The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk Title companys ?

I'm trying to get a NJ title for my '49 Burb. It has an old title certificate from Arkansas that was filed in 1980. The truck was then sold to a guy in Missouri in 1984(he never titled it)...he sold it to a guy in Kansas in the early 90's(he never titled it)...I bought it in July,2004. I've been restoring the truck and never really thought about the title.
Now, the NJ DMV says it won't title the truck until the previous owner titles it in Kansas. the guy in Kansas gets the same directive from the Kansas DMV. Unfortunately,We can no longer locate the original seller in Missouri(out of business)...It's a real "catch 22".
Bottomline...desperate to resolve this situation I've contacted "Broadway Title Co." of Birmingham, AL. They say they can provide me with all the absolutly legal paperwork that I need to title this truck in NJ...irrespective of any of existing "jumped" title issues. It's expensive ($215.) Has anyone ever used one of these services? Comment, suggestions, ideas?
Thanks

Steve, I would do some research on these companys. I read somewhere that some states are taking these companys to court over fraud.

Steve,
Why does NJ even need to know about the 2 intermediate guys? With a signed off whatever from wherever, I'd think DMV would care less. But then again, I never would have made a good "bureau rat"...... This whole thing could be a world wide crime wave to rip off and hide the identity of 49 Burbs with you at it's head. Yep, that's my guess...

Well, they call my situation a "jumped" title not proper in any state. In order to title you must show (via title) that the seller in fact owned the vehicle in question.
But you're right, I am the head of secret geriatric truck cult that is illegally hoarding 50 year old Suburbans. We will sooon take over the SUV world! Burbers unite!!

In Texas, there is a 6.25% sales tax due at each transfer. That's the main reason they care. Sorry, I haven't used such a company, but I may have the same issues. I have a title, but I also am missing the VIN plate.

I've been in the same situation but if you know a Notary real well and know for a fact the vehicle is legit then they might noatrize it anyway. It's worked for me in the past but it's very risky for a Notary. My wife is one and she won't do it for anybody!

Mike

I have a 62 title the owner at some point signed the back of title but left the rest blank so hopefully when I decide to title and tag there will be no problem as PO is dead. Hemmings used to have several listings for title co. but I've never used any

Have you tried contacting the Arkansas DMV?

see if you can run down the owner on the title you have .then file for a lost title in that state.send it to him and have him sigh it over to you then it is a direct title from him to you

Why not just tell them you bought it from the guy in Arkansas? I think that would work in Missouri. Do they have fee offices there? Sometimes they can be a lot easer to work with than the state offices.

WE used Broadway title several years ago & it worked real slick. They sent an Alabama title & we sent it through Missouri.

$215 may sound like alot, but if you can't get tags or a title for it otherwise, what are your choices?

Laws vary from state to state, and old trucks like this tend to get bought and sold without anybody ever actually having the title transferred into their name.. they figure they'll do that when they're ready to put it on the road.. but that never happens.. they end up selling it to another guy who does the same thing.

Like it was said in an earlier post.. the DMV's get tax revenue everytime that title gets brought in for a transfer.. they want you to go back and have everybody who ever owned that truck to have the title put in their name because they want the tax money.

Seems to me, the best way to go about it would be to find the cat whos name is on the title and have them sign it over. If that dude is dead or missing, I don't know what you can do, short of finding a crooked notary to say they witnessed the persons name on the title sign it over to you.

Dealing with DMV's and state goverment BS is a headache i'd rather not deal with.

I'd pay the $215 and be done with it.

steve. here is sd you can send a certified letter to the last register owner (falls in the abandon vehicle title law) check with your register of deeds to see if you have it in your state

Arkansas does NOT require a notary on the title. If the title is signed by the seller and the buyer's name is blank, sign it and present it. Period, dot, that easy. If it has a previous buyer's name listed in the signature block, you're out of luck unless you've got enough room for another signature - yours! What you do is title it as "John Doe and/or Your Name", with your address, etc. That way, you can do whatever you want with the truck and you'll have a perfectly legitimate NJ title.

I would be extremely leery of these title "services". The California DMV (who else!) has taken issue with what they allege as "fake" paperwork from these title sources, and in fact is in the process of telling approximately 12,000 owners in that state they have bogus paperwork and must pay "x" amount of money to make their cars right. The CHP, and several state agencies raided Boyd Coddington and several other high-profile builders out there in October 2004. This concerns titles on cars that say "1932", etc, and nothing on the car is original 1932. There is an extensive article in the November issue of Street Rodder magazine about this very issue.

Would I use one of these services? No. Basically, what they do, since Alabama is NOT a title state, they "sell" you your own car and give you an Alabama bill of sale selling as an Alabama dealer. You take this bill of sale to your licensing authority, along with the car (devoid of your state markings, stickers, tags, etc. obviously!) and get your tag and title. All that $215.00 gets you is a bill of sale, you have to pay your state fees, in addition.

If the original 1980 owner is still around, you could ask him to "apply for a lost title"... costs around $17 then have him sign it over to you without notary.

I'm a notary.... been there, done that.

Steveg Does NJ let farmers have truck on the farm without titling them? They do here in Michigan. Theses truck can not go out on the roads that would be illegal. However if the truck stays on the farm it doesn't need to be titled. If NJ has a similar law then all you should need is a bill of sale from the last buyer. Just don't tell them he is in another state. Just state that the truck was used on a farm and not titled. You may need to have it inspected by the local police but that is simple.

Good luck and I hope this helps

Test

Thanks for all the input. As an update, I've contacted Arkansas DMV...they can only help if I am an Arkansas resident. I've been to the NJ DMV 2 more times and I've fallen into a procedural "black hole". No help.
I've done "due diligence" on these title companies...and found one outfit from Alabama (not Broadway) has been prosecuted and found guilty of fraud. The owners actually did "time".
I've decided to go forward with Broadway Title...I'll let you know how it turns out.

I'm in a similar situation.

BROADWAY TITLE requires prof of insureance, My trk is being restored & will not be on the road for at least 6 mos. so I did not want to go that way.

There is a title outfit in Georgia (classic title) that is in the same business but, I know nothing about them.They do not require insurance.