Title woes.

[Larry D]

Larry, I'm very impressed with your bike. It looks soooooo awesome and you have a title for it. Maine doesn't require one so I don't have one for either of my bikes. A bill of sale and insurance are all you need to register one. You don't even need the previous registration. I never even had the bill of sale notarized!

Thanks man. I wish we didn't have title requirements here, it would make buying and selling of our lod bikes much easier.

 

[Guest]

So the lessons from these incidents are:

Before driving any further than across town to pick up a vehicle, tell the owner that the title must

1) be in his hand,
2) it must have his name and address on it, and agree with his current drivers license
3) the VIN must agree with the bike or car. (You need to know where to find the VIN before going.)
4) all liens must have been discharged in the manner required by the state that has titled the vehicle (usually means a new title, sometimes, a stamp. Learn this ahead of time.)
5) all other information must be correct
6) IF THERE ARE ANY PROBLEMS WITH THE TITLE, YOU KEEP YOUR MONEY AND WALK AWAY UNTIL THE CURRENT OWNER FIXES IT.

An owner can get a duplicate title easily, and can make life hell for you. So you should APPLY FOR A NEW TITLE ON THE FIRST BUSINESS DAY AFTER YOU TAKE POSSESSION OF THE VEHICLE.

If you do these things, there should be no problems.

 

[sschering]

I've found that title issues can be worked around but it's not easy..

The hard part is getting someone at the Licensing department to give up the information..

Every state is different..

Get all bills of sale notarized. (even with a title)

 

[almarconi]

I've transferred two bikes into my name, the titles were signed (not by the people I bought the bikes from) all other information was left blank. Instead of going to the DMV, I went to a title service. They charge about $40 for the service and handle all the title work. You pay your money, they give you a registration and plate at time of payment. The title arrives in the mail about 4 weeks later. When you go to the DMV in person, the people there (for the most part) have nothing better to do than give you the run around. They get paid whether you get a title or not. The paid title services want your business and will get it done for you..well worth the money IMHO. Another plus is not having to spend the day at the DMV.

 

[witttom]

Follow-up..... 5-1/2 months after I acquired my bike from Kentucky, I finally have got a clean Ohio title in my name. Shew. What a nightmare.

 

[Larry D]

Congratulations Tom !! You're legal now !!!!

 

[witttom]

Congratulations Tom !! You're legal now !!!!

Well, still not quite legal. Hehe... after going to Northern Kentucky this morning, picking up the PO, then heading to the Kenton County Courthouse (jumping through some hoops there), then dropping the PO back off, then directly to the Butler County Courthouse in Hamilton Ohio..... I then drove to the nearest Ohio BMV to get plates. There was a line a mile long. Rather than wait for a couple hours, I decided I could wait till next week and I'd try it again. So the bike is legally mine, but I still do not have plates for it to ride it legally.

 

[Larry D]

Plates ?!?!?!!? We don't need no stinkin' plates.

Oh wait.....I guess we do.

Glad the long nightmare is over for you.

 

[jeepinbanditrider]

Try this one on for size.

My greatgrandfather got what is now my 1979 GS1000 brand new in late 78. He passed years ago when I acquired the bike. There as no will or anything to say the bike was left to me the family just agreed that I could have the bike as they thought it was useless. 13 years sitting in a basement without being ran.

No title no paperwork nothing. I just have a bike sitting in my shed that I really can't ride on the public roads right now. I have an "antique" tag for it but your limited in how often you can ride the bike and how far.

Guess I'm going to have to get with a lawyer or one of those title services to get this squared away. Especially now that I'm putting money into it, to get it road ready.

 

[Larry D]

It depends on what state you're in. There are different laws from state to state. I'd go to the license branch and talk to them to see what should be done.

 

[tkent02]

Try this one on for size.

My greatgrandfather got what is now my 1979 GS1000 brand new in late 78.

I have a GS1000 frame with a title if you want to go the easy way.

 

[jeepinbanditrider]

I would like to keep everything as original as I can.

 

[Nessism]

Try this one on for size.

My greatgrandfather got what is now my 1979 GS1000 brand new in late 78. He passed years ago when I acquired the bike. There as no will or anything to say the bike was left to me the family just agreed that I could have the bike as they thought it was useless. 13 years sitting in a basement without being ran.

No title no paperwork nothing. I just have a bike sitting in my shed that I really can't ride on the public roads right now. I have an "antique" tag for it but your limited in how often you can ride the bike and how far.

Guess I'm going to have to get with a lawyer or one of those title services to get this squared away. Especially now that I'm putting money into it, to get it road ready.

Call your state motor vehicles office and be armed with the VIN and plate number. Could be as easy as having the executor of grandad's will sign the bike over to you. There is usually a way around that type of situation since everyone dies eventually.