Owner does not have Title in Hands

[AZBoatDreamer]

Im planning on Purchasing a Boat but the Owner doesn't have the Title.

What shall I do???

How do I verify this person is the owner of the boat.

The Owner said he will provide me the title at a later date.

 

[tractoman]

Re: Owner does not have Title in Hands

Not sure about your state. I would get bill of sale and not pay in full until title is handed over if you are taking the boat. If they are legit they shouldn't mind. Or strike a deal contingent on the title being available. If it's lost they can get a duplicate. Give em a deposit and get a bill of sale and/or receipt.

 

[Seon]

Re: Owner does not have Title in Hands

I just bought a boat in AZ and they register their boats with Fish and Game, not DMV. You can call F&G with the VIN and verify if the seller actually owns the boat.

 

[mike343]

Re: Owner does not have Title in Hands

If the boat has a state registration number, the title should be traceable.

 

[AZBoatDreamer]

Re: Owner does not have Title in Hands

Thank you for the comments.

Im just trying to protect myself and my money.

Handing over a chunk of CASH is going to be hard.

 

[AZBoatDreamer]

Re: Owner does not have Title in Hands

BTW the Boat is Registered in CA and I need to register it in
az.

 

[d_higgs29]

Re: Owner does not have Title in Hands

In many states you do not need a title for the boat but you do for the trailer. I ran into this problem a couple of years ago and all I needed was a bill of sale and I was able to get a title.

 

[tractoman]

Re: Owner does not have Title in Hands

In CA there will be title for the boat and trailer and they are separate. For $10the seller can get a duplicate title. I just transferred my boat from Nevada to CA, and I had to register and title both. Nevada also titles both. What is required in AZ? That's what you'll need. Sometime a BOS is enough.

 

[fishrdan]

Re: Owner does not have Title in Hands

If AZ is like NV... I would have them go down to the DFG office with me and complete all the paperwork at 1 time, duplicate title and transfer of title at the same time. I've called the NV DFG office before and asked if boat NV-XXXX was owned by Mr Soandso and they were able to verify this info.

Do they have the trailer title? Same deal there, make them go to the DMV office with you to transfer ownership if they don't have the title.

I wouldn't give them cash in the hopes the come up with a title though, seems like you would be setting yourself up for problems. And if you had to go to the DFG and DMV to complete the transaction, I'd pay 75% when the boat was transferred and 25% when the trailer was transferred, just in case there are problems.....

 

[houla7033]

Re: Owner does not have Title in Hands

If you give him cash without the title in hand you are asking for trouble. Would not do it no way no how...

 

[bob johnson]

Re: Owner does not have Title in Hands

is the boat at least registered in the sellers name???


is the registration current?

what does the seller say about the title and whos name it is in if other than his??


did he or does he have an insurance policy on the boat that you could look at for more verification?

bob

 

[tractoman]

Re: Owner does not have Title in Hands

Call the DMV in CA and see if they can tell you anything. You'll want to have the CF number and the Vin of the trailer or license plate mumber.

 

[macsfriended]

Re: Owner does not have Title in Hands

Since your desired boat has CA numbers, get on the internet and find the appropriate CA dept. Then telephone them and verify that CA issues titles for boats (and trailers?) (They might even tell you who is the current recorded owner.) Then keep your money until the seller has a proper title (in his name) with any and all liens thereon released.

Any shortcuts or "promises" are guaranteed to be big trouble and lost money to you. Your seller may be just empty headed or possibly a thief with a line of B.S.

 

[superpop]

Re: Owner does not have Title in Hands

I would not hand over any cash without a title transfer of both the Boat and Trailer. Who knows otherwise. The owner could owe a bank or credit union way more than the selling price and then just take off with your money. Tell the owner that you would like to meet at your bank or his bank and have the bill of sale notarized and if possible have the owner sign over the title once the cash has been exchanged. Anything else is a gamble.

 

[Al Kungel]

Re: Owner does not have Title in Hands

"The Owner said he will provide me the title at a later date."

That is your clue! He wants your money upfront and expects you to wait for the title - tell him no way.

Smells fishy to me.

 

[pine island fred]

Re: Owner does not have Title in Hands

Once you give him the money you will never see the title. Bank might have a lien on the title and his intentions are to pay it off with the money you give him which he will never do.
If he really wanted to do a legitimate sale, he would have the title. How much are we talking about? FRED

 

[timmyjoebob]

Re: Owner does not have Title in Hands

As Tractoman said, the seller can go get a duplicate title with very little money and a little of his/her time. If they balk at this, that's a BIG, BRIGHT red flag.

They should be willing to do this before any money's been exchanged. They'd have to do it for any buyer anyway.

 

[hshift]

Re: Owner does not have Title in Hands

This screams out scam! You would think that anyone wanting to sell a boat legitimately would have all the needed paperwork. This ranks just behind "it's an easy fix" as sales B.S. Here in TN, I bought a 94 Jeep. Kid I bought it from had to go to DMV to get a title. Took a grand total of five days to get it sent, and we completed the sale at that time. Do not hand over any cash until the paperwork is in order.

 

[AZBoatDreamer]

Re: Owner does not have Title in Hands

OK here is more details.

The boat is located in KingMan AZ but Registered in CA. Kingman is about 200 + miles from Gilbert AZ where I live. The owner Said he will drive the boat down to me from Kingman because he was coming down to my area for business reasons.

He has provided me several Pictures and very discriptive emails about the boat. We have been exchanging emails for a week now. He is waiting on the Title to arrive in the Mail. From the looks of it he will not have the title ready at the time of sale. The money we are talking about is around 7K.

I'm Nervous about the title part. The Seller sounds truthful. I guess if he is going to drive the boat to my location he is for real.

Thanks for all your help.

 

[ziggy]

Re: Owner does not have Title in Hands

The Seller sounds truthful.

one of the main rules i think of when buying is to not believe anything the seller says. they all sound truthful.

make it a normal sale. you give the money up, he gives up the title. no title, no sale...