AGO 12-851.

• Court: South Carolina

South Carolina Attorney General Opinion 2012. AGO 12-851. 12-851Alan Wilson Attorney GeneralDecembers, 2012Marvin C. Jones Esquire Jasper County Attorney Post Office Box 420 Ridgeland, South Carolina 29936 Dear Mr. Jones: Attorney General Alan Wilson has referred your letter of October 16, 2012 to the Opinions section for a response. The following is our understanding of your question presented and the opinion of this Office concerning the issue based on that understanding. Issue: Does the law require a Registrar of Deeds to record a Manufactured Home Affidavit for Retirement of Title Certificate where the Affidavit was not in the proscribed form under South Carolina Code § 56-19-510? Short Answer: As far as the law reads, the recording officer may refuse any document that does not meet the statutory prerequisites for recording. The document should not be refused recording because it varies in form alone, nor should it be refused because it is illegible. In order for the recording officer to refuse to record a document, at least one of the statutory requirements would have to be missing. Law/Analysis: South Carolina Code § 56-19-510 provides that:

(A) An owner of a manufactured home may affix the home to real property by:

(1) installing the home in accordance with the required installation standards and removing the wheels, axles, and towing hitch; and

(2) filing with the register of deeds or clerk of court, as appropriate, for the county in which the manufactured home is located the Manufactured Home Affidavit for the Retirement of Title Certificate in the form prescribed in this article together with proof of ownership as evidenced by a copy of the most recent deed of record or other instrument vesting title, and paying the filing fee required for affidavits by Section 8-21-310.

(B) The register of deeds or clerk of court must record the affidavit as if it were a deed to real property with the homeowner being identified as grantor and give notification to the county assessor.

(C) Upon the filing of the affidavit, the manufactured home is to be treated for all purposes except condemnation as real property and title to the manufactured home is thereby vested in the lawful owner of the real property to which it is affixed. A warning notice to those filing the affidavit must be included in the affidavit.

(D) The Manufactured Home Affidavit for the Retirement of Title Certificate must be in the following form:

STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA ) MANUFACTURED HOME AFFIDAVIT COUNTY OF ____________ FOR RETIREMENT OF TITLE CERTIFICATE (1) Name of...