Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) about the Recording Activity Notification System (RANS)

The Recording Activity Notification System (RANS) is a free electronic notification service from King County that will send an email to a subscriber any time a land records document matching the subscribed name is recorded. Subscribers can register their own personal name or their business name for monitoring.

No. RANS is a free service.

Notifications are only sent by email.

Visit the Records Search webpage and click on the Recording Activity Notification System tab. Enter your information into the system exactly as you did when signing up. In the lower right corner is a button labeled Manage Notifications. Once you click Manage Notifications, the system will email a summary of your active subscriptions to the email address on file. Your active notifications for all names, businesses, and parcels will be displayed on the screen. From here, you can review your list and remove any items you no longer wish to track.

This information is not readily available to the public. However, because Landmark is a government system, we are bound to public disclosure requirements and Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests. This means that even though a provided email address is not immediately viewable, King County may be required to provide these addresses as part of a public disclosure or information request.

Yes. Start by visiting the Recording Activity Notification System page. Enter your information into the system exactly as you did when signing up. In the lower right corner is a button labeled Manage Notifications that will allow you to modify or unsubscribe from notifications.

Yes, there is no limit to the number of properties you can monitor, but you will need to sign up for each parcel separately.

You will need to use your tax parcel number to sign up for RANS. You can use the King County Parcel Viewer online tool to look up your parcel number using your address. This tool is provided by the King County Assessor’s Office.

When entering your parcel number into RANS, please use only the first ten digits, without any symbols, spaces, or dashes.

No, the information provided will only be used to provide you with the specific notifications you signed up for.

If the notification seems incorrect, you may be receiving a notification for a person with the same name as you, but the document does not pertain to you or your parcel. At times, submitters may provide incorrect information accidentally. King County Recorder’s Office (KCRO) cannot verify the validity or correctness of any documents submitted. KCRO makes sure that the documents conform to state law under the Revised Code of Washington (RCW), index, and scan the documents into the system. If a submitter has made an error, the customer should reach out to the submitter utilizing the return address on the first page of the recording to discuss the error. There may be complications and subsequent recordings required to correct any errors. KCRO is prohibited from providing legal advice and may not be able to offer assistance.

Once a document is recorded, we are unable to remove it. If it was recorded in error, you can use the information on the document to reach out to the recording submitter using the return address on the first page of the document. This submitter may need to submit a new document to correct any issues. King County Recorder’s Office is unable to remove, alter, destroy, conceal, or obliterate a record, map, book, paper, document, or other thing filed or deposited in a public office, or with any public officer.

King County will only use your information for the Recording Activity Notification System. All information is held within secure King County servers. However, because Landmark is a government system, we are bound to public disclosure requirements and Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests. King County may be required to provide this information as part of a public disclosure or information request.

Yes, the system is simple to sign up for and only requires an email address. Please use the easy-to-follow instructions on our website to sign up. If you need additional assistance, email our customer service team at KCROCust@kingcounty.gov.

The system will notify you via email when document(s) are recorded using the provided name and/or parcel number. This ensures you are knowledgeable about any documents recorded or potentially recorded against you or your property. Not all of these recorded documents mean something bad has happened - some are routine and/or legal documents that are recorded. RANS notifies a subscriber of all these documents, so that you can see them for yourself and consider taking action if needed. Please note that for common names, the system may send notifications that do not pertain to you or your property.

Yes, the system will notify you if either the name or parcel number you registered are used. This may cause you to receive notifications for someone who has the same name even if they use a different parcel number. Publicly recorded documents do not require any personally identifiable information to record documents.

If there is an issue with a recorded document, the King County Recorder’s Office may not be able to assist. The submitter's return address is in the upper right-hand corner of the first page of the recording. If the document was incorrectly submitted, they would need to handle corrections on the document and may need to submit subsequent recordings to fix the issue.

If you believe that there is illegal activity or a legal issue with the recorded document, you should seek legal counsel or contact the appropriate law enforcement agency. KCRO is unable to remove, alter, destroy, conceal, or obliterate a record, map, book, paper, document, or other thing filed or deposited in a public office, or with any public officer.

The King County Recorder’s Office is unable to remove, alter, mutilate, destroy, conceal, or obliterate a record, map, book, paper, document, or other thing filed or deposited in a public office, or with any public officer. If there are issues with the indexing of a document, you can send email to KCROCust@kingcounty.gov, call the Recorder's Office at 206-477-6620 weekdays from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., or visit the King County Customer Service Center, 201 S. Jackson St. in Seattle.

The King County Recorder’s Office is unable to remove, alter, mutilate, destroy, conceal, or obliterate a record, map, book, paper, document, or other thing filed or deposited in a public office, or with any public officer. If you suspect fraud, you should seek legal counsel or contact the appropriate law enforcement agency. KCRO does not inspect documents for their legality, legitimacy, or validity when they are submitted for recording. We ensure that the document conforms to the standards prescribed in state law, index, and record the document to the public record.

Once you sign up you will not need to renew this service. However, if you move or no longer want to receive notifications, you will need to modify your preferences using the RANS webpage.

To help us capture common questions and better inform our FAQ, please email us at KCROCust@kingcounty.gov.