If you own a car, you want to make sure that you have the original title as this is the legal document that indicates your ownership of the vehicle. If you ever decide to sell your car, the transaction will likely involve the transfer of your vehicle to someone else and the transfer of payment to you. However, to truly exchange legal ownership, you must sign over the title of the car to whoever the buyer is. The exact process for doing this will vary in the state where you are located. However, the steps that need to be taken to transfer legal ownership are relatively the same.
Locating Your Automobile Title
If you are the owner of a vehicle that you want to sell, you must locate the current title. Without this important document, your car cannot be legally sold to another party. Hopefully, you have placed your title in a safe place so that you can transfer it to the new owner. If not, you will need to contact the Department of Licensing in your state. Each state has different rules. You will probably have to complete and sign an Affidavit in Lieu of Title form. It will need to be signed with a notary public present.
Completing A Sale
When you sell your automobile, you need to document the sale. In some states, they provide blank areas on the title so that you can easily transfer ownership. In other states, you may be required to complete a bill of sale that contains information regarding the details of the transaction. You can get a bill of sale form online by searching for the keywords “automobile bill of sale form.”
On the bill of sale, you will want to enter the following information:
– Name of the buyer
– Name of the seller
– Vin number
– The sales price of the automobile
– Description of the automobile
– Current odometer reading of the automobile.
In situations where the automobile is a gift, the price of the car would be listed at $0.
Transfer Of The Title
To transfer the title, the current owner and future owner must sign the title. In some states, they require you to have a notary public witness the signing. Once the signing has been completed by all parties who are involved, the ownership of the vehicle will have changed hands.
If you do sell your vehicle, it is advisable to receive funds via a cashiers check or by cash. You do not want to trust a personal check as this can bounce. If you receive funds from a personal check and it bounces, you may have to take the buyer to court if you don’t get your funds.
Jim Treebold is a North Carolina based writer. He lives by the mantra of “Learn 1 new thing each day”! Jim loves to write, read, pedal around on his electric bike and dream of big things. Drop him a line if you like his writing, he loves hearing from his readers!