How to get a title

[Novadiecast]

I have found a car 69 Nova 396-375, 4 speed, Bucket seat car. No title owned by a police officer that has run the vin and it is clear. Car still has the plates on it from the previous owner and he sent a registered letter to the address and it came back non-deliverable. Car is complete and no way a parts car. Car can be driven home. He is giving up on it and selling it. I have an appointment to see it this weekend and will probably buy it. How can I get a title for such a car. There has to be a way to do it????

[SuperNovaSS]

There are plenty of title companies that should be able to help. In CA you can take it in and have it inspected and get a new title. In other states it can be much harder. In hawaii it is near impossible/impossible.


Jason

[Smokey]

Take it to the state and have in inspected and done. It takes us 2-3 visits at the inspections office here in MN to get it done.

Other thing that the State of MN does is let the tow yards have a slip of paper that after 30 days of impound, they can file for a new title in their name.

[acelr8]

Broadway title and International title have worked in the past for me.Jeff

[marxjunk]

laws have changed drastically since the first of the year....alot of fraud and rebodied cars has changed the way most can do it...The comon guys...broadway ,interstate etc have doubled the price and have alot of rules that make it harder dailey, some states (wisconsin and others) wont recognize Broadway anymore....plus its 500 bux

the title man in New York... DAN... is the best guy i ever talked to and done business with,and its recoginzed by every state 585 232 3217 and its 275


all that being said, if you had a cop run the numbers, you should just pick up the phone call the highway patrol, have them inspect it give you the affidavit its clean with no wants/warrants/leans, file the paper work. if you have the returned paper work, youve done all the basic...why mess with anything else...why hasnt the POLICE OFFICER already done it? he can do the paper work in 3 or 4 days and its done...

[wheelhop]

I'm curious too, why hasn't the police officer who owns the car done this already? Sounds like a red flag to me>

[Novadiecast]

Well I can tell you this. This is only the info I have been told. I have not seen the car in person or talked to the owner just the next door neighbor who knows cars. So I trust his info on the car. I think the police officer is stuck and does not know where to turn for the title. He is a county officer. I think the only thing he did was try to contact the registered owner from the plates that are on the car. The car is in Northern Indiana and the plates are from Arkansas as I am told. So that could make it a little tougher.

[snydes]

How about Broadway Title Co.?? I guy I know had success with them.

[njsteve]

The officer probably hasn't done the paperwork himself because it's technically a violation of the NCIC criminal database guidelines to do a check on a vehicle for personal reasons (since he owns it). If he files paperwork showing he did that, he could lose his job.

[Rixls6]

Try your car insurance company. I had them get me a bonded title a few years ago on a car I bought that had a lost title. Cost $100
This was in Illinois, for a car I bought out of Wisconsin.

[bpodner]

I would still have the numbers ran again, nothing against the guys in blue, but there are cops that aren't "above the board". Plus what njsteve said, ethical dilemma, he already broke the rules by running the numbers for himself, just saying. That should be the red flag...

[BARN FIND]

Broadway Title requires a notarized bill of Sale from the OWNER of the car, so if the Officer is not the owner then you can not use that service.

[x Baldwin Motion]

"He is giving up on it and selling it"

Sorry, that's a MAJOR red flag. I bought a vehicle from out of state with no paper, it is not impossible to get it registered if it has been purchased/transfered legally. My seller had lost paper from previous owner who was unreachable, out of the country. It took about four weeks and a couple of Notarized letters but I got it done.

Make sure you get a paper trail, even if they are hand written signed notes.

[rpoz11]

[ QUOTE ]
How about Broadway Title Co.?? I guy I know had success with them.

[/ QUOTE ]

I used Broadway; it was simple and easy.

My car had no paperwork other than a bill of sale from the guy who found it and sold it to me.

All I need to do is complete the DMV paperwork and a visual of my VIN and I can obtain a clear title.

[elcamino72]

My recommendation is always to petition the court for an order declaring you the sole rightful, legal owner of the vehicle.

This is extremely important when dealing with these desirable older vehicles. Imagine this scenario ... you buy the car, the car is desirable, you restore the car and now you are promoting the car, showing the car and possibly even looking to sell the car. The value of the car is very high because of what it is and it's getting a lot of magazine coverage. Next thing you know, you get a letter from an insurance company saying that they paid a claim on that car and that it was sent for salvage or you get a call from a former owner or a former owner's heirs that they have legal rights to the car and will be suing you to enforce those rights because they never sold the car (you can think of many reasons, ex-wife sold the car with no title, the old owner left it at a service station and "forgot" about it, etc, etc.) There could also be open encumbrances on the title such as a bank or finance company that never got paid off. The car may have been a leased car or owned by a corporate entity which was never properly dissolved and which owes taxes and if it comes out that you are now in possession of attached property, that could be sticky.

If any of these scenarios come up and you have a “washed title” or have "purchased" a title, you could lose face and worse yet lose the car. With a declaration of ownership from the court however, you will actually OWN the car and your state's DMV will be forced to give you a title for the car in your name free of any encumbrances and rights of any former “owners”.

If you are serious about buying this car, I would strongly advise you to get a title through your state Court system. Sure it costs more and takes more time, but you’ll be doing it the RIGHT way and any claims of any former owners would be resolved and you would actually have a good CLEAN title that you could negotiate with piece of mind.