No registration please HELP!

[BeerBrewer]

I just learned that the current owner of a boat I'm considering (1979 Grady White) buying does not have the title for it. He bought the boat and trailer at a great price from someone he knows. He bought it because he needed the trailer and doesn't want the boat. He was planning to sell off the parts and crush the hull. He offered me the boat, for next to nothing. The Hull is great shape and all the parts are there. It would be a sin to crush it and I love a project!

The boat originally came from RI and I think the boat had 3 owners, but only the first registered it. I live in NY State and I am wondering if I should take this boat? Will I be able to register it? Does anyone have any ideas? I don't want to invest any money, if I can't register it.

Your help is appreciated!

 

[SnowHunter]

Re: No registration please HELP!

Call your local boat registration hotline. They should be able to tell you what the process is.

 

[geedubcpa]

Re: No registration please HELP!

Never done this myself in ohio - but I have heard you can register it as a homemade boat.

 

[jonesg]

Re: No registration please HELP!

I had to do that, the registry in MA told me to get a copy of the sellers drivers license, front and back.
I emailed the seller ( I had already bought the boat) and he just ignored me.
I emailed several times, no response.
I sent him a registered letter, return receipt requested and he signed for it.
I took that receipt with his signature and they accepted it, issued me a new title.
The guy at the registry couldn't figure out why the seller wouldn't send me a copy of his drivers license, fear makes little boys of men.

They will also accept the previous registration and bill of sale, but your seller didn't register it sooooo.... Ask him for the proof BEFORE taking it.

Grady is a great hull, well worth the work. Nice find.

 

[CATransplant]

Re: No registration please HELP!

I suggest that you simply walk away. Another boat will soon appear. No title, no sale. That's my rule.

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: No registration please HELP!

It can be done; it will be a project. CAT's advice to walk away is good if you want to get on the water in the next 6 weeks and you have lots of time to deal with it. But isn't that the same with a transom rebuild, repower, or other projects?

 

[SnowHunter]

Re: No registration please HELP!

A title isn't always needed. As is here in Georgia, no title is needed to register the boat, just a notarized bill of sale.

 

[eavega]

Re: No registration please HELP!

A title isn't always needed. As is here in Georgia, no title is needed to register the boat, just a notarized bill of sale.

Except that the notarized bill of sale has to come from the last registered owner of the boat. I just got caught in that mess with a hull I bought from a salvage yard. They provided me a bill of sale, but GA DNR refused it as proof of purchase since the salvage yard had no proof of ownership. Luckily enough I was able to contact the last owner of record who just provided me a bill of sale from him to me.
Moral of the story, if you feel like jumping through the right hoops, you can get a boat properly registered/titled.

-E

 

[blairjbyrd]

Re: No registration please HELP!

it could be done. First i would start by buying some headache medicine then call your DMV (other wise known as hell) and find out what you need to register the boat. You will prob have to call several times and will get several different asnswers. See that headache medicine is going to be a good investment

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: No registration please HELP!

it's the different answers part that kills me.

 

[SnowHunter]

Re: No registration please HELP!

Except that the notarized bill of sale has to come from the last registered owner of the boat. I just got caught in that mess with a hull I bought from a salvage yard. They provided me a bill of sale, but GA DNR refused it as proof of purchase since the salvage yard had no proof of ownership. Luckily enough I was able to contact the last owner of record who just provided me a bill of sale from him to me.
Moral of the story, if you feel like jumping through the right hoops, you can get a boat properly registered/titled.

-E

Hmm, I guess I did get lucky then, my boat doesn't identify in the system at all. Yes, this whole process IS a pain in the pettard...but depending on situations, it could be worth it. Glad yall were able to get it figured out!



Bubba is right...it all depends on each state, and it varies widely from state to state....

 

[MyViewGS]

Re: No registration please HELP!

WALK AWAY !!!
Seriously, it sounds like a nice find, BUT, there are many more out there without all the hassles. Im still kicking myself for buying my current "project" .... something I swore I'd NEVER do again. So now I spend all my spare time working on my boat instead of getting on the water.

MyViewGS