Ok, here's the deal. I'm looking to buy a car that came from Georgia. Apparently Georgia doesn't issue titles for older vehicle (this is a 64). The guy says he has a notorized bill of sale. Made out to who, I don't know cause I have not seen it yet. I don't want to go there till I got all my ducks in a row. So, fellow Texans , how much of a PITA is it to get a title? Anybody out there done this? I figured that it would be easier to ask y'all then call the man. I already went through one title nightmare, and it cost me about a grand to straighten out. Oh yeah, the "I can get a title for any car guy" couldn't even do it. IN FACT, he got a jiggy title for the person that sold it to the person, that sold it to the person ,that I bought it from.
You can get a bonded title (have to I believe) on GA cars. Cost is a bit more, but not much, than regular titling. If in X years, no issues, converts to blue title. check out dps web site. Good info there
I would run this past a supervisor at the courthouse then I would call the local Georgia courthouse and verify the story he's giving you about the bill of sale. I'd be very careful on this one, it's hard enough to get a Texas car regisitered and titled properly let alone an out of state car. I think the rules change on out of state cars. Do some homework before you buy it.
A lady at my work bought a 1948 Plymouth from Georgia and she got the same story. So, what I'm saying is that the "we don't have titles on old cars" story sounds true. However, I don't know the steps she took to title it. I'm not sure she even brought her paperwork to the courthouse yet.
We are working on my sisters car title problems now. you have to get a surety bond for 3 years. the cost of that depends on the cost of the amount you will pay taxes on. For a $5500 bond it was $73 for the 3 years. State farm insurance did ours. When she took the car up there they used NADA value, which is rediculous. Then they had her get an appraisal from a DEALER with a texas dealer number. Luckily we had a friend dealer. Then they said the bond has to be for 1.5 times the amount of the appraisal. So now we will have to get the bond amount increased. We are going back today to turn in the new bond and appraisal.. I'll update when I get back. One guy told me a trick to get the "bonded" part removed from the title.. you "lose" the title and get a replacement and the replacements don't have it on there, but I've never tried so who knows.
Also, let me add, rather than edit... GA does not issue titles on old cars. Bill of sale only. To get the car titled and registered is two different things. You will need the (old green sheet) inspection certification on first time Texas registered cars. Make sure to tell the inspection station guy that you need this form before he inspects it. Inspection will be based upon year of manufacture, basically the safety inspection. Once you have the inspection sheet, you take it, your bill of sale, old title (not for the GA car) to the DPS office.
Go to the county (Texas)title place and they will give you a written procedure you have to go thru. Its got a lot of hoops to jump thru but doen't sound too bad if you get everything lined up beforehand. Been told its easier i you go to the district Tdot office and walk it thru.Get a notarized bill of sale from and anything else you can like when it was registered last, tag no. etc..Having said all this I wound up finding the last owner after 20 years and he helped me get a duplicate title so didn't have to do all that.Good luck.
I can attest after living there in the past that Georgia and Alabama do not issue titles for older cars. You can walk in the DMV there with a bill of sale on a napkin and they'll pretty much take it on a pre 1970 car. That was about 5 years ago. Dont now what Texas can do with a napkin from Georgia however.
There's no paperwork for old cars in Georgia at all? Most of the states I've seen that didn't have titles had transferable registrations. New York for example. *ahem*.....my car had a transferable registration from NY state. Took it down to the tax office...asked for a title only. They gave me two forms to fill out. Filled them out, gave them the New York registration paper and a check. They said I'd have a Texas title in 2-3 weeks. It's been about 2 weeks so I'm still checking the mailbox every day. Should show up soon.
Do you remember what form numbers they were? I'm in the same boat and was on hold today for 45 minutes! I gave up. I'd hate to stand in line all morning, just to get 2 forms. If you know the numbers, I can print them off the TDOT website and get them filled out before I go there. Thanks in advance.
No idea what forms....I walked into the place when they opened, was the first one in line....told the lady what I needed to do and she handed them to me. Sat down and filled them out, they called my number and finished up. I was in an out of there in about 15 minutes.
a little late but still good...........ala, nev seem easiest http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=car+title+service&btnG=Google+Search&aq=f
I think it depends on what county you live in, not that the law is different. That is why you should go to a regional office like the one in Waco, and they will tell you exactly what you need. Each county seems to interpret the law "their" way.Then when you go to your local courthouse you have a little leverage because you know what the law is. If they question you just have them call the clerk at the office you went to first.
This is true . My tax office I go to lets a lot of stuff slide but I have heard bad storys about Waco and Canton .
Has anyone done this in Houston with an out of state registration card? If so, did you go to the DMV or the tax office? In Houston, because of volume, they may do all vehicle titles at the DMV. I'll try and sit on the phone today with the DMV, but I'm at work and it's hard to stay on hold for an hour!
Thanks for all the advice guys. I'm in Austin DPS is here. I'm going have a look at the car this weekend. By the way, what is the deal with those states not issuing titles for pre-whatever cars? They can't count back that far?
Doesn't matter what office you go to, if you talk to ten people, you'll get ten different answers! Leave yourself an out so that when you don't hear what you want you can come back later and talk to another lost soul. And this ain't no bull,,,,,,,,,,,,
Just go to Lawrenceautotitle.com. These folks are by far the best in the business and can get you a bonded title no matter what county you are in if you a in Texas.
Simpler times and simpler government...now we have to jump through hoops of fire to "prove" we own a piece of personal property. Not only that, but we also must buy that property from someone who has already jumped through the hoops (and PAID the taxes). It's illegal to buy or sell a motor vehicle in Texas without a title already. It's probably not going to be too far off in the future that we're going to have to make all transfers through a state-licensed (and taxed) dealership.
I bought a Model A that came from Georgia several years ago. I had a notorized bill of sale from the Georgia owner to the seller and a notorized bill of sale from the seller to me, an inspection certificate, a pencil tracing of the motor number that matched the bills of sale. They told me I needed a Georgia license receipt. When I called the courthouse in Geogia, I was told that a year earlier the old courthouse burned and all records were lost. I went back to the courthouse and I was told that I would have to schedule a hearing with DNV to determine if I had enough for proof of ownership. I waited a few months and went back to the couthouse during lunch when all of the old timers were gone. I picked the youngest person working and laid out all of the same documentation that had been turned down before. The young lady checked it over, issued me a title and license plates, and I got the hell out of there before the bosses returned. That was over 20 years ago and I never heard a word about it.
Well here's my update and basically a rundown of what you have to do to get a bonded title.. My sister and I went to turn in the appraisal and other paper work, and it was accepted, so now we are told once we get the bond for the right amount the local tax office will give her a title. yay. Here's what it took to get to this stage.. Visit the DMV office. Tell them you need the paperwork to apply for a bonded title. They will give you several things including a statement of fact, DMV appraisal form, and at least one other (maybe application for title or something like that) Fill out all the forms. get an Appraisal from a dealer, they must have a current dealer number. it goes on one of the forms. Take all the forms and appraisal back to the DMV and they will approve it or not. The lady will then type up a letter saying that it has been approved and give it to you with a checklist and a statement of how much the bond will need to be for. Get a surety bond. Sometimes your insurance co. will do it or a bond company. It needs to be 1.5 times the amount it was appraised for, but she will tell you that. Take the bond, approval paperwork, insurance card, and inspection to the local tax office and get a title. Now one thing that is not clear yet is if we have to get a green slip from the inspection (same type you get for out of state transfers). We are going to try it without first and see what happens.
My title showed up today. New clear Texas title with my name on it for a '31 Ford. I paid $250 for the NY reg. a few years ago. Looks like it was well worth it today.
I know what you mean . I have an extra 30 roadster , clean Texas paper work , in my name. I may have to sell ..
Yep registration transfer. I did an Arkansas just recently in Ft. Bend county. took a little work, and a lot of educating. But know the rules/laws before you go in there. Those gals dont mess with or see old stuff very often so be on your game!
What J Cougar said...these folks will walk you through the process and hook you up with a bonding company. You get a bonded title, which is negotiable, and you can apply for a clear title three (I believe) years later. I did this with a bill of sale and these folks' paperwork, and the lady in the tax office opened up her little black notebook and went down the list and I had everything. <HR style="COLOR: #999999" SIZE=1> <!-- / icon and title --><!-- message --> Call Lawrence Auto Title in Taylor. www.lawrenceautotitle.com
I just had a thought. How is it that out of over 40,000 members, NO ONE here either works for the DMV or has a friend that does? It sure as heck would be good to have someone with knowledge give us some info on how to avoid sweating something that should be easy. Or, do we just make it seem hard? Just a thought.
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