Buying an out of state boat

I live here in Minnesota and just came across a boat in Nebraska that I’m seriously considering buying. Has anyone here ever bought a boat from another state, and can give me a little advice on it? It will be a 6 hour drive for me, the guy is willing to drive the boat 4.5 hours from his place to meet me and cut my time down a bit. I’d basically be handing off a cashier’s check and hauling the boat home. How does the title transfer and licensing work in this situation?

Sorry can’t help, just looking what other’s say, I am thinking of doing the same thing with a boat in texas.

I would say 1 take it for a day or test drive the heck out of it, maybe do a compression check? and test everything!

As long you have a proper title and the owner signs off, you should only have to go to the DMV and do a transfer and pay the taxes on it.

That’s all I know.

Put it in water with him and test drive it for sure. After that it’s simple get the title and a bill of sale go to the DMV get it titled in your name and lie like no other about the trailer price as that’s the only thing you pay tax on

You will have to license the trailer in MN which is very minor but adds a little cost at the DMV.

I would get a notarized bill of sale as well. If it is what you want I wouldn’t let the paperwork side detour you from your boat. I have bought two boats out of state one new and one used and didn’t have a problem with the paperwork on either.

Some states, like WI don’t title trailers unless they are over a certain weight. The boat I bought was over #3200, but the guy I bought it from chose not to license at the rated 4500# so there was no title. When I tried to register the boat and trailer, because there was no title in WI for the trailer and I didn’t have paperwork for a title I had to get a letter written from the previous owner stating that he did not register the trailer in WI. The letter couldn’t be faxed it had to have his original signature. Kind of a hassle, but I got it figured out.

I had purchased a boat in Nebraska and registered in Minnesota and nothing special for out of state. Just make sure you do a bill of sale of some sort for the whole rig and I would do one for just the trailer as well since you have to register and pay tax on the trailer in MN. If there was a previous loan on the boat/trailer and the titles show a lien holder make sure you get the lien release documents to show its free and clear.

The biggest risk when buying a out of state boat is the seller not having complete documentation and then the hassle of having to try to get them to work with you to provide it after the sale.

The #1 show stopper is a title that has a security interest listed. That means that when the current owner bought the boat/trailer, he took out a loan.

There is no “workaround” for this situation. If a bank or any lender is listed on a title, you can’t just say oh forget that, just put the new title in my name. Denied. You MUST get the seller to provide proof the loan was paid off and that proof has to come from the lender.

This is a show stopper for me if the seller does NOT have documentation that the loan was fulfilled and that the security interest can be removed. And many sellers don’t keep track of this documentation, so getting new verifications can take months and seller’s interest in helping you can wane, but it’s a item only they can provide. A bank won’t give you, a third party, that info.

Personally, I would proceed with extreme caution and be double-ready to walk away. Do all your homework in advance including asking for ALL documents to be physically ready and in order.
– Title for boat and trailer (if any)
– Registrations.
– Verification of loan fulfillment if a security interest is listed.

Last but not least, make sure EVERYTHING document wise is in the seller’s actual name. Ask to see ID! If the wife’s name is also listed, INSIST that she sign the bill of sale IN PERSON.

Do not proceed with any purchase where the seller is someone other than the person listed on the documentation! No matter how good their story is about helping Uncle Ed sell his boat as he’s getting on in years… Don’t walk away, RUN!

Grouse

^ Nailed it Grouse.

TheFamousGrouse wrote:

Do not proceed with any purchase where the seller is someone other than the person listed on the documentation! No matter how good their story is about helping Uncle Ed sell his boat as he’s getting on in years… Don’t walk away, RUN!

Grouse

Ok. So I am guilty of buying my boat under these conditions. Out of state to boot. I bought it over 3 years ago and had absolutely 0 issues with titles and licensing.

Is there anything that can still come back and give me trouble at this point?

Grouse’s information is valid for a both in state or out of state. As long as you had a lien release if there was a secured party, and the state let you transfer both the boat and trailer you are fine.

biggill wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>TheFamousGrouse wrote:</div>
Do not proceed with any purchase where the seller is someone other than the person listed on the documentation! No matter how good their story is about helping Uncle Ed sell his boat as he’s getting on in years… Don’t walk away, RUN!

Grouse

Ok. So I am guilty of buying my boat under these conditions. Out of state to boot. I bought it over 3 years ago and had absolutely 0 issues with titles and licensing.

Is there anything that can still come back and give me trouble at this point?

I made sure there were no liens even listed on the title when I bought it. I figured that was my only concern. The actual title owner signed it off before I picked it up.

Seemed a little shady to me at the time, but I was guessing that this guy had some debt or bankruptcy issues and decided to get everything he owned out of his name. He insisted on cash or no deal. Not even cashiers check in person.

All is good now, it seems.

biggill wrote:

Is there anything that can still come back and give me trouble at this point?

It is highly unlikely at this point, but the exception just proves the rule.

To buy a boat from a “seller” who is not the documented owner of the boat is a risk. Sure, their story could be perfectly legit. Or the boat could have been stolen last week and the crook found the registration in one of the compartments and made up the “Uncle Ed” story.

Bottom line is it’s a complication most of us do NOT need and personally it’s a risk I would not take. I had enough of a hassle one time when I made the mistake of buying a boat and then finding out the trailer was titled separately from the boat and had a security interest listed on it. Just the trailer!

But wait, it gets worse. The security interest was a defunct credit union… Yeah, that took a lot of effing around over a 6 month period to straighten out. I would never have bought the boat in the first place had I known.

Once bitten…

Grouse

Thanks for all the advice.

I spoke with my bank also. Sounds like they would want copies of the title, any liens, loan info etc etc before they even approve the loan for,me. She suggested rather than a cashier’s check we do a wire transfer. Basically we have all the loan paperwork ready, but not completed. My bank would already have copies of lien release info, title etc, when I view the boat and decide it’s all good and I want it, I call the bank up and approve the wire. As soon as it goes through I’m ok to drive away.

Doesn’t sound so bad to me.