Basics
43 articles in this category
Do You Need Insurance Before You Can Register a Car You Just Bought?
In most states you cannot title or register a car without showing that it is already insured. This guide explains the correct order of steps and how temporary coverage lets you drive your new car home.
Selling a Car to a Family Member Below Market Value: Taxes and Title
Selling a car to a relative for a token price feels simple, but the registration counter may not honor the number you wrote down. This guide explains how use tax is assessed, why states often tax book value, and how family exemptions and a bill of sale fit in.
How Sales Tax Works When You Buy a Car From a Private Seller
Buying a car from a private seller does not let you skip sales tax. In most states the tax is collected when you register the car, and your bill of sale is the document that proves what you paid. This guide explains how the tax is calculated, why the declared price matters, and the cases where it works differently.
Who Keeps the Bill of Sale, the Buyer or the Seller?
When a sale is done, one question comes up fast: who walks away with the bill of sale? The short answer is that both parties should keep a signed copy. Here is why each side needs one and how many copies to make.
What Is Title Jumping and Why It Can Get You Fined
Title jumping sounds like jargon, but it is one of the most common and most dangerous shortcuts in private car sales. It happens the moment someone sells a car without putting the title in their own name first, and the penalties are far steeper than most people selling a car ever realize.
Does a Trailer Need a Bill of Sale? What to Know Before You Sell
Trailers sit in an awkward gap. Some are titled like cars, some are only registered, and some need nothing at all depending on weight and state. That patchwork is exactly why a bill of sale matters more on a trailer than people think, especially when there is no title to fall back on.
Do You Need a Bill of Sale to Register a Car at the DMV?
Whether the DMV will hand you a registration without a bill of sale depends entirely on where you live and how you got the car. In some states it is required, in others it is merely smart, and in a few situations you cannot register without one. Here is how to know before you go.
Bill of Sale for a Gifted Vehicle: What to Put When the Price Is $0
Giving a car to a family member feels simple until you sit down with the paperwork and the price line stares back at you. Do you write zero? Make up a number? Does the recipient still owe tax? A gift follows almost the same path as a sale, with a few differences worth getting right.
Why Do I Need a Bill of Sale?
The title transfers ownership. The registration proves the car is legal to drive. The insurance covers accidents. So what exactly is the bill of sale for? Most private sellers either don't know the answer or think it's just a formality. It's neither. A bill of sale does specific things that no other document in a private sale does, and the situations where you'll wish you had one are more common than most sellers expect...
How to Create a Bill of Sale Online (And Make Sure It Holds Up)
You can create a bill of sale online in a few minutes, and it is just as valid as one filled out by hand. The difference between a bill of sale that protects you and one the DMV rejects comes down to what's on it and whether it meets your state's rules. Here's how to get it right.
Is a Handwritten Bill of Sale Legit?
Someone tells you to just write it out on a piece of paper. Or you're closing a deal on the spot and you don't have anything printed. Or you found a handwritten example online and you're wondering if it holds up the same way as a typed document. The short answer is yes, a handwritten bill of sale can be legally valid. The longer answer involves several ways it can fall apart that a typed, state-specific document doesn't.
Bill of Sale for a Car With 200,000 Miles: What to Disclose
Selling a high-mileage car privately is a different negotiation than selling a newer vehicle, but the documentation requirements are the same. What changes at 200,000 miles is the disclosure picture. More miles means more wear, more history, and more known issues that a seller has a legal and practical obligation to handle correctly. Getting the disclosures right on a high-mileage sale protects you from the post-sale dispute that becomes more likely when the buyer paid less money for a car they know is closer to the end of its life...