Buying a Car With No Title

Are you thinking about buying a car without getting a title? Well, here’s some things to consider before you do that.

Check the Title
First of all, ask the seller why they don’t have a title. If they are the legal owner of that car, they’re supposed to have a title document in their hands with their name on it that they can sign over to you on the spot. Don’t ask for it later. Don’t let them delay because if they don’t have it in their hands, there’s a reason for it.

Verify the Story
Whatever the story is they tell you about not having a title, verify the story. If it’s because they lost it, well, have them get a duplicate. If it’s because the bank is sending it to them, make sure the bank actually has the loan paid off. Is it because it’s in somebody else’s name? Well, then they’re selling somebody else’s car and you want to deal with that person.

Hold Back Money
If for some reason you have some very urgent necessity to buy a car that doesn’t have a title, hold back some or all of the money until you get the title in hand. I can’t tell you how many times we get calls; it’s every single day from somebody who bought a car on Craigslist, eBay, from a friend, in the parking lot, that the person said, “I’ll send you the title,” like out of the home, “I forgot to bring it with me, I’ll mail it to you,” and then they never hear from them again. Their pager number goes blank, they can’t text them, they disappear. That’s because they never had the title to begin with. So if they don’t have it on them, you’re probably never gonna get it, and it may cost you hundreds or thousands of dollars to get the title if you can get it at all.

Get Identification
Make sure you get a good ID from that seller. Look at their license, write down their name, make sure that the name matches up with that title. If you don’t get a good ID, you’re not gonna know who you’re dealing with, and until you have that car in your name, you’re gonna be at risk.

Check for Jump Title
Also, look to see if it’s a jump title. Make sure it’s not sold from one person to another to another because that might cause problems getting the title in your name if each one of those transactions has not been logged with the DMV. A lot of times, cars without titles are a case of passing the buck. Somebody got a car, they didn’t get a title, they couldn’t get one, they sell it to somebody else. That person’s run into the same problem, now they sell it to you. You don’t want to be the game of musical chairs with no chair.

Title Pawn or Lien
These titles are not easy to get if you don’t have it in your hand. The most common reason for not having a title is title pawn or lien. Somebody has a car, they have the title, they need some extra cash, they go to TitleMax or one of the title pawn companies. They hand over their title to get a loan on it and then they sell the car. Well, you’re not gonna get that title until the loan’s paid off. Title pawn, TitleMax, any of the companies that lend money, they hold the title for a reason—to get their money. So they’re not going to give it up just because somebody else has the car. Now, the oldest trick in the book, they’re not gonna fall for it.

Unwind the Deal
If you have a car that doesn’t have a title, try to go back to that seller and have them unwind that deal. You can do any kind of search you want; you can search Carfax, you can search online. Those aren’t going to catch things like liens or things like jump title. Your only protection is actually to have a title that has the name of the seller on it, that you watch them sign, and put in your hands today.

Real-Life Example
We just had a customer that was sold a car and given some paperwork by a body shop saying that they’re doing a mechanic’s lien to get a title. They just gave them all the unfinished mechanic’s lien paperwork and said, “All you got to do is bring it to DMV.” Well, the reality is they didn’t do the mechanic’s lien process correctly, so this buyer is never going to get a title.

Conclusion
The only way you can be assured is to get the title handed to you. If you don’t get it, you’re going to be at risk of never getting a title or facing great expense to get one before you can legally own that vehicle and put it into your name.

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