An allonge is a separate sheet attached to a promissory note that carries the endorsement signing the note over to a new owner. It is used when the note has no room left for an endorsement, or when the buyer wants it on a page of its own.
The endorsement it carries
A promissory note works a little like a check made out to you: to pass it on, you sign it over. That signature, with a few words naming who the note now goes to, is the endorsement. Without it the buyer holds paper that still names you as the person to be paid.
A privately drafted note may end with the borrower’s signature block and no blank space below it, in which case the allonge supplies the space. The word comes from the French for “to lengthen”, a fair description of a page that extends the note.
An allonge is brief. It identifies one note by the borrower’s name, the note date, the original amount and often the property address, then gives the endorsement wording and your signature as the current holder, with your title if you sign for a company or a trust.
Wording you may see on one
| Phrase | Plain meaning |
|---|---|
| Pay to the order of [named buyer] | A special endorsement. Only the named buyer can collect or pass the note on. |
| Pay to the order of [left blank] | A blank endorsement. Whoever holds the note can generally enforce it, much like a signed check with no payee filled in. |
| Without recourse | You are not promising that the borrower will pay. If the payer defaults later, the buyer cannot generally come back to you on the endorsement alone. |
“Without recourse” on the allonge leaves in place the statements you made in your purchase agreement. If you confirmed there that the balance was a certain figure and it was wrong, the buyer may still have a claim, which is why the allonge should be read alongside the note purchase agreement.
Why it has to be attached
An allonge is meant to be fixed to the note so that the two travel as one document. A loose sheet in the same folder can be challenged later, and what counts as properly attached varies by state. Closing agents therefore staple or otherwise fix it to the original, and buyers ask for the original note because a copy gives them nothing to attach it to. If your original cannot be found, raise it early, because selling a note without the original document depends on what substitute a buyer will accept.
How it differs from the assignment
Both are signed at closing, which is why they get confused. The allonge transfers the note, the promise to pay; it stays with the note and is not normally recorded. The assignment of mortgage or deed of trust transfers the lien on the property and is recorded with the county. The buyer’s ownership is complete only when both have been signed.
Signing one
The buyer or the closing agent prepares the allonge, leaving you to check it and sign.
- Confirm the borrower’s name, the note date and the original amount against your note.
- Confirm that the buyer’s name is the same entity named in your purchase agreement.
- Sign exactly as your name appears as payee on the note.
- Give the signed allonge and the original note to the closing agent, who releases them to the buyer only when your funds are released to you.
Notes that have changed hands before
Each earlier transfer should have left its own endorsement or allonge, so that the signatures run in an unbroken line from the original payee to you. Take out your original note and look at the back of the last page and at anything stapled to it. Do that before you get the note priced, so you can describe the chain accurately in the first conversation. A missing link is easier to repair at the start of a note sale than once buyers are reviewing the file, and the endorsed original belongs with the other documents you need to sell a note.
Related questions
Is an allonge recorded with the county?
Not normally. It stays attached to the original note. The document that gets recorded is the assignment of the mortgage or deed of trust.
Does an allonge need to be notarized?
Practice varies. Some buyers and closing agents ask for a notary and others do not, so follow the closing agent's instructions for your sale.
Can I endorse the note directly and skip the allonge?
Yes, if there is space on the note and the buyer agrees. The endorsement does the same job in either place, so ask the closing agent which form the buyer wants.