District of Columbia Code Division VII. Property. § 42-401. Effective date of deeds; exception.

Any deed conveying real property in the District, or interest therein, or declaring or limiting any use or trust thereof, executed and acknowledged and certified as provided in § 42-602, and § 42-306, and Chapter 12A or Title 2, and delivered to the person in whose favor the same is executed shall be held to take effect from the date of the delivery;  except, that as to creditors and subsequent bona fide purchasers and mortgagees without notice of said deed, and others interested in the property, it shall only take effect from the time of its delivery to the Recorder of Deeds for record.