As used in this article, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
DEED
Includes any instrument or writing pursuant to which title or possession of any real estate situate within the corporation limits of the Town of Georgetown which shall be quitclaimed, granted, bargained, sold, conveyed or transferred by a seller, vendor, grantor, assignor or transferor to any purchaser, buyer, vendee, grantee, assignee or transferee, except as provided in §
199-2, and shall include the following:
A.
Except as provided in Subsections
B and
C of this definition, where beneficial ownership in real estate is transferred through a conveyance or series of conveyances of intangible interest in a corporation, partnership or trust, such conveyance shall be taxable under this article as if such property were conveyed through a duly recorded "document" as defined herein, and subject to the exemptions contained herein, except those exemptions contained in Subsections
J,
K,
L and
P of §
199-2 of this article.
B.
No bona fide pledge of stock or partnership
interests as loan collateral nor any transfer of publicly traded stock
or publicly traded partnership interest shall be deemed subject to
taxation under this definition.
C.
Where the beneficial owners of real property
prior to the conveyance or series of conveyances referred to in this
subsection own 80% or more of the beneficial interest in the real
estate following said conveyance or conveyances, such transfer shall
not be subject to tax under this definition. Where the beneficial
owners of real property prior to the conveyance or series of conveyances
referred to in this subsection own less than 80% of the beneficial
interest in the real estate following said conveyance or conveyances,
such transfers shall not be subject to tax under this definition unless
under regulations promulgated by the Secretary of Finance of the State
of Delaware, such transfer or transfers are properly characterized
as a sale of real property. Such characterization shall take into
account the timing of the transaction, beneficial ownership prior
to and subsequent to the conveyance or conveyances; the business purpose
of the corporation, partnership or trust; and such other factors as
may be relevant.
DOCUMENT
Any deed, lease, instrument or writing whereby any real estate
within the corporate limits of the Town of Georgetown, or any interest
therein, shall be quitclaimed, granted, bargained, sold or otherwise
conveyed to the grantee.
FIRST-TIME HOME BUYER
A natural person who, individually or as a co-tenant, has
at no time held any interest in residential real estate, wherever
located and which has been occupied as his or her principal residence,
and who intends to occupy the property being conveyed as his or her
principal residence within 90 days following recordation.
[Added 8-25-2004 by Ord. No. 2004-2]
LEASE
Includes any document or instrument, in writing, transferring
or purporting to transfer a title or possessory interest by a seller,
vendor, lessor, assignor or transferor to any purchaser, buyer, vendee,
lessee, assignee or transferee in or to any of the following:
A.
A condominium unit or any property or properties
subject to the Unit Property Act (25 Del. C., § 2201 et
seq.) for a determinable term of five years or more.
B.
An interest in land owned by another and/or
improvements owned by another located on land owned by another for
a determinable term of five years or more.
C.
The exercise of any right or option to renew
or extend the title possessory interest in an existing document or
instrument in writing when such renewal or extension is for a period
of five years or more.
TRANSACTION
Includes the making, executing, delivering, accepting or
presenting for recording of a deed or lease as defined herein.
VALUE
Includes in the case of a deed the amount of the actual consideration
thereof, including liens or other encumbrances thereon and ground
rents or a commensurate part of the liens or other encumbrances thereon
where such liens and encumbrances and ground rents also encumber or
are charged against other lands, tenements or hereditaments; provided
that where such documents shall set forth a small or nominal consideration,
values shall be determined from the price set forth in, or actual
consideration for, the contract of sale or lease, or, in the case
of a gift or any other document without consideration, from the actual
monetary worth of the property granted, bargained, sold or otherwise
conveyed, which, in either event, shall not be less than the amount
of the assessment of such lands, tenements or hereditaments as shown
on the book of the county.
As used in this article "deed" and "lease" shall
not include any of the following:
C. Any lease other than those described or defined in §
199-1.
D. Any conveyance between corporations operating housing
projects pursuant to the laws of the state.
E. Any conveyance between nonprofit industrial development
agencies and industrial corporations purchasing from them.
F. Any conveyance to nonprofit industrial development
agencies.
G. Any conveyance between husband and wife.
H. Any conveyance between persons who were previously
husband and wife, but who have since been divorced, provided that
such conveyance is made after the granting of the final decree in
divorce, and the real estate or interest therein subject to such conveyance
was acquired by the husband and wife or husband or wife, prior to
the granting of the final decree in divorce.
I. Any conveyance between parent and child or a spouse
of such child.
J. Any conveyance to a trustee, nominee or straw party
for the grantor as beneficial owner.
K. Any conveyance for the beneficial ownership of a person
other than a grantor, where, if such person were the grantee, no tax
would be imposed upon the conveyance pursuant to this article.
L. Any conveyance from a trustee, nominee or straw party
to the beneficial owner.
M. Any conveyance between a parent corporation and a
wholly owned subsidiary corporation, provided that such conveyance
is without actual consideration.
N. Correction deed without actual considerations.
O. Any conveyance to or from the United States, the State
of Delaware, any instrumentality, agency or political subdivision
of the state.
P. Any conveyance to or from a corporation, or a partnership,
where the grantor or grantee owns stock of the corporation or an interest
in the partnership in the same proportion as his or her interest in,
or ownership of, the real estate being conveyed; provided, however,
that this subsection shall not apply to any distribution in liquidation
or other conveyance resulting from the partial or complete liquidation
of a corporation, unless the stock of the corporation being liquidated
has been held by the grantor or grantee for more than three years;
provided, further, that this subsection shall not apply to any conveyance
from a partnership to its partners unless the partners' interest in
the partnership has been held for more than three years.
Q. Any conveyance by the owner of a previously occupied
residential premises to a builder of new residential premises when
such previously occupied residential premises were taken in trade
by such builder as a part of the consideration from the purchaser
of new, previously unoccupied premises.
R. Any conveyance to the lender holding a bona fide mortgage,
which is genuinely in default, either by a sheriff conducting a foreclosure
sale or by the mortgagor in lieu of foreclosure.
S. Any conveyance to a religious organization or other body or person holding title to real estate for a religious organization, if such real estate will not be used following such transfer by the grantee or by any privy of the grantee for any commercial purpose; provided, however, that only that portion of the tax which is attributable to and payable by the religious organization or other body or person holding title to real estate for a religious organization under §
199-3 shall be exempt.
T. Any conveyance made pursuant to a contract executed
prior to October 1, 1988.
U. Any conveyance made by or to an individual, a corporation
or a partnership when there is no change in beneficial interest.
V. Any conveyance made by or to any organization exempt
from ad valorem real estate taxes.
Where there is a transfer of residential property
by a licensed real estate broker which property was transferred to
him or her within 12 months next proceeding the transfer by him or
her as part of the consideration for the purchase of other residential
property, a credit for the amount of the tax paid at the time of the
transfer to the licensed real estate broker shall be given toward
the amount of tax upon the transfer. If the tax due upon the transfer
from the licensed real estate broker is greater than the credit given
for the prior transfer the difference shall be paid. If the credit
allowed is greater than the amount of the tax due, no refund shall
be allowed.
The tax imposed by this article shall be paid
from the proceeds of any judicial sale of real estate as part of the
costs of such sale before any such proceeds are applied toward any
obligation, claim, lien, judgment or estate and of the writ upon which
the sale is made.
The payment of the tax imposed by this article
shall be evidenced by a notation of payment on the document. The collector
shall note on the document the payment of the tax, the amount of payment,
the date of payment and the initials of the person receiving payment
and his or her office. Such notation shall be conclusive evidence
of payment as to any subsequent purchaser relying thereon.
No document upon which a tax is imposed by this
article shall be recorded in the office of the Recorder of Deeds in
and for Sussex County unless proof of the payment of the transfer
tax appears on the document.
Every document, when lodged with or presented
to the Recorder of Deeds, in and for Sussex County, for recording
shall set forth therein as part of such document the true, full and
complete value thereof or shall be accompanied by an affidavit executed
by a responsible person connected with a transaction showing such
connection and setting forth the true, full and complete value thereof
or the reason, if any, why such document is not subject to tax under
this article.
No person shall make, execute, deliver, accept
or present for recording or cause to be made, executed, delivered,
accepted or presented for recording any document without the full
amount of tax thereon being duly paid.
Upon determination that any tax collection pursuant
to this article has been collected improperly, the Town Manager shall
refund to the taxpayer the sum so paid with interest from the date
of payment at the statutory rate.
Any person who violates any of the provisions
of this article shall be deemed to be guilty of a misdemeanor and,
upon conviction in a court of competent jurisdiction, shall be fined
not less than $50 nor more than $200 or be imprisoned for a term not
to exceed 20 days, or both, and shall pay the cost of prosecution.
This article shall become effective on October
1, 1988.