Georgia finance visual
Separate the note, security deed, sales deed, title, recording, settlement money, payoff, and cancellation by function and lifecycle.
Facts checked against the current PSI Candidate Information Bulletin and GREC sources. Editorial standards.
Use the map in order
The note states the repayment promise and loan terms.
Yes or applies
Borrower owes under the note.
No or contrast
Do not call every closing document the debt.
Trap control: The note is not the document that transfers the seller's ownership.
Georgia commonly uses a security deed.
Yes or applies
Connect the collateral to the note.
No or contrast
An unsecured promise lacks that real-property security instrument.
Trap control: Security deed and mortgage are not safe interchangeable Georgia answers.
A deed from grantor to grantee transfers the described interest.
Yes or applies
Analyze deed type, delivery, acceptance, and title effects.
No or contrast
The note and security instrument do not replace the sales deed.
Trap control: Title is the legal interest, not merely a paper document.
Recording supports public notice and priority analysis.
Yes or applies
Ask who had actual or constructive notice and when.
No or contrast
Keep recording consequences separate from formation between parties.
Trap control: Unrecorded does not automatically mean nonexistent between the parties.
Transfer tax follows consideration; intangible tax follows the note.
Yes or applies
Use the correct base and fraction rule.
No or contrast
Do not apply one base to every closing charge.
Trap control: Sale price and loan amount are deliberately placed together in exam stems.
Payoff addresses money; satisfaction or cancellation addresses the recorded security interest.
Yes or applies
Verify both financial and record effects in the facts.
No or contrast
A paid balance may still require the proper public-record step.
Trap control: Paying and clearing the record are related but separate acts.
| Term | Meaning | Keep it separate from |
|---|---|---|
| Note | Borrower's promise to repay. | Creates the debt terms, not the ownership transfer. |
| Security deed | Real-property security for the obligation under Georgia structure. | Secures the note; it is not the sales deed. |
| Sales deed | Instrument used to transfer the grantor's described interest. | Different function from financing documents. |
| Title | Legal ownership or interest in property. | A concept or status, not the same as a deed document. |
| Recording | Placement in public records for notice and priority effects. | Do not automatically equate non-recording with invalidity between parties. |
Stem: A buyer pays $300,000 and borrows $240,000. The question asks for Georgia intangible recording tax.
Answer: $720, assuming the question gives no exemption or other adjustment.
Why: $240,000 divided by $500 equals 480 units; 480 multiplied by $1.50 is $720.
Answer: The note.
Explanation: The security deed supplies collateral; the note supplies the promise.
Answer: The sale consideration or price under the official rule.
Explanation: Do not substitute the loan amount used for intangible recording tax.
Answer: Constructive notice.
Explanation: Recording and actual knowledge are separate notice routes.
You are ready to move on when you can travel the map without the labels, explain each contrast in your own words, and answer all three check questions for the rule rather than by recognition.
Complete Georgia finance and closing, then return for a mixed practice set after a 24-hour gap.