Middlesex County Property Records

Middlesex County property records are available through the County Clerk office in New Brunswick, New Jersey. You can search deeds, mortgages, and other land documents online or in person. The county has one of the longest record histories in the state, with deed records going back to 1929 in the online system and archived records reaching as far back as 1784. This page explains how to find and use Middlesex County property records.

Middlesex County Clerk and Property Records

Nancy J. Pinkin is the Middlesex County Clerk. Her office records and indexes all land documents filed in the county. This includes deeds, mortgages, mortgage discharges, liens, lis pendens, and UCC filings. The office sits at 75 Bayard Street in New Brunswick.

Middlesex County is one of the most populated counties in New Jersey. It has over 800,000 residents spread across 25 municipalities. The clerk handles a high volume of property records each year. Towns like Edison, Woodbridge, and Old Bridge generate thousands of real estate transactions annually. Every one of those sales produces a deed that gets recorded with the Middlesex County Clerk.

The clerk office also handles vital records and passport services, but the land records division is its core function for property owners. When you buy or sell real property in Middlesex County, the deed must be recorded here for it to be part of the public record.

How to Search Middlesex County Property Records

The Middlesex County Clerk runs an online records search tool. It covers deeds from 1929 to the present, mortgages from 1950 onward, and other document types from 1958 forward. This is one of the deepest online record collections of any New Jersey county.

You can start a search at the Middlesex County records search site. The tool lets you search by name, document type, date range, or book and page number. Results list the recording date, parties, and document type. You can often view the full document image right from the search results page.

The screenshot below shows the Middlesex County online records search portal used for looking up deeds and mortgages.

This portal covers decades of Middlesex County property records in a single search tool.

For records that are not in the online system, you have other options. The New Jersey State Archives hold Middlesex County deeds from 1784 to 1901, mortgages from 1766 to 1861, and a collection of ancient deeds from 1877 to 1942. These are valuable for historical research, title work on old properties, and genealogy searches in Middlesex County.

You can also visit the clerk office to search records in person. Self-service copy machines cost $0.05 per page. Staff can help guide your search if you are not sure where to start. Bring as much detail as you can about the property or the parties involved.

Note: Mortgage records start at 1950 in the online system, so for older mortgages in Middlesex County, check the State Archives or visit the clerk in person.

Recording Fees for Middlesex County Property Records

Recording fees in Middlesex County match the state schedule set by New Jersey law. You pay these fees when you file a deed, mortgage, or other land document with the clerk. The fees apply to both in-person and electronic filings.

Here are the standard fees for property records in Middlesex County:

• Deed: $40 first page, $10 each added page
• Mortgage: $30 first page, $10 each added page
• Certified copy: $10 plus $1 per page
• Self-service copies: $0.05 per page

Under N.J.S.A. 46:26A-1, the state sets the framework for recording fees across all New Jersey counties. Middlesex County collects these fees at the time of filing. Realty transfer taxes are separate. Those are based on the sale price and are paid through the municipality. Title companies and attorneys handle these costs as part of the closing in most Middlesex County real estate deals.

Middlesex County Tax and Assessment Records

Tax records for Middlesex County properties are managed at the town level. Each of the 25 municipalities has its own tax assessor who determines property values. The tax collector in each town sends bills and processes payments. These records are all public.

You can look up tax data for any Middlesex County property through the state tax records site. It shows assessed values, tax amounts, and owner names. For more detail, contact the tax assessor in the specific town. Towns like Edison, Woodbridge, Piscataway, and Perth Amboy each run their own assessment offices.

The New Jersey Division of Taxation oversees property tax administration statewide. Under N.J.S.A. 54:4-1, all real property must be assessed at its true value. This makes tax assessment records a useful tool for checking what a Middlesex County property is worth. The assessed value may not match the market price, but it gives you a baseline figure.

The state runs a transparency tool at nj.gov/transparency/property where you can compare tax rates across Middlesex County towns. Some towns in the county have much higher rates than others, so this tool is helpful if you are looking at property in different areas.

Note: Tax liens in Middlesex County are also recorded with the county clerk, so they appear in both the clerk records and the municipal tax office records.

Historical Property Records in Middlesex County

Middlesex County has one of the oldest property record collections in New Jersey. The county was established in 1683, making it one of the original counties. Land transfers here go back to colonial times.

The New Jersey State Archives hold several collections of early Middlesex County property records. Deed books from 1784 to 1901 are available at the archives. Mortgage records from 1766 to 1861 are also there. A separate collection of ancient deeds covers the years 1877 to 1942. These records are useful for tracing the history of a property over many generations.

The state archives are located in Trenton. You can visit in person to view these Middlesex County records. Some collections may also be available on microfilm. For property research that goes back before the online records, the archives are the best resource. They fill the gap between what you can find online and what exists on paper in Middlesex County.

Researchers who study land patterns, old estates, or early settlements in Middlesex County often start at the State Archives. The early deed books show how land changed hands in towns like New Brunswick, Perth Amboy, and Woodbridge long before modern record systems were in place.

Public Access and OPRA Requests

All property records in Middlesex County are public. You do not need to be the property owner to look them up. Deeds, mortgages, and liens are open to anyone who wants to see them. This has been true for as long as land records have existed in New Jersey.

If you need records that are not easy to find through the online search tool, you can file a request under the Open Public Records Act. OPRA is found at N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1. It applies to the Middlesex County Clerk and to every municipal office in the county. The office must respond within seven business days. Most property record requests are simple because the records are already public.

Cities in Middlesex County

Middlesex County has 25 municipalities. All property records for these areas are filed with the Middlesex County Clerk in New Brunswick. Below are city pages with more local property record details.

Other towns in Middlesex County include South Brunswick, East Brunswick, North Brunswick, Sayreville, Monroe, South Plainfield, and Carteret. All property records for these towns go through the Middlesex County Clerk.

Nearby Counties

These counties share borders with Middlesex County. Property near a county line may be in a different county than you expect. Check the property address before searching the wrong county clerk.