, the power of attorney and the healthcare directive, we draft for nothing, and you can read every line before you decide. For a flat $499 we notarize on video, record the deed with Solano County, and walk you through funding every account, one form at a time: stamped copy returned, confirmed finished. Against the ~$29,000 probate math above, the part we charge for is the cheapest line in this whole story.
Steps 1–2 free · $499 covers steps 3–4
Sources: Solano County Assessor/Recorder recording fees, record official records, special recording fees and requirements, forms and information sheets, recording section and recorder FAQ pages (read November 2026); Superior Court of California, County of Solano, Estate and Trusts and locations pages; Vallejo Municipal Code Chapter 3.08; Redfin Solano County housing market and RealtyTrac Solano County market trends, median sale price to October 2026; California Probate Code §10810; Revenue & Taxation Code §§11911, 11930, 62(d), 480.3; Government Code §27388.1. Mantle is not a law firm and this page is general information, not legal advice. Last reviewed November 2026.