AZDoug

How did you handle payment/title transfer when you are not there is person?

And verify title as legit and not a possibly stolen vehicle prior to buying?

I would think spending a few hundred $$ on a lawyer (or some trust worthy person) to act as an escrow agent would be the thing to do to insure that the payment is exchanged while the owner signs the title over to you. I know some states require notary to be present during title signing.

Doug

hornetball

There is a net-based escrow service designed exactly for this. Just do a search. Reasonable.

idcwmidi

I flew out there and we met at the bank for the title signing and also for a letter from the seller that there were no outstanding debts or claims against the car. The bank notary verified all identities and notarized everything. To me, it was worth it for peace of mind.

mikelj

The times I have done it, I wire transfer the money to their account, they ship the car and send the title FedEx, I have never had a problem, but I buy from reputable sellers known to people I know.

mrtexas

I used escrow.com for a Canadian car. $500 split between buyer and seller.
Wired 20% and 80% by escrow.com
Car was $73k

inspectorudy

I took a bag of $100 bills after the in-person inspection of the car and title.

mlflotus

I have bought two cars out of state. Both times I requested copies of the tittle just to check that the seller owned the car. I then wired the money. Both times the cars were bought from dealers so I checked on their past history. Both cars were sent via enclosed carrier and I was happy with the transaction.

Vega$Vette

I only buy from private parties. Reason no tax on private party purchases. #2 I don’t trust dealers.

Look at the car in person. Worth the cost of a plane trip.

I’ve sold many sight unseen. The buyer gets a copy of the title before they wire the funds. The day the wire hits I FedEx them the title and 2nd set of keys to the car.

several I’ve sold on eBay. I list the car with a reserve and my contact info. The buyers contact me we make a deal and I add a buy it now to the listing for the agreed price while I have the buyer on the phone. He hits the buy button and sends the deposit via eBay per the listing. This gives the buyer the eBay buyer protection and me the seller protection.

509 rat

I bought my 66 in NJ I am in CA I called road ready inspections where they did a vin verification and a video and I had a bank do the deal so if it goes south I will not be on the hook .

corvetteed

I also did it this way, except I didn't know the seller. Worked out fine.

Corn Fed

For the only big $$$ not in person transaction that I have done I wired the money to the seller's lawyer for them to put into an escrow account. It stayed there until my hauler could come get the car. I know and trust my hauler, so I had the title sent with them. Otherwise I would have had the title overnighted.

Roger Walling

I sold a car long distance. The buyer brought cash and we went to my bank. He handed the cash to the teller to deposit in my account. when I got the deposit slip from the teller, I handed the title to the buyer.

Because the buyer handed the cash to the teller, and they ran it through their counting machine, it established the fact that it was not counterfeit money.

Ps, I once had a real certified bank check for $10,000 bounce, but never again.

(ALL checks, except postal money orders, can have a stop payment placed on them)

Postal money orders have a limit of $1000. Buy several of them for a transaction and use them instead of cash.
They are cheap.

https://www.usps.com/shop/money-orde...0money%20order.


https://www.gobankingrates.com/banki...re%20available.

boxster99t

When I bought my 67 in 2010, the current owner was in Boston and I'm in TX--I didn't personally see the car but had it inspected by Joe Scafidi, owner of the BowTie Shop in the area, whom I had met the same week when up there looking at a different 67. I had the owner email me a picture of the title, and the sale was arranged thusly: 1. He took the car, its keys, to Joe. 2. When Joe said he had it, I wired the money. The title was Fedex'd to me the same day.

If I didn't trust Joe, I would have flown up there to do the closing in person. It was just serendipitous that Joe knew both the car and the seller. I had a bit of trouble getting the seller to cooperate initially. He not only wanted me to be there in person, but wanted cash. It's no easy thing to get that sum of money in cash, and no way was I willing to get on a plane with a bag full of cash.

vettebuyer6369

I've done both of the above. with people I've known and those I did not.

I've also sold many sight unseen. I would never under any circumstances buy sight unseen. Definitely worth the price of a plane ticket, every time.

I would also never purchase a car of this magnitude (last 2 cars in 6 figures +) carrying that amount of cash. If someone required it, I'd be out. If a buyer insisted on it, I'd meet him at the bank and take zero responsibility for anything that happened while he took that ridiculous risk.

Regarding private parties, keep in mind that many states, including mine, do in fact charge considerable sales/use tax on private party sales. As well, I've been buying Corvettes since the 70s and I've never found an advantage or disadvantage to buying only from private parties. Private parties lie every bit as much as dealers do.

Also, in any purchase or sale I make I make it clear from the outset that I will not be a party to any sort of financial fraud or tax fraud, including fake sales amounts on titles or receipts, false entries on documents, or untrue statements or documents regarding sales prices, mileage or anything else. Any substantial cash deposits would be reported and explained as required. Anyone who would request otherwise is someone I wouldn't want to do business with, anyway.

OldVetteguy84

I first contacted my bank and had them contact the branch closest to seller. I then flew out. I wanted to check documents in person. We went to the bank and did the transaction there in front of bank manager.

Vega$Vette

Regarding my post above and tax paid on private party sales here in the state of Nevada we are not required to pay sales tax on any vehicle we purchase from a private party regardless of the total cost of the vehicle.

if we buy from a dealer in the state of Nevada or any other state the DMV collects the appropriate sales tax at the time of registration.

saves be 8.35%. Plus the dealer prices are substantially over PP in most cases and the dealers are most often consignment shops.