Does the memorandum of option go on record, or stay in the drawer?

Reading a lease option package for someone else this week and the option contract is clean, well drafted, separate from the lease exactly like people here keep saying it should be. What's missing is any mention of recording. Nothing goes to the county. The buyer's protection is the signature and nothing else.

The argument for recording a short memorandum is obvious enough. It puts the world on notice that someone holds a right to buy, which is the whole point if the owner later tries to sell to somebody else or borrow against the place. Whether that notice actually binds a later buyer depends on the recording and notice rules in the state, which is a question for a local attorney rather than a forum.

The argument against is that a recorded option is a cloud on title. If the tenant-buyer walks away or defaults, the owner may have to chase a release, and some owners simply won't sign a deal that touches their title. I've also heard that some lenders read a recorded option as a transfer trigger under the mortgage, which is worth confirming with the actual loan documents rather than assuming.

So for people who've done these, does the memo get recorded as a matter of course, or only when the buyer insists?