In most US states (such as Florida, California, and New York), recorded property deeds must publicly state the monetary consideration paid for real estate, or the purchase price can be mathematically deduced from documentary stamp transfer taxes. However, twelve US states operate under non-disclosure statutes where buyers and sellers are legally exempt from disclosing the true sales price to the county recorder.
Texas has no state income tax and relies predominantly on local property taxes. Under Texas Government Code § 552.022, real estate sales prices are strictly confidential. While county appraisal districts (CADs) attempt to estimate market values for tax rolls, they cannot legally compel buyers or sellers to provide deed sales prices.
Utah law explicitly prohibits county recorders and county assessors from publicly disclosing actual deed sale amounts, protecting transactional privacy.
New Mexico mandates that while buyers file a property transfer affidavit with the county assessor, that affidavit is confidential and completely exempt from open public records requests.
Wyoming requires a Statement of Consideration upon deed recording, but the statute mandates that all consideration amounts remain confidential for the internal use of the Department of Revenue only.
North Dakota exempts real estate transaction prices from open public record inspection, preventing commercial real estate indexes from obtaining authentic sale prices from recorded deeds.
Because deeds lack sales amounts, county appraisal districts employ computerized mass appraisal algorithms (CAMA) utilizing exterior permits, neighborhood sales surveys, and aerial lidar mapping to establish the assessed tax roll values presented throughout ParcelRegistry.