Re: Boat History with HIN
When I read the earlier posts, what occurred to me that seperates this post from the hundreds of "no title" posts was that he got it from an auction. Auctions are often but not always a legal sale process that is the exception to the chain of title requirements. As we learned here, the auction has to be done correctly and it is often technical, expensive, time consuming and confusing (I've done boat auctions for a marina). Miss one step or misplace one scrap of paper and it's a wasted effort. The take away point is to use that auction process, and don't take the boat unless it was done right.
The auction process, done correctly, is also the way to transfer a boat without a title; it's often available for boats abandoned on your property. No, you can't buy one, drag it to your yard, and claim it was abandoned. But if someone is selling a boat without a title that was left on his property, even by his relative or someone who died, you as the buyer can walk him through the process and get the boat with a new title.
EVERY STATE HAS ITS OWN PROCESS. There is NEVER a reason to learn the details from another state. You can NEVER assume that your state will let you end up with a title. You have to FOCUS on your own state's process and none other.
Oh, and here's the wildcard: as you deal with various officials in the process, from the clerk at the registration counter to the sheriff, you will get different answers about what is required, often regardless of what the law/regs clearly state, and you have no choice but to do it their way, even if wrong. They'll tell you on the phone what you need and then the person at the desk will say you don't have what you need. They run on unwritten rules. So be ready for anything!
