Titling/registration nightmare. Advice?

[Naio]

So there is a van I want to buy. It's located in AZ, titled in MO, and I am going to register it in a third state, where my S&B is.

I've talked to the DMVs in all 3 states. None will issue a trip permit. I can register in my home state by mail, but I don't have the time to hang out in the seller's state and wait for snail mail.

I don't have anything big enough to tow the van.

I don't get any kind of hinky vibe from the seller. He seems like a straight up guy. Nevertheless, I want to make sure all is in order before I take the van. I sure don't want to end up with some kind of title problem. I also don't want to drive it across multiple states with no registration.

Is there some solution I am not seeing, here?

[fj12ryder]

Grit dog wrote:
Another fine topic horse whipped to death by armchair quarterbacks......

Aided and abetted by useful posts. 🙂

[Grit_dog]

Another fine topic horse whipped to death by armchair quarterbacks......

[Mark_Kovalsky]

You didn't say which is your home state. When I needed to do this when I lived in Michigan I found this:

You do not need a license plate to drive a newly purchased vehicle directly home within Michigan within three days of purchase. Carry the assigned title and proof of insurance with you. Never use a plate from another vehicle as a substitute.

Michigan Secretary of State Website

[jaycocamprs]

Either do the Fedex thing. Or find a "licensed" car dealer in AZ to help you fill out the paper work.

[Naio]

You show up with the title filled in correctly, and you can register the vehicle. Pretty straight forward.

Yeah, see, that's the bit that's worrying me.

I don't think the seller is hinky. But he does live way out to h*ll and gone. I'm worried that I will get home, 1500 miles away, and find we have filled something out wrong.

That's half the reason I want a trip permit; I want someone at a dmv somewhere to look at the paperwork and be sure everything is in order and I didn't put my name on the wrong dang line. Or, as someone said, this ol' van is wanted in 15 states...

Turns out you cannot call AZ DMV (which they term MVD) on the phone, though, and you cannot email them unless you have an AZ DL (required by their web form). I sure would like to talk to them before I go there.

D'oh, I have a couple friends in AZ. I bet one of them would email mvd for me. Good to have friends all over ;).

[Naio]

It's interesting that so nany people are freaked out by the seller not re-registering the van in his new state.

My current van is a model that's common where I am from, but rare and sought after in, for example, California. After I get a new van I was going to take my old one to California and sell it there. It's enough of a price difference to be well worth the trip. And California is a pretty place to visit.

But it never crossed my mind to register the van in CA. Why would I? I don't live there. And who deals with the dmv if they don't have to? I didn't realise some people might be creeped out by out of state plates.

I am different from this seller in that I would not let the registration expire, but that's because I am kind if uptight about certain kinds of law abiding. I can certainly see how someone could let it slide if they wrre busy settling into their new home.

[toedtoes]

coolmom42 wrote:
My question is: why has he not titled it in AZ? Is it not being driven? How long has this been the situation? You don't want a van that has been sitting for years.

Quite honestly I've never heard of such a thing as a trip permit.

In TN, this is what you do:

Sign the title and fill in the right information on it. Give it to the buyer. I have also always made out a bill of sale, simple form printed up on PC, 2 copies. Myself and the buyer both have a copy with both signatures. This give the buyer proof of payment immediately, and gives me proof of sale so that I am no longer liable for anything that happens. There is also a form to send to the state, but it takes a while. I want something in hand, with some documentation that the vehicle no longer belongs to me.

In TN no one cares about past registration of the vehicle. You show up with the title filled in correctly, and you can register the vehicle. Pretty straight forward.

Now I still contend that the seller should have taken care of this, but maybe he's just lazy. In that case, it may be a legit deal. But take a very careful double look at the the vehicle. And as always, get a mechanical inspection.

He titled it in MO because that is where he was when he bought it. When he arrived with it in AZ, he decided to sell it, so he did not register it (why spend the money getting it registered just to sell it and have the new owner have to re-register it?) This isn't that unusual of a situation - lots of folks will let the registration slide if they're trying to sell the vehicle, especially if they don't have a lot of extra money available.

[coolmom42]

My question is: why has he not titled it in AZ? Is it not being driven? How long has this been the situation? You don't want a van that has been sitting for years.

Quite honestly I've never heard of such a thing as a trip permit.

In TN, this is what you do:

Sign the title and fill in the right information on it. Give it to the buyer. I have also always made out a bill of sale, simple form printed up on PC, 2 copies. Myself and the buyer both have a copy with both signatures. This give the buyer proof of payment immediately, and gives me proof of sale so that I am no longer liable for anything that happens. There is also a form to send to the state, but it takes a while. I want something in hand, with some documentation that the vehicle no longer belongs to me.

In TN no one cares about past registration of the vehicle. You show up with the title filled in correctly, and you can register the vehicle. Pretty straight forward.

Now I still contend that the seller should have taken care of this, but maybe he's just lazy. In that case, it may be a legit deal. But take a very careful double look at the the vehicle. And as always, get a mechanical inspection.

[fj12ryder]

coolmom42 wrote:

fla-gypsy wrote:
Walk away from it, if he really wanted to sell it all of that would have been settled previously and you have no way of knowing if it is a scam/stolen/wanted as evidence/etc

This.

Steer clear, this is toooo hinky for an ethical seller. As someone said, he should have taken care of it a long time ago.

Taken care of what? He moved from Missouri to Arizona, he doesn't want to license the van in Arizona since he plans to sell it. That's what I would do. How is this toooo hinky?

Hinky is a seller on CL who is selling a bike with no title, but says getting a replacement is super easy.

[fj12ryder]

For all of you who recommend traveling without proper licensing, are you going to pay the OP's traffic ticket, and/or get them home from where the vehicle is possibly impounded?

Maybe you've never been stopped, but all it takes is once. We were stopped by a LEO who happened to notice that my license plate had expired. Missouri uses little renewal tags, not new plates. And I only have one on the front of the truck. It must have been a slow day because he pulled me over for it. I told him the new renewal tag was on the kitchen table where I put it. He checked with the DMV and the truck was legal, and he had no issues with us continuing. But if the truck were improperly licensed, or not licensed at all, it could have been pretty much of a mess.

A person might get away with it, but it also could turn out to be a very expensive van.

[coolmom42]

fla-gypsy wrote:
Walk away from it, if he really wanted to sell it all of that would have been settled previously and you have no way of knowing if it is a scam/stolen/wanted as evidence/etc

This.

Steer clear, this is toooo hinky for an ethical seller. As someone said, he should have taken care of it a long time ago.

[Naio]

Oh, toed, that is a nice idea! It would require staying at the seller's ranch for a couple of days, but not for TOO long, maybe.

I can ask the seller how far we would have to go to get fedex and fax services.

[toedtoes]

Naio - when I bought my TT, I bought it used from an individual in Nevada. Nevada license plates go with the person not the vehicle (whereas in California, they go with the vehicle not the person). I was worried about driving it across state lines without any plates/registration.

I went to the CA DMV to get it registered before I drove it from Nevada to California, but CA DMV wouldn't register it without a visual verification of the VIN. So I asked for a trip permit for the drive from Nevada to California. The DMV employee misunderstood and gave me a trip permit from my house to the DMV office. I went ahead and drove it home to California - it was fine. No one stopped me or gave me any trouble. I did have the signed over title and all my other documents just in case - but I pretty much worried about nothing.

If your DMV will let you register it without the visual verification (CA DMV said if the trailer/vehicle has never been registered in CA, then it MUST have a visual verification), could you overnight the title to a friend back home and have them go into DMV and register the van? Then they could fax/email you the temporary registration paper for your drive back.

[Naio]

Yup, that's what I keep telling you.