Frequently Asked Questions
Plain-English answers about blockchain property records and tokenized real estate. See the Registry Tracker for live platforms and pilots.
Q01.What are blockchain property records?
Blockchain property records are cryptographic fingerprints of deed and title documents written to a public blockchain. The blockchain does not replace the county recorder — it creates a tamper-evident parallel record that anyone can independently verify, timestamp, and audit without trusting a single database owner.
Q02.Can you actually buy a house on the blockchain?
Yes, but not the way most people imagine. Today you buy a house onchain by purchasing tokens that represent membership in an LLC that legally owns the deed. Platforms like Propy, Roofstock onChain, Lofty, and RealT structure transactions this way, and the deed itself is still filed at the county.
Q03.Is a blockchain deed legally valid in the US?
A blockchain hash of a deed has evidentiary value in most US states, but the county recorder's paper or electronic filing is still the authoritative legal record. Several states (Arizona, Vermont, Wyoming) have passed laws recognizing blockchain records as admissible evidence.
Q04.What is tokenized real estate?
Tokenized real estate is property whose ownership is represented by digital tokens on a blockchain. In every US-legal structure the property is held by an LLC and the tokens represent LLC membership interests, so transferring the token transfers legal ownership of the entity that holds the deed.
Q05.Which counties or governments have tried blockchain land registries?
The Republic of Georgia runs the longest-standing national blockchain land registry, anchoring millions of records to Bitcoin. Cook County (Illinois), South Burlington (Vermont), and Wyoming have all run US pilots. Sweden, Honduras, and Zambia have also tested implementations at the national level.
Q06.How does blockchain prevent deed fraud?
Blockchain anchoring makes any change to a deed detectable in seconds. Because the document's hash is written to a public ledger, an altered version produces a different hash and instantly fails verification. It cannot stop a forged filing from being submitted, but it makes any alteration after the fact provable.
Q07.What is the difference between a tokenized deed and an NFT of a house?
A tokenized deed transfers legal ownership of a property via an LLC that holds the deed — buying the token buys the LLC. An NFT of a house is often just an image or a claim with no enforceable link to the underlying real estate. The difference is legal wrapper and custody.
Q08.How do I invest in tokenized real estate?
Most US-facing platforms require KYC and offer securities under Reg D 506(c) or Reg S. You create an account, complete accreditation or eligibility checks, fund with fiat or stablecoin, and receive tokens representing LLC membership. Rental yields are typically paid weekly or monthly in stablecoin.