Title & closing · Palm Beach County, FL
Palm Beach County solar lien search
By Jake Breaux, solar industry expert · Updated
The short version
In Palm Beach County, Florida, a solar fixture filing is recorded with the Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller, not with the Florida Secured Transaction Registry. The clerk's Official Records search is free, runs on a system called Landmark, and the document type you want is FIN, which the system spells out as FINANCING STATEMENTS (UCC'S). Two local things are worth knowing before you start: a brand new filing sits in the index marked I until somebody checks its indexing, and the clerk's free alert watches an address and a parcel number as well as a name.
Where do you search for a solar lien in Palm Beach County?
In the Palm Beach County official records, kept by the Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller. A solar lien is usually a UCC fixture filing, and Florida sends fixture filings to the clerk of the circuit court rather than to the state registry. A clean search at the state registry does not clear a home in West Palm Beach, Boca Raton, Delray Beach, Jupiter or Wellington.
The split is written into the statute.Florida Statute 679.5011files a financing statement with the office of the clerk of the circuit court when the collateral is goods that are or are to become fixtures and the statement is filed as a fixture filing. Every other case goes to the Florida Secured Transaction Registry, the state index at floridaucc.com. Panels bolted to a roof are the first case, so the registry is the wrong window and the clerk'sOfficial Records searchis the right one. The office writes its own name as Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller, Palm Beach County, which is the wording to use in a letter. The version of this rule for every state is onwhere to search for a solar lien.
How do you search the Palm Beach County official records?
The county runs its search on a system called Landmark, and the clerk links straight to it. Pick the name search, leave Party Type on Both, and type your surname first. The box beside the name offers Starts With, Contains or Equals, and Starts With is the one to begin with. Then look at the dates: there is a Begin Date and an End Date, and a small Oldest button beside Begin Date fills in 01/01/1900, which saves you guessing where the index starts.
Two more fields narrow it, and both are optional. Document Type takes a code, and the code for a solar filing is FIN, which the system spells out as FINANCING STATEMENTS (UCC'S). Book Type defaults to All Books and lists nine, among them OFFICIAL RECORDS, PLAT, ROAD PLAT and one for the South Florida Water Management District. Leave both alone on the first pass and read the document type on each row yourself. A filing indexed under a neighbouring code still appears in an unfiltered list, and it disappears the moment you filter.
Two habits save time here. Try your name with a middle initial and then without, because the index matches whatever somebody typed at a counter. And if the house is in two names, search both, since a filing made against one spouse will not surface under the other. Party Type also offers Direct Name and Reverse Name, which split the index by the side of the document a name sits on, but Both covers the pair, so there is no reason to narrow it.
| What | Palm Beach County |
|---|---|
| Office | Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller, Palm Beach County, Official Records |
| Online search | erec.mypalmbeachclerk.com, the Landmark system, free, no account |
| Search by | Name, document, case number, book and page, consideration, parcel ID, record date, instrument number, legal and abstract |
| Name format | One box, surname first, with Starts With, Contains or Equals as the match type |
| Party type | Both, Direct Name or Reverse Name. Leave it on Both |
| Document type | FIN, which the system spells out as FINANCING STATEMENTS (UCC'S). A filing is cleared by TER, termination, or SAT, satisfaction |
| Book type | All Books by default, nine to choose from, including OFFICIAL RECORDS and one for the water management district |
| Date range | Begin Date and End Date in mm/dd/yyyy, with Yesterday, Today and Oldest buttons. Oldest fills 01/01/1900 |
| Images from | Documents filed since 1 January 1968. Marriage license listings go back to 1909, plat and right-of-way maps to the late 1800s |
| A brand new filing | Appears marked I while its indexing is unverified, then changes to V. Verification generally happens within 3 business days |
| Free alerts | Property Fraud Alert, by email within 24 hours, on an exact match to a name, an address or a parcel number you register |
| Copies | Printing an uncertified watermarked copy is free. Electronically certified online is $8.00 a document. At a counter it is $1.00 a page, $2.00 to certify and $1.00 for the cover page |
| Search run by the office | $2.00 per year, per name, per legal description, by phone on (561) 355-2932 or by post to P.O. Box 4526, West Palm Beach, FL 33402-4526 |
| In person | Five counters, Monday to Friday 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Recording at the Main Courthouse is 205 N. Dixie Highway, Room 4.2500, West Palm Beach |
| Phone | Recording (561) 355-2991. Copies and records research (561) 355-2932 |
| What the state registry covers | Financing statements that are not fixture filings. Search floridaucc.com as a separate question |
What does the I beside a new result mean?
It means the image is up but the indexing has not been checked yet. The disclaimer on the clerk's search page says scanned images are made available before party indexing is verified, that these provisional records are marked with the letter I, and that they may be deleted, modified or changed without notice until somebody verifies them. Verification generally happens within 3 business days, and the record then changes from I to V.
That cuts both ways for a solar search. A filing recorded on Monday can be readable on the site by Tuesday, which is quicker than plenty of counties manage. But the names attached to it may still be wrong, so a name search can walk straight past a document whose image is already sitting there. If you are checking the record ahead of a closing, run your name search and then run a record date search over the last week or two and read the new rows yourself.
What is the Property Fraud Alert, and should you use it?
It is free, and it watches more than your name. The clerk emails you when a document recorded in the Palm Beach County official records exactly matches a name, an address or a parcel number you registered. Most county alerts run on names alone. Registering the parcel control number as well catches a filing made against a previous owner or against a spelling of you that you would never have thought to search, which is the gap a name-only alert leaves open.
Read the clerk's own warning before you lean on it. You get an alert only on an exact match, so theProperty Fraud Alert pageasks you to register every variation of a name and an address, Mary Smith and Mary Ellen Smith and Mary E Smith. When something matches, the email arrives within 24 hours and carries the document type, the Clerk's File Number or CFN, and the book and page, with a link to the document. It tells you early and it stops nothing, which is still worth the ten minutes. The recording department takes questions on (561) 355-2991.
What do you do if you find a solar filing?
Open the image and read who filed it and what it covers. If it secures a solar loan you have paid off, ask the lender for a UCC-3 termination and have it recorded, which lands in this index as a TER or a SAT against the original. If it protects a lease or power purchase agreement that is still running, ask the provider in writing what they need for a sale or a refinance, and ask now, because their reply is the slow part.
Printing an uncertified copy off the search costs nothing. A certified copy, the version a title company or a lender tends to want, is $8.00 bought online, which the clerk breaks out as a $2.00 statutory fee plus a $6.00 service fee, with a processing fee on top if you pay by card. At a counter it is $1.00 a page plus $2.00 to certify plus $1.00 for a required cover page, and that cover page carries a code and a QR code anyone can scan to check the certificate is real. Five counters across the county take recordings and sell copies, Monday to Friday 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.: the Main Courthouse in West Palm Beach, plus Delray Beach, Palm Beach Gardens, Belle Glade and Royal Palm Beach.
The reason any of it matters at a closing is the buyer's lender.Fannie Mae's Selling Guiderequires a UCC search on a home with solar and requires a filing that ranks ahead of the mortgage to be subordinated before the loan closes. The closing-table version of this is atselling a house with solar.
Does every kind of solar leave a filing?
No. Loans nearly always do, leases and power purchase agreements often do, and cash purchases and subscriptions leave nothing on the record. The breakdown is ondo solar panels put a lien on your house. We sell subscriptions, the no-filing kind, so read it knowing that.
Looking at solar for a Palm Beach County home?
Run your bill through the estimator. It takes about a minute and a real person follows up with figures for your roof. Read the Florida page first: it covers who insures the panels when a hurricane comes and who this is a bad fit for.
Sources
We sell subscription solar, so don't take our word for the contract mechanics. These are the primary sources: check them.
- Official Records Search, Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller, Palm Beach County
The search itself, on the Landmark system the clerk links from its own site. Checked 12 October 2026: ten searches, name, document, case number, book and page, consideration, parcel ID, record date, instrument number, legal and abstract. The name search form carries a Party Type list of Both, Direct Name and Reverse Name; a match type of Starts With, Contains or Equals; a Book Type list of nine books including OFFICIAL RECORDS, PLAT, ROAD PLAT and SFWMD; a Document Type box; and Begin Date and End Date fields in mm/dd/yyyy with Yesterday, Today and Oldest buttons, which on the day filled 10/11/2026, 10/12/2026 and 01/01/1900. The document type list holds 87 entries. The one that matters here is FIN, FINANCING STATEMENTS (UCC'S); the two that clear a filing are TER, TERMINATION, and SAT, SATISFACTION. The disclaimer names the office as the Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller, Palm Beach County, says users may view and print images of documents filed with the clerk since Jan. 1, 1968, and says an indexed reference with no image can be read on microfilm in room 4.25 of the Main Courthouse in West Palm Beach at $1 for every page photocopied. The same disclaimer describes images published before party indexing is verified, marked with the letter I, which may be deleted, modified or changed without notice, with verification generally occurring within 3 business days, after which the record changes from I to V.
- Search Official Records, Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller, Palm Beach County
The clerk's own link to the search. Checked 12 October 2026: it resolves to erec.mypalmbeachclerk.com, which is how we know the Landmark site is the county's own system and not a third party reselling the index.
- Official Records, Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller, Palm Beach County
Checked 12 October 2026: official records include court judgments, deeds, liens, marriage licenses, mortgages, plats, tax deeds and administrative orders, and digital images are available of documents dating back to 1968, with marriage license listings back to 1909 and plat and right-of-way maps back to the late 1800s. Same page links the search, certified copies, the records service center and a Landmark user guide.
- Property Fraud Alert, Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller, Palm Beach County
The free alert. Checked 12 October 2026: a free email notification when a document is recorded in the official records of Palm Beach County that exactly matches the name, address or parcel number you registered to monitor. The tips say you will only receive an alert for an exact match and ask you to register all variations of personal and business names, including middle names, middle initials and abbreviations, and address variations, giving Mary Smith, Mary Ellen Smith and Mary E Smith as the example. If a document matches, the alert arrives within 24 hours and the email gives the document type, the Clerk's File Number or CFN, and the book and page, plus a link to view the document on the online Official Records website. Sign-up is email-based and the confirmation arrives by email. Questions go to the recording department on 561-355-2991.
- Recording, Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller, Palm Beach County
Checked 12 October 2026: same-day recording for documents presented in person, Monday to Friday 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., at five counters, the Main Courthouse recording department at 205 N. Dixie Highway, Room 4.2500, West Palm Beach; the South County Courthouse at 200 W. Atlantic Ave., Delray Beach; the North County Courthouse at 3188 PGA Blvd., Palm Beach Gardens; the West County Courthouse at 2950 State Road 15, Room S-100, Belle Glade; and the Royal Palm Beach branch at 200 Civic Center Way. The page also says the clerk cannot guarantee that a mailed document is recorded on the day it arrives, and recommends recording a time-sensitive document in person. Recording phone numbers: Main Courthouse (561) 355-2991, South County (561) 274-1588, North County (561) 624-6622, West County (561) 996-4843, Royal Palm Beach (561) 784-1271.
- How to Obtain Copies of Court Records and Official Records, Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller, Palm Beach County
Checked 12 October 2026: plain or uncertified copies carrying a watermark can be printed for free from your own computer, and electronically certified copies can be bought online. A search run by the office is requested on 561-355-2932 with the full name or legal description and the exact or approximate year of recording, or by post to Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller's Office, P.O. Box 4526, West Palm Beach, FL 33402-4526 with a self addressed stamped envelope, the fee and a check payable to Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller, Palm Beach County. The counter for copies is the Main Courthouse 4th floor, room 4.2500.
- Copies and Records Research Fees, Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller, Palm Beach County
Checked 12 October 2026: in-person copies of records up to 8 1/2 by 14 inches are $1.00 per page; certifying adds $2.00 per instrument plus $1.00 for a required cover page containing a unique code and QR code that can be scanned by anyone to authenticate the certified copy. An electronically certified copy bought online is $8.00 per document, a $2.00 statutory fee plus a $6.00 service fee, with a payment processing fee added on a card. A search run by the office is $2.00 per year, per name, per legal description.
- Official Records Search Help, Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller, Palm Beach County
Checked 12 October 2026: the clerk's own list of what helps a records search, complete names of the parties, the year or date of recording, the legal description, the physical address, the parcel identification number also known as the parcel control number or PCN or tax folio number without the hyphens, the book and page, the instrument number and the case number. It also says a search that finds nothing may mean the information was entered incorrectly or that the document was never recorded with the office, and it points to a blue Help box inside the search for step-by-step instructions.
- 679.5011, Filing office, The Florida Legislature
The split, in the statute's own words: the office of the clerk of the circuit court where the collateral is goods that are or are to become fixtures and the financing statement is filed as a fixture filing, and the Florida Secured Transaction Registry in all other cases.
- Selling Guide B2-3-04, Special Property Eligibility Considerations, Fannie Mae
Why a buyer's lender will look for a solar filing, and why one ranking ahead of the mortgage has to be subordinated.
Want the numbers for your actual roof?
See your roof's numbers