Orange County Clerk-Recorder South County Branch Office

Laura was super helpful and patient. Had to go back since the examiner wouldn’t record a document with very little direction but Laura helped identify what was missing. I was in/​out in 30minutes vs driving to Santa Ana! Thanks for the great service.

This place sucks! God help you if you’re not proficient on a computer because they require you to do all your work on it before getting in line. When I couldn’t log in I got in line. The girl was rude. The second time the guy was rude. After 30 minutes hunched over the screen, I had to wait in line to finish. Get rid of the computers or make them optional. Get rid of these employees with attitude. Make the process something you can complete online from home. Government!!!

Always best to go here early. It gets busy later in the day. Have paperwork filled out ready.

Came here to get my daughter’s birth certificate one morning before work. I didn’t want to deal with the main records hall in downtown Santa Ana so thought I’d hit up the South County Branch. Had a great experience. They opened right at 9. There was a small line but went right to an open computer to put in my request and had the birth certificate right away. I was in and out in five minutes. It’s and easy-​to-​find location right off the 5 freeway and plenty of free parking which is nice. The people behind the counter were friendly and helpful as well.

This place was an amazing place to get married. My husband and I had quite a large party for a civil ceremony but the courthouse was able to accommodate for everyone to attend outside. The staff here are very friendly and the area is so beautiful and clean.
At first, I though that I needed a big wedding with a beautiful venue and all this other stuff to make my day memorable, but this place was beautiful in itself, the staff helped us with what we needed and was able to make do with all the people that had come. This day in itself is one to remember forever and I will never forget it.

I have been recording documents here for years, since they first opened. All of the clerks are knowledgable of everything and they have to do everything here: recording of documents, fictitious business names, vital records like death and birth certificates, and marriage licenses as well as actually conducting the marriages which is always fun to see the brides, grooms and family. All clerks are friendly and helpful. It’s a great experience from a county government office that provides excellent service. The only draw back is that more & more people are becoming aware of this location and so sometimes the line gets a little long.

Amazing experience! My husband and I got married here. The ceremony was short and sweet! The staff was very friendly and helpful. Very highly recommend!

Review #900 and I’ve saved it for the South OC Clerk Recorder Office.
On 4÷15÷15, we came here and got married. =) On my lunch break. =) Not joking.
We don’t care for ceremony, and our families don’t care either. We’re more practical and feel the tens of thousands of dollars spent on a wedding and the headaches that go with it would be better invested in something that actually matters: Life.
When we came in, we had an appointment. We arrived a bit early, but the office staff were working hard and they took care of us quickly and with warm, friendly smiles. Most county/​state/​government buildings are known for their cold, depressing, uncaring service, but the people working here were, for the most part, welcoming and engaging.
We had our paperwork done quickly and the ceremony was fast as well, though I did not like the woman who conducted the script. My husband was nervous (cute) and he needed the woman to repeat herself a couple of times. When he tried to look at the paper with the «repeat after me» parts, the woman snatched it away and said «no, just say it after me.»
WTF
After that was over with, I told her thank you and please leave.
The office was quick in processing our marriage certificate and though they said one week, it was ready in four days.
Parking is easy and quiet. The buildings are pleasant and peaceful.
We moved into a new home and started our lives together on a simple note with a very smooth transition. We didn’t even bother with a honeymoon since a vacation before starting your marriage is pretty wasteful and pointless, not to mention sad since you’re essentially saying «I want a long vacation before we start our life together because it’s going to the same as a job.» smh.
Today, we have…
A house.
No mortgage.
No debt.
No payments of any kind outside of bills.
THAT is what I call a solid start. We can focus on what matters.
Now, I’m going to inject a moment of pragmatism here so forgive me for my lack of desire to spend $ 5,000 on a dress.
So many people spend so much attention on a wedding that is nothing more than a hugely expensive five hour fantasy that has nothing to do with real life or marriage, then a vacation is taken to celebrate the frivolity of the fairy tale being perpetrated. When the new couple returns home, reality sets in and the little princess has to take off her party dress, put on sweats, and wash dishes. Sorry little girl. That wedding you had was probably the biggest joke of your life. Welcome to your MARRIAGE, something that is longer than five hours and something that is far more deserving of the money, time, energy, stress, emotional investment and insane attention to detail than some stupid party.
But hey, many say weddings are tradition, and I can respect that. Just don’t go around telling more practical people that it’s «sad» they didn’t have a wedding because that sentiment is turned around to you.
Rant over.
This branch office was easy to visit and the employees were friendly to deal with. They laughed when we told them we had to get back to work, but they understood and helped us get things done quickly. Mom and Dad were there too and they said the office ran very well.
Thanks, Laguna Hills for the hassle free lunch hour. You play an important role in so many people’s lives so many times a day, and I’m sure it gets pretty monotonous, but know that you have at least one couple that appreciates your hard work. =)

I was so happy to learn about this County Clerk-​Recorder office for recording of documents! The docs are actually scanned up to the main Santa Ana office for examining and official recording; a process which took a quick 5 mins in my case! Their estimate was an approximate wait of 15 mins, and then depending on what the SA office determines — the docs are either accepted and recorded; or rejected, but then SA will let you know what is missing. Far more efficient than the Santa Ana process of depositing the documents, only to learn weeks later if info is missing or if it’s accepted!
The three person Clerk-​Recorder Ofc staff was quick to assist, super efficient and very helpful in answering questions.

I’ve had to come here twice. Once to get a wedding license, and once to get a copy of our wedding certificate. Both times I had a great experience. However, I would like to say that I was there both times before opening. I can’t speak for what the lines get like later in the day.
Everything is streamlined and on computers to make sure the line to speak to someone moves at a good speed. The employees are also very welcoming and friendly. Not something you’d usually expect from a government office. They were just icing on the cake when I was there.
One weird thing when I went to get the certificate. They said that there was a ‘paper shortage’ so they were only able to get us one copy of the certificate. If we wanted another copy, I’d have to go to another location. I thought that was really weird. I don’t know how long this restriction will be in effect, but keep it in mind if you were planning on getting multiple copies of something. If you’re there to get different certificate (i.e. birth and wedding) you can get one of each. Just not multiple copies of the same one.

Went in to turn in my Notary documents and it was super quick and super easy! I was in and out of here in 20 minutes. The line wasnt long — then again I did go in at 1:30 on a Thursday. They have a small office with multiple people working and they keep it moving quickly which is great!

Isn’t it great when a government process is fast and simple?
I needed to record some property documents, wanted to do it in person, and wasn’t looking forward to visiting the main office in Santa Ana. Fortunately this office is in an incredibly convenient location with plenty of parking (and it’s pretty, too!).
As it is a satellite office, property documents are scanned and sent to be reviewed by an examiner in the Santa Ana office while you wait, and the clerks cannot provide any guidance on how or what to fill out. However, doing a little research online beforehand can save you a lot of time (and a trip to Santa Ana) — if you already have your deed, PCOR, etc. prepared in advance the whole process takes only about 15 minutes. After the documents are approved, they are stamped as recorded, you pay your fee ($ 6 per recorded page) and you are all done. Easy!
Note: while the office is open until 4:30pm, property document transactions are only done until 4pm.

This week I discovered that in Laguna Hills city hall building in the 3^rd floor you can get your passport. Fantastic!
I went today and had a great quick service and the lady who is the only one there is super nice.
I recommend this place it’s a bit small but it’s not bad. better than going to the post office for sure.

This place is a great alternative to Santa Ana for anyone living south of Costa Mesa. Fabulous little Spanish style building, easy to find, right off of 5 freeway, easy to park, and I’m always in and out of the in 5 mins. And, a caveat for which I take away, not one, but two stars — they ask you to fill out a form online at a little computer area before you walk up to the clerk. They don’t have anyone instructing people where to go and what to do and from what I remember I didn’t see any signage. People would wait for 5 – 6 mins in the line and then be told they need to fill out the computer form. I’ll concede the point that it’s not rocket science, but I can understand how it can be confusing and non intuitive to the elderly and anyone who’s not tech savvy. If you are looking this up for yourself, and you used a computer machine with access to electronic Internet to find this Unilocal page — you’ll be fine. If you liked this up for your older family members — just go with them. I saw an older gentleman struggling with the MS Access-​based app for a while, never moving from the same screen and the was no staff to help him.

We got our marriage license from the Laguna Hills Courthouse. It was a great experience and we would definitely recommend this place for anyone getting their marriage license and/​or wanting a civil ceremony.
The location is right off the freeway, the facility is clean and beautiful, and the staff is prompt and friendly. We had an appointment and were in and out in 15 minutes.
The best part is they have monthly Saturday appointments which is awesome for people like us who work full time. Come check it out!

Best location for civil wedding ceremony and pictures in SoCal. Mark it.
Thank you everyone. Your kind service made the most important day of our lives memorable and special.

A guide to getting married here from the perspective of a friend of the couple:
I attended a wedding on 12÷13÷14, which was a VERY busy day for weddings, and this was my experience.
–First, everyone that we experienced at the office was really nice. Two thumbs up!
–The building is beautiful. This is a great location.
–While the website showed indoor weddings, the day we went was so busy that they gave the option of indoor or outdoor. If you are a friend, photographing your friends, be prepared to shoot either indoors OR outdoors.
–If it is a special date (like the day that we attended), expect a lot of people and for them to move quickly through the ceremonies. They do special Saturday events such as consecutive date day, Valentines, etc.
–The ceremony was pretty fast. I think our video showed that it was only about 3 minutes long.
–If you are attending on a busy day, take your pictures quickly after the ceremony and move on and out of the general area, out of respect for the next couple.
–Take into consideration that if you linger, you’ll end up in the background pictures of other people’s wedding photos and if you are talking, it might impede the audio portion of video for someone else’s wedding (Not cool!). Especially if you have a lot of friends/​family with you. If you are not courteous, people like me, the friend of the couple, will chase you out of the background or resort to public shaming (see the picture for this review on how not to act… or what it looks like when the bottom of your pants are so tight that they cut off the blood circulation to your brain and make you act like a pack of fools).
Tips:
–Get an appointment to guarantee a time slot. We were able to do this online while applying for the license.
–If you plan on shooting outside, mid-​day, bring a flash to back fill the lighting (to counter the harsh shadows).
–If there are people lurking in the background, crouch lower to the ground and take upshots of the couple. Less photo editing later!

Jenifer is a snobby lady that treats people badly. I watched her be rude to several people. She’s in the planning department, but I think she would do really well at the DMV. It looks like her job was too tough for her today. She had a tough time treating people with respect and kindness.
Listen Jennifer from planning… If you can’t handle people, maybe this isn’t the job for you… I hope you have a terrible day, your hair turn green permanently and tons of roaches crawl into your kale salad.

This is a fantastic place to get married. The process was simple and easy, the service was good, and the setting was excellent. I was surprised at how many photo-​friendly spots there were in and out of the civic center. Be sure to hire a photographer or borrow someone’s nice camera to take pictures of you and your spouse on your special day.
We went a few weeks ahead of our planned date (a Friday) and filled out paperwork, paid our fee, and checked the place out. We were very happy with what we saw and made some tentative plans for our wedding.
The big day was busy, but everyone was friendly and in a good mood. Lots of wedding bliss in the air, obviously. We stood in line for a few minutes to confirm our reservation and waited until it was our turn in the ceremony room. The room itself is tastefully decorated, but runs on the small side. There were 14 of us (three being children), the officiant, and our photographer, so it was a bit tight. Thankfully, there was a small bench for our parents to sit on during the ceremony, which was brief but meaningful.
Afterwards, we walked to the main civic center building and took family photos on the staircase. My bride and I were also photographed in front of the building and elsewhere. We couldn’t have asked for a better place for our wedding day.
TIP: If you’re looking for a nice and affordable restaurant, do what we did and drive to the Oak Creek Golf Club in Irvine. It’s only about 10 minutes north and it’s gorgeous. We reserved a few outdoor tables at their café with a view of the golf course. The service was excellent and there were plenty of photo ops at the café and near the course.

DOMA shot down, Prop 8 shot down! The road to equality is bright with a colorful rainbow!!!
Among all their many many friends I was asked to be a witness to a dear friends very private marriage ceremony as they started on a new life together. How awesome especially since they have been together for over a decade. They wanted to marry the first time same sex marriage was legal but missed the window because they wanted to have a big wedding and that took some planning. So when the it became legal again this second time they opted out of the big wedding for a later date and to get the marriage legalized first.
The Civic Center is very easy to find. From the streets you can identify it with a big dome or bell tower atop one of the building. At around am the place is already busy with people apply for marriage license, business license and other things. We walked in and turned in our ID for the marriage certificate to be typed up. We reviewed in and signed it and waited to be called in for the ceremony. As we were in line we noticed another gay couple waiting to get married, yay!
The room where the ceremony takes place is small. They do have a bench on one side for people to sit but it was mostly standing room only and any more than 10 – 15 people would have been very tight. The officiant was very friendly and read about the importance of marriage. It was quick and efficient as they went through the vows, the rings and sealed it with a kiss.