The Adams County Register of Deeds is an elected partisan position with a four year term of office. The Register of Deeds Office is a separate office in counties that have more than 20,000 inhabitants.
The Register of Deeds Office is responsible for the maintaining and securing of the land records of the county. The duty of the Register of Deeds is to record deeds, mortgages, assignments, releases, construction liens, tax liens (state and federal), UCC filings, plats, instruments and writings presented to him or her for recording. This office routinely deals with complex legal descriptions and requires accuracy and detail. The documents are microfilmed and scanned daily. In Adams County, the office updates ownership on the copies of the cadastral maps. The Register of Deeds is a public office and is used by the public along with Real Estate Companies, Title and Abstract Companies, Banks, Law Firms, Appraisers and Genealogists. Because of microfilm, all documents recorded with the Adams County Register of Deeds can be returned within 24 hours. No original is retained for permanent record with the exception of Plats.