title help

[timberjim36]

Hey guys I've been creeping on here for a while and thanks for all the advice and build help
My problem that having now is trying to title and register my truck
The truck came from a farm in Montana and was under a farm plate so it never had a title or registration I've looked into title companies but they want around two grand to get me a title
I only paid 800 for the truck and money is tight for me now and after spending the past 8 years building this thing i just want to drive it

Does any one have any ideas that could help it would be greatly appreciated

[ghettoluxury]

You can get a new title from the state, it just takes some leg work and a little time.

[studda]

Edited by Forum Staff
Any suggestions for illegal activity is not permitted on this forum and will result in this thread being closed

[timberjim36]

Massachusetts wont give me a title without a previous registration or title and will only accept a bill of sale with a previous registration otherwise they consider it stolen property

[dwcsr]

Edited by Forum Staff
Any suggestions for illegal activity is not permitted on this forum and will result in this thread being closed

[55metalmonkey]

Originally Posted by timberjim36

Hey guys I've been creeping on here for a while and thanks for all the advice and build help
My problem that having now is trying to title and register my truck
The truck came from a farm in Montana and was under a farm plate so it never had a title or registration I've looked into title companies but they want around two grand to get me a title
I only paid 800 for the truck and money is tight for me now and after spending the past 8 years building this thing i just want to drive it

Does any one have any ideas that could help it would be greatly appreciated

Timberjim,
Sorry to hear about your dilemma but if there are title companies where you live that can get a title for you then it's not unreasonable that it can be done by you. Based on the price they charge it will take a lot of foot work on your part to get one.

Unfortunately I'm at work at the moment and the computers are so painfully slow that doing the research on the specifics is frustrating the hell out of me. I am in no way a Lawyer but have researched it several times, I recommend consulting someone familiar with the laws in your state and some offer free consultations. Keep in mind I'm going from memory specific to my area but the basic process is fairly universal everywhere in North America (except a couple states maybe.)

If you have the bill of sale you might want to try registering in your name it in Montana first as a salvaged vehicle http://www.dmv.org/mt-montana/salvaged-vehicles.php
then re-registering in your state the same as if you moved from Montana to Massachusetts.

If that isn’t an option you will have to do it the long hard way, you will need to contact the people you bought it from (notarized letter via registered mail is best) and ask them to obtain a duplicate title in Montana (explain to them that you will pay the fees) http://www.dmv.org/mt-montana/replac...lost-title.php. If they are unable to get a title for various reasons (abandoned on the farm when they bought the place, property of a deceased relative ect then that complicates things. They will have to register it as part of the estate then transfer it to you

If they don’t respond to you then you have a notarized/ registered letter that proves you made the effort and they have basically washed their hands of the vehicle. From there you will need to do a title search in Montana for the last registered owner (if any) and repeat the process if the name comes up different than who you bought the truck from and also do a stolen property search from the state police. Again used registered mail/ notarized letters. If you don’t get a response again you can apply for a title/ registration for an abandoned vehicle in Montana, same as any tow truck company would do http://www.montanatowing.com/abandonedvehicles.html then transfer it to your name then re-registering in your state the same as if you moved from Montana to Massachusetts.

One thing though, if the property search comes up stolen from way back when you might not be happy, there has been cases of people restoring old motorcycles/ cars without a title and find out the vehicle was stolen 40+ years ago and had to return it to the proper owner. When you contact the previous owners don't let them know the truck is restored/ complete. There are some people out there that would see it as an opportunity to withold the papers just to hold you over a barrel or even claim it was stolen from them, tell them you havent started the project and want to get the papers in order before you start.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/u-s-man...ears-1.2434067

http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012...-his-home?lite


Again, I’m a layman and not a lawyer, if you don’t want to pay the title company to do all this work which could take months and months to sort out you might find a property lawyer to be fairly cheap, they generally know how to cut through all the red tape and get it done as efficiently as possible or at least advise you on your best options.

Good luck

[Groyd]

Originally Posted by 55metalmonkey

Again, I’m a layman and not a lawyer, if you don’t want to pay the title company to do all this work which could take months and months to sort out you might find a property lawyer to be fairly cheap, they generally know how to cut through all the red tape and get it done as efficiently as possible or at least advise you on your best options.

Good luck

I got my '57 for cheap because it didn't have a title. I called a few tag agencies and finally got a referral to a lawyer that did all the paperwork and took it to the courthouse the next day for $150. Then I just had to pay for a new tag and vin inspection.

Best money I've ever spent on a project. Otherwise it would've taken months to do it myself IF I could've figured it out.

That is some incredible advice from 55metalmonkey, I was just giving my .02 cents for the lawyer route if you can find one. You might try calling some different vintage car clubs and call to ask if they know of any lawyers that do that kind of work. The lawyer I used said she does it all the time for a bunch of different rebuilders in the area, its her little niche.

[55metalmonkey]

Originally Posted by Groyd

I got my '57 for cheap because it didn't have a title. I called a few tag agencies and finally got a referral to a lawyer that did all the paperwork and took it to the courthouse the next day for $150. Then I just had to pay for a new tag and vin inspection.

Best money I've ever spent on a project. Otherwise it would've taken months to do it myself IF I could've figured it out.

That is some incredible advice from 55metalmonkey, I was just giving my .02 cents for the lawyer route if you can find one. You might try calling some different vintage car clubs and call to ask if they know of any lawyers that do that kind of work. The lawyer I used said she does it all the time for a bunch of different rebuilders in the area, its her little niche.

$150 is an excellent price,
I know almost all on this forum are the DIY kind of people but sometimes it just makes sence to go to a pro especially when it comes to legal red tape. A person could easily spend $150 in total doing all the property searches/ notorizing and registered letters and have nothing to show for it besides elevated blood pressure from the sheer frustration of it.

[hyatt]

In tennessee a bill of sale and a vin inspection from local law enforcement will get a title on anything over 25 years old I just did it on my 48 burb

[55metalmonkey]

Just another link you might find usefull
http://dmvanswers.com/search/Massach...-Vehicle-Title

[mr48chev]

Have you actually gone to the dmv and checked or have you just gone to the local license office? In most states you have to go a ways up the pecking order of the particular department to get results and to get those results you have to have your end of it in order. That means a Bill of sale from the seller in Montana, receipts for major components and photos.

The thing that gets me time and time again is why the hay do you guys wait until you have several thousand dollars tied up in a truck before you even think about getting a title?
Have you talked to the state inspectors about having it inspected for a reconstructed title? I imagine you have the bill of sale from the person who sold it to you from Montana and photos of it taken when you bought it or shortly after. I also hope you have documentation on where the engine, trans and other major parts came from.

Some guys will have a hissy over the idea of a reconstructed title but that is what you actually did with the truck and according to this http://www.bipac.net/semaga/TagTitleToolbox_MA.pdf Scroll down to reconstructed titles. You should be able to get it inspected and get a title for it.

I'd print out photos of the truck starting with the one showing it sitting in the field in montana, when you first had it in the driveway and the shots we always show on our build threads of each component sitting separate in the garage.
Get a three ring binder and a package of page savers and maybe a batch of page dividers for each section.
Start with the bill of sale and the photos of the truck as it sat.

Paperwork on the engine or a copy of the paperwork from the donor rig.
paperwork on the trans and other major components including the sales slip on the wheels and tires.
If you bought a donor rig for the engine, trans and rear and then scrapped it a copy of the title or registration and the paperwork from the scrap yard when you sold it should suffice. If you didn't get a copy of the title and the scrap yard paper notes that you had a title to give them all should be good. The main thing is that the state wants documentation that the parts were obtained legally and not stolen.

If you haven't already done so I'd pay a visit to the inspectors at one of these inspection stations http://www.massrmv.com/rmv/titles/11salinsp.htm I would probably want to check with the local hot rodders to see which station has inspectors who are more knowledgeable about hotrods and other rigs like your truck.

Otherwise go as high up the food chain as you can at the state capitol in the main DMV office to get answers. There will be someone there who has the answer.

The other solution is to pack up and move to a state that has a simpler process.

[55metalmonkey]

I think they call it a 'branded title' in MA, I find it helps to use their buracratic terminology when you talk to them.

[Highsider]

"Bonded"?

[55metalmonkey]

Originally Posted by Highsider

"Bonded"?

Had to double check (getting old I guess) but it's branded
http://dmvanswers.com/questions/166/...-branded-title

[mr48chev]

Originally Posted by Highsider

"Bonded"?

That appears to be the simple way out in his case. https://secure.rmv.state.ma.us/Polic...edvehicles.htm

Maybe not the least expensive but the simplest.

The interesting part may be determining what the "clean trade in value" is for a pro street big block 54 Chevy pickup.

[Highsider]

Originally Posted by 55metalmonkey

Had to double check (getting old I guess) but it's branded
http://dmvanswers.com/questions/166/...-branded-title

I have never heard of branded, so I figured spellchecker had changed it to that.


Mr48 - Since I am having a bunch of work done to mine, I just looked it up on the NADA site and printed off the page for when I talk to my insurance
company about raising my limit. It will at least give an idea.
I wonder if they use that for sales tax calculation? Not counting added individual items. Wonder if they want to charge tax on swap meet purchases?

What a cluster...

[Cape Codder]

Every time I registered a car in Ma. that had never been titled I needed a bill of sale from previous owner and they did check for last registered owner. With a different state involved I am not sure if they can check last owner or not. Where on the Cape are you ? I'm just outside Hyannis and would love to check out your truck.


Bob

[timberjim36]

Thanks for all the ideas guys at least now i have a glimmer of hope of finally getting a chance to drive this thing
And bob i live in wareham soon as i cn dig the thing out of the tundra thats fallen over us hereim bringing the truck tomy work in dennis to spray it in primer and be glad to have you come check it out

[55metalmonkey]

"I have never heard of branded, so I figured spellchecker had changed it to that."

I've never heard of it either until I seen it on the DMV site. Up here in BC they call it altered/modified or a amalgamated vehicle depending on what was done.

[mr48chev]

Originally Posted by Cape Codder

Every time I registered a car in Ma. that had never been titled I needed a bill of sale from previous owner and they did check for last registered owner. With a different state involved I am not sure if they can check last owner or not. Where on the Cape are you ? I'm just outside Hyannis and would love to check out your truck.


Bob

Those were probably vehicles that had been registered every year though.

The gent who owns the vehicle license office that I do almost all of my title changes with and buy my plates from is one of the most knowledgeable car title people I know and if he doesn't have the answer he has the phone number of someone over in the DMV office in Olympia that does. His clerks are all well trained and sharp as tacks too when it comes to dealing with situations that come up. They won't consider anything unethical or illegal but usually make things work when you have a problem that there is a legal fix to. A gal gave me a camper for my 71 pickup and couldn't find the title. The title was in her deceased husband's name and we went in together and she had the papers with his death certificate and her rights to what was in his name and they dug up the info on the title to the camper, we signed a paper, I paid transfer and tabs and we walked out the door in 15 minutes. That they knew both of us as regular long time customers didn't hurt though.

The clerks in the office in my home town stumble when you go in with anything that resembles being complicated. We probably could not have got them to do that.

timberjim36 I see that you don't have it all finished as it is pre primer, I'd get the paperwork done on it before putting primer or paint on it just to keep the cost of the bond down more than a little bit. That may end up saving you quite a bit of money on a bond as they may view it as being valued at a whole lot less at the time.

[OrrieG]

I looked for this before reading the resent posts. Here is the link to the bonded title process. I would look at the cost vs. working with someone in the original state to get a title there and transfer. Over the years I have seen vehicles cross the auction blocks here with bonded titles from other States.

https://secure.rmv.state.ma.us/Polic...edvehicles.htm