U.C.C. § 9-501 — Filing Office

Editorial note. Section 9-501(a)(1) designates the real-property recording office as the appropriate filing office for fixture filings, as-extracted collateral, and timber-to-be-cut. Section 9-501(a)(2) designates the central UCC filing office for all other collateral. Section 9-501(b) authorizes each enacting State to designate the specific office.

Editorial note. The dual filing system — central UCC filings for chattel collateral, real-property filings for fixture and land-related collateral — is a core structural feature of Article 9. It ties Article 9 into the real-property recording system without unifying the two.

Editorial note. See U.C.C. §§ 9-301 (choice of law for perfection); 9-307 (debtor's location); 9-308 (perfection); 9-334 (fixture priority); 9-502 (contents of financing statement); 9-516 (what constitutes filing).

Editorial note. Filing in the wrong office is a fatal perfection error. Article 9 filings involving fixtures, as-extracted collateral, or timber must be made in the real-property records; ordinary chattel filings must be made in the central UCC office of the debtor's location.