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Old 10-23-2009, 03:14 PM   #1
joe&Nance
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Default Out of State Private Purchase...

Ok, so I tried searching the threads for this and only saw resposes that "rv dealer" will do all paperwork, however, am doing this private. Did I miss anything.

I found a TM in TX that appears to be a good deal and put down a deposit. I asked him all the ?'s I found on the forum --seller appears 2 answer all ?'s honestly and has told me the defects and what he is fixing b4 I arrive. I have gotten VIN and call the TX DMV and verified that he has clear title on it, nothing about accidents with it. I have insurance set up, purchased the WDH, chemicals 4 potty, and TP. TV is ready and just got oil change and 3,000 mile checkup. Yes, took 1 very long trip camping trip to SO CAL and racked up the miles so could tow my PUP and then added another 2k on the vacation with PUP --all in the first few months of having it--fortunately, so now it is broken in and able to tow this. Funny, I averaged under 7k with my old truck over the 15 years I owned it -- we use it mainly for vacation and small trips around town-- and now will have that in under 3months on this one!

1) HOWEVER, they have 2 take the license plates and am concerned. I went 2 CA DMV and they said that until I have proof of purchase that I don't do any paperwork. Do I have to do anything about the other states I am passing thru... Maybe I am overthinking this.


2) hope 2 use TM instead of Motels as I want 2 get off for quick stop (normally I wouldn't consider this, but the timeframe that he has is extremely limited and need 2 get him home quickly), I know that CA rest stops allow up 2 8 hrs-- couldn't find info on AZ or NM !

Any ideas? I thought I had a few weeks but everything changed when seller was told he might have cancer and can't meet us as will have operation next week so now I have to go to TX--son's friend is willing 2 go with me to but don't want anything 2 go wrong as we have limited time to get back (he's leaving his wife and 2 little children to help me.)
Nance
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Old 10-23-2009, 03:34 PM   #2
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Originally Posted by joe&Nance View Post
1) I found a TM in TX that appears to be a good deal and put down a deposit. I asked him all the ?'s I found on the forum --seller appears 2 answer all ?'s honestly and has told me the defects and what he is fixing b4 I arrive. I have gotten VIN and call the TX DMV and verified that he has clear title on it, nothing about accidents with it. HOWEVER, they have 2 take the license plates and am concerned. I went 2 CA DMV and they said that until I have proof of purchase that I don't do any paperwork. Do I have to do anything about the other states I am passing thru... Maybe I am overthinking this.
A possible solution to your 1st question:

Can you talk the seller into leaving the plates on the trailer during your travels?? Give him a check for the TM, but get a notorized statement that he will send you the signed title when he recieves his plates back. You are driving his trailer across country which is legal....you can tow anybody's trailer as long as you have permission and a registration. If you have an accident along the way, then it is your baby......so you might want to get collision insurance if you can. The seller has already gotten his money, so he won't care of the condition when he signs the title. If the states that you are traveling through are similar to Virginia (my residence), then the liability on the trailer is included with the tow vehicle, so that shouldn't be a problem. Check with the states to make sure that the liability on a trailer is under the tow vehicle insurance.

I sold my pop-up to a guy that lived a distance away from me. I signed the title over to him, but left my plates on the trailer. If he got stopped, then the registration would show my ownership, since the title wasn't processed yet. He was perfectly legal pulling my trailer, but maybe not as much so if the police viewed the title........which he would not have offerd to show. I got my plates in the mail several days after we made the deal.

Another idea if you have a tow vehicle strong enough, is to rent or borrow a flat bed trailer stout enough to carry the TM.........no tag problem that way.......the tags are already on the flatbed. Might be a little of a challenge getting it on and off the trailer, and secureing it, though.
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Old 10-23-2009, 03:59 PM   #3
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Originally Posted by mtnguy View Post
Can you talk the seller into leaving the plates on the trailer during your travels??
I personally would not leave with the TM without the title, regardless of whether or not you have plates. If you ever had a problem getting it from him, you'd have a major problem. That may because he's being difficult, he lost it, his dog ate it, or maybe he's dead by the time you get home. Either way, now you have to get the title somehow.

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Originally Posted by mtnguy View Post
The seller has already gotten his money, so he won't care of the condition when he signs the title.
That may be true, but if you get in an accident, whoever you hit is going to sue the driver (you) and the owner (the seller). If I were the seller, I would not agree to let you leave without signing and giving you the title and a bill of sale to release me of liability. Basically, when you leave, it is no longer my problem.

When I bought mine from a private party, he just kept the plates on it and I towed it home like that. I don't think that makes it any more legal in this situation than towing without any plates at all, it just makes you less likely to get stopped.

If you think about it, the only purpose of license plates is to identify the owner of that vehicle. If you drive without any tags at all and you were ever stopped, you could simply show the officer your recently signed bill of sale, and I bet that would be the end of it. That's essentially what happens in somes states, including CA, when you buy a new car. You get one of those lame dealer advertisement fake plates on the back, and a temporary registration slip taped to your windshield. You don't get metal license plates for weeks, or even months, after purchase.

That's what I would do.

As mtnguy states, be sure you have insurance on the TM before you go pick it up. They may require inspection within 14 days or something, but will insure it in the meantime.

Dave
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Old 10-23-2009, 04:55 PM   #4
joe&Nance
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Default insurance

OH, yes, i did the insurance already, comp and collision... All paid 4.. Silly me. Thanks for pointing that out, it was very stupid of me not to include that in my post... Price wasn't bad at all, only $88 for the year with a $100 deductable. And yes, in CA the liability was with the TV... Now, hopefully I can sell my coleman pup quickly and stop paying insurance for that one 2.

Unfortunately, TV is not able 2 tow both, but that was a great suggestion!

I also taked to TX DMV regarding plates this AM--they were emphatic that I had 2 leave plates with seller.
I got the paperwork necessary 4 CA DMV and will have him fill that out also (in addition to pink slip, a copy of a letter of sale that I have already drafted.) The seller is old school--know he won't leave plates on if DMV says no, so at least I will make certain that have sufficient documentation.


Thanks for the input on the title. As for me, I wouldn't feel comfortable leaving the state without the title, I agree 2 far to travel in case of any issues. At least I got the license plates in the mail the other day for the truck! That would have really been a red flag just asking 2 be pulled over!!
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Old 10-23-2009, 06:02 PM   #5
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As long as you have a bill of sale with you all states will allow you to transport back to your home state without plates (some you may need to apply for temporary plates for transport), and you may get stopped anyway and will have to explain yourself. Your state may also have a title correction form, get one of those as well and have the seller sign it just in case their was an unnoticed error on the original title. Some states like Minnesota the plates are part of the vehicle and need to stay with it other states like Wisconsin the plates are the owners and can be transferred to another vehicle of the same class...if not they need be destroyed or returned to the state. We bought a TM from a private seller in CO last August - had some (very minor) title issues, but as long as you are following the laws of your home state you should be ok.
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Old 10-23-2009, 06:07 PM   #6
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Hey Joe and Nance,

We fairly recently did what you are doing, kind of in reverse. We picked up our TM in California and brought it back to the Denver area. So much to tell ya . . .

I actually think you're better off buying private. We went with a dealer in CA and paid sales tax there and then . . . oh my that is another story. I think buying private that you will have a more simple path when you register in CA. Make sure you ask in advance in CA about sales tax when you register there. It could be a really big chunk of change. We paid $1500 CA sales tax. Make sure you have a bill of sale with the cost spelled out in big bold letters.

We were able to leave CA with plates but should have gotten temp plates in CO before we left here (you don't know what you don't know).

Rest stops in NM and AZ. We stayed in our TM on our trip home and I would STRONGLY suggest you don't even remotely consider rest stops. We lived in AZ before we moved here and are very familiar with the route you will take across NM and AZ. The rest stops are not good. Really, not good. I think you'll be very grateful if you plan ahead for hookups. I can't help much east of Albuquerque but can give you some ideas west of there.

You aren't going to be sure what shape the batteries are in most likely. You aren't going to know what you are doing. There is a terrific user guide on this site that I strongly suggest you download and have with you.

It was a bumpy road for us but our TM is in our garage with CO plates on it now and we very rarely look in the rear view mirror at how that came to be.

Good luck! Malinda
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Old 10-23-2009, 07:07 PM   #7
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http://www.txdot.gov/business/motor_.../temporary.htm

When we bought our trailer in Oregon the dealer had a temporary permit ready for us...perhaps this is what you can get from Texas.

You have (I think) 30 days to register in CA, and you will have to pay sales tax and the registration fee. TM's are not like smaller tent trailers that get a PTI (unless you're lucky & the DMV you go to gives you one, it's happened before) so you have to pay an annual licensing fee.

Upon further reading, you may be able to get one from California before you leave...

http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/reg_hdbk_pdf/ch25.pdf

Their rules are so complex, I'd call them.
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Old 10-23-2009, 07:40 PM   #8
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Upon further thought, whatever you choose to do, make sure that it doesn't subject you to sales tax in that state (except CA, because you can't get out of that).

Oh yes, and when you register your trailer in CA, you will have to bring it to the DMV and show them the registration information on the trailer itself, at least that's what we had to do when we registered ours.

I just checked the CA DMV site and it says you only have 20 days to register (or pay the fees): http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/brochures/howto/htvr9.htm
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Old 10-23-2009, 07:51 PM   #9
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B & D are giving you sage advice. I'm speaking from experience.
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Old 10-23-2009, 08:23 PM   #10
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We had a permit, but we also had the dealer's special license plate insert (like the ones you get on a new or used car before you get the CA plates) so it was suggestive of the fact that we'd just purchased it and probably on the way home.

Is it possible & legal to ask a dealer for one of those? It might help you get home "under the radar"...
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