CA DMV FEES DUE - Does this impact out-of-state purchases?
 

I've noticed a fair number of cars sold at auction in California have the disclosure - CA DMV FEES DUE - how does this impact buyers who want to register and title the vehicle outside of California?

As a background, California continues to assess registration fees even if the owner of the vehicle doesn't renew the registration - this is a very common situation for vehicles that have been repossessed. Before the vehicle can be re-registered all of the back fees must be paid.

My question concerns out-of-state buyers. If someone buys a vehicle with $400 CA DMV FEES DUE will they have to pay that amount if they want to title the vehicle in another state?

On a different note, do any other states hold the registration hostage until the back fees are paid?

Wow, what a mess! Why is the next owner obligated for the previous owner’s obligations?

Here the registration fees & property taxes are tied to renewing the owner’s license tags & not the vehicle.
Unpaid property taxes & registration fees are the obligations of the previous owner.

That's interesting - I like your state's system better.

California is a tough state to do business in - the state's broke and they're always looking for new sources of tax revenues. :mad:

I'm just wondering if there's an opportunity for out-of-state dealers to buy vehicles at a discount if they know they'll never have to pay the past-due DMV fees? (Or maybe California holds the title hostage until the registration fees are paid and no advantage exists?)

Parking tickets too?
 

I still don't have a 100% certain answer to this question, but most people I've asked believe a vehicle with CA DMV fees could be retitled in another state and re-registered without paying the fees.

As an interesting sidenote, one person told me it's not just an issue with unpaid DMV fees, apparently parking tickets in California go against the VIN and the vehicle cannot update their tabs until the parking tickets are paid.

SRT8 Charger with $2,341 in DMV fees due
 

I thought of this thread today when I was checking out an IAAI Auction for a 2007 Charger SRT8 in California that had $2,341 in DMV fees due. I hope the winning bidder saw that disclosure.

Here's a screen print from the auction:




It appears the Charger was a stolen vehicle and I'm guessing it was stolen several years ago and just recently recovered - How else could it have racked up $2,341 in DMV fees? (It could be an IAAI mistake.)

California has a bad reputation that unless an owner notifies the DMV that their vehicle is "off the road" the VIN will continue to incur fees. As before, I'm not sure if the DMV fees have to be paid if the vehicle is going to be licensed and titled in another state. :confused:

Concerning the SRT8, the high bid was $8,300. Not bad for a clear title vehicle but there are some interior repairs that need to be made (replacing the missing IP cluster) and the car definitely needs better tires and wheels. The other downside is that the miles are unknown because the IP cluster is missing.

Out of State buyers get whacked with the California DMV Fees
 

I sent an email to the Branch Manager of IAAI's High Desert location and he advised me that all buyers have to pay the California DMV Fees - even if you plan to switch the title to another state. :mad:

I was thinking that the California DMV Fees would only impact the registration and not the title - apparently that's not the case.

Suddenly the SRT8 Charger in the above post doesn't look like such a good deal.

Or, maybe not......

When I was at the Mecum Auction in Anaheim I noticed this disclosure on one of their cars:




Based on Mecum's disclosure it appears the CA DMV fee only has to be paid if the vehicle is purchased by a retail buyer in California.

That said, it's my understanding that disclosures posted on the vehicles at auction (Mecum and Barrett-Jackson) are seller representations and are not guaranteed by the auction company.

So, I guess we're back to square one - I still don't know if dealers and out of state customers get whacked for the CA DMV Fees. :confused:

CA cars that leave CA
 

CA cars that are removed from California do not have to pay CA DMV fees. The one caveat to this is if the car returns to CA, the DMV will try to collect the fees, even some years down the road.

There is no "Title being held hostage" issue when fees are due. You may take the unit to your home state and sell it there with no impact from California. The only impairment to the title is that the transfer & registration in California of the effected unit will cause the back fees to become due.

bobblevins - Awesome first post - Welcome to DealershipForum. :)

This thread's almost three years old and you're the first person who was able to answer the question about CA DMV FEES DUE with a confident answer.

Your answer makes the Dodge Charger SRT8 in post #5 seem like a pretty sweet deal.

I'd still be nervous about selling a car to a retail customer that had back fees owed to the Peoples' Republic of California for fear that, at some point down the road, the customer tries titling the vehicle in CA again. Guess who looks like the crook? Might not be an issue if the car is being sold far away from the west coast, but it wouldn't be a risk I'd be willing to take if I was in AZ or OR

That's a valid point.

I'm sure a dealer could have the customer sign a disclosure document but sooner or later one of the CA DMV FEES DUE vehicles will end up back in California and the customer's who's left holding the bag will likely be looking for someone to sue.

I'm guessing that a dealer who disclosed the fees to their retail customer would have met their obligation, but when it comes to the courts and the legal system all bets are off.