How to Get it Titled

[timma11]

While trying to figure out how to title my bike and looking through all the DOT forms my state has, I gave up and decided to part out the bike. Sadly, right after I made that decision, the state FINALLY got back to me. In order to help prevent others who have bought a bike out of state having to part them out because of DOT issues, I thought it a good idea (and Roady agreed )that we have a How To Get It Titled section.

[timma11]

This bike was bought from a person going through a divorce, moving, and whose husband was in jail. I tried to get in touch with her after some time waiting for her to get her shtuff together and never got a response. To Massachusetts, this was an abandoned vehicle.

This the procedure to register/title an abandoned vehicle.

1. Make a notarized affidavit of fact stating how you acquired the
vehicle.

2. Send a certified letter to the previous owner's last known address
and save the envelope when it is returned to you by the post office.

3. Obtain a visual inspection of the vehicle identification number. The
form is located here: http://www.mass.gov/rmv/forms/20170.pdf

[MarcaineArt]

Excellent idea. In NH its not as hard as long as you get an old registration with the bike. Even if the reg is 20 years old. Without it though you have to get an inspection by the police or state troopers to verufy the VIN

[timma11]

this part was relitively painless. except for the 2 hour wait at the registry...

to get a title in massachusetts from a bike bought in new hampshire

you need
a bill of sale
rmv1 form (dont forget the insurance stamp if your going to register it. not needed for just a title)
a form from a new hampshire police officer who has inspected the vin number.

simple

massachusetts currently offers a nice little program where they will increase the fee charged for the title the longer you wait to get it titled. so it would benefit you to not wait until the restoration is done before switching the title. another thing is that on some vehicles, they go by some magical and ridiculous book value to determine the sales tax charged. NOT by what the bill of sale states. TIP: get on the dmv persons good side right away and they may not look up the value because of the age of the bike.

tim

[Whiskerfish]

In Virginia you are out of luck if it is from out of State. They will not accept anything except a complete clear title. If it is from in-State I think they may do a VIN Search and work with you. I tried for several Months a few years back and ended up being forced to do a frame swap. This was during the period when Broadway Title and the others were shut down to adapt to the new laws. I sent them a check and copies of all the paperwork and they sent it back with a nice letter that basically said sorry for you!!

The point of this is to make damn sure you know the procedures for Your State before buying anything without clear paper. And do not trust Joe Blow. Make sure to do your own research with DMV. I got all kinds of stories about Mechanics titles and salvaged titles and Bonded titles and all kinds of crap. Basically Virginia DMV said Go away! Over the Months I tried several different DMV Clerks and Supervisors before I gave up and swapped the Frame.

[mildhog]

Whiskerfish, have you submitted a form VSA-12? It's an affidavit in lieu of title certificate. According to DMV website:
"Use this form to file an affidavit with DMV certifying that the certificate of title is not in the applicant's possession when registering a motor vehicle, trailer or semi-trailer without a certificate of title." http://www.dmv.state.va.us/webdoc/pdf/vsa12.pdf

Whenever I get around to it, I'm going to try this to get a title on my spare frame.

[Whiskerfish]

That looks like something new!! I also have a 90% spare that I have been using for several years basically as a rolling engine test stand. Maybe later in the summer I will dig out the bill of sale and try this. When I tried before it was in 07 maybe?

[heraldhamster]

when buying any vehicle I highly advise getting a B.O.S. (bill of sale). especially if you can't or don't get a title with the sale. OR if they have the title but can't find it and never return your calls after the "sale".

what timma described for an abandoned vehicle above is very similar in WA state. I've done it a couple of times for other stuff than motorcycles. once done you have a real, actual non-limited title. not a salvage or anything else. I know it may differ by state. and someone mentioned at some point that there are agencies in, I think, Nevada that will re-title a lost title or abandoned title vehicle for you. then you can transfer it to wherever you live.

I remember being told that to transfer a motorcycle title from another state to WA I had to take it to the Highway Patrol office and get it inspected. even with a valid title from where I was moving.


on top of all that and I'm not advocating breaking the law, but if you can negotiate with the seller to refer to the vehicle as being "gifted" to you in the bill of sale, you can save some taxes in most states. for those who might be willing to do something slightly illegal.
also, and I don't advocate this, but you can sometimes, depending on the state, write up your own bill of sale, sign a false name on it as the seller. or basically forge a sellers signature...

disclaimer: the above mentioned practices are strictly for educational and entertainment purposes only. I do not recommend anyone doing this for transfer of a vehicle title. furthermore I am not advocating breaking the law for reasons of tax evasion.

[evilratwing]

What if the vehicle was imported by somebody in the military long ago and all of the paperwork is missing, as well as the VIN being 3 digits too short?

A friend and riding buddy of mine has a '96 Suzuki DRZ 250 (Djebel) and has had zero luck getting it PA titled. Any advice???

[CYBORG]

every state has different rules. i have lived in many states, and have had to play the DOT games many times. out of state can be hard, but not as hard as from out of the country. but it all can be done, if you stick with it.

[VintageGW's]

I faced a problem with a Wing title not having the correct VIN and asked the seller to correct it. They corrected by using a bill of sale and registering in Vermont. After taxes were paid, title was issued and problem solved, though it required a few months of waiting. The link here is to the Vermont instructions. Worked for me!
http://dmv.vermont.gov/registrations/drivers/new

[CYBORG]

that is often the easiest solution. find a NGW member in the state the title comes from to get a clear title in your name, and then transfer it to your state

[tomk1960]

Living in Massachusetts and having 6 bikes registered, I have my share of title stories. It's unlikely that you'll get an RMV employee NOT to look up book value, since they're required to. What amazes me is that the state is legally allowed to charge a sales tax based on value and not the price actually paid. If you buy a new LED TV on sale, the sales tax is based on the sale price, right? How the RMV is able to get around that is beyond me.

Another titling trick that I recently learned is to register the bike as an off-road motorcycle. A title or previous registration isn't needed and they'll charge the sales tax at that time. Let a couple months go by and then go to the RMV with the off-road paperwork, proof of sales tax payment and tell them that you want to title and register the bike for regular use. This usually works as it did for a friend of mine.

A few years ago I bought an old bike from the PO in NH. She had the old registration, so that, along with a bill of sale was all I needed to title and register the bike. No VIN verification was needed.

Titles for vehicles older than 15 years old is ridiculous. It's all for revenue generation and nothing more.

[Toehead]

A tip for old barn finds in MA. I have done this several times.

problem: You have an old bike that doesn't have a title and want to register it.
1) make sure the bike isnt' stolen. In my case, it was a barn find that had NEVER had title. So many good bikes are in this sorry purgatory in MA.

2) Contact a buddy who lives in NH.

3) "sell" him the bike with a bill of sale.

4) Have him obtain a temporary registration for the bike.

5) he "sells" the bike back to you, giving a bill of sale, and the temporary registration.


6) You can now title the bike normally in MA. Please be advised that I have been turned down once for using the temporary registration (they wanted a full registration) but I just went again the next day and they passed me through.

[CYBORG]

i think going back the next day, is good advise. alot of workers who don't do it every day, don't understand the rules in their state, if you are looking for something a little out side their comfort zone. some times it helps if you know the law in your state as it applies to what you are trying to do. quoting the regulation can help clear things up