Opinion on buy a used taco with lien on it

Found a used taco but have lien on it, it's financed by Toyota.

Seller agrees to meet at Toyota, i will pay off the balance and he authorize the transfer of title to me. But... If i were to pay off the balance to toyota, my understanding is that Toyota will first release the title to the org. Owner then the seller will transfer the title over me later.

Well, that's always a chance i might get scammed, balance is paid, and i never get to see the title. How do you avoid situation like this? Any Bill of sale or document i can be prepared before paying off the balance and whatno?

Thanks

 

If Toyota Motor Corp. is the lien holder and is "facilitating" the transaction, I'm sure they can provide you with a bill of sale contract. But you are correct, the seller will receive the title in his/her name and then transfer that over to you. I understand your hesitation, as I bought my truck with a lien on it as well. But you have that bill of sale, and as long as you can verify the seller is the legal owner, you have to remember, they're probably just as nervous hoping that your check clears and isn't counterfeit.

Check your state's DMV or Division of Finance website. They probably have a Bill of Sale form on there you could use.

EDIT: If you're really worried about it, you might approach the idea of him "selling it" to Toyota, and then you buying it from them. That's what I did.

 

Thanks, it's good to know about the option.

It's a pretty decent deal but my instinct tells me backing off to avoid the unforeseen trouble. Seller has someone do the talking, despite many requests i never get to talk to the owner though i have received 5 pages long of service records in fax... The main problem is seller is 200 miles away.

 

I would go with your instinct ................"Seller has someone do the talking, despite many requests i never get to talk to the owner"..........red flag to me.

 

In that case I would agree. That doesn't sound right. Who are you dealing with, a person or a dealer? I'll give you my situation so you can see how similar it is:

The PO of my truck bought it new and drove it for about 2 months before he decided to sell. His best friend was a used car dealer, so even though there was a lien on the truck, he signed it over on consignment to the dealer. When I paid the dealer, the dealer paid off the lien, got the title in the mail, signed it over to me, and I got it in the mail 4 days later.

Again, there's always some level of uncertainty. I was nervous for awhile too until I did some research and verified that the dealer was a real place, etc. It's all about your comfort level. I passed on an F-150 before I bought my Tacoma for the same reasons you have reservations.

 

Thanks again, it's a person unfortunately, not much i can dig around. I called Toyota Finance service and told them the situation and the lady was very helpful. She confirmed regardless of the agreement between me and the seller, the title will be released to the seller and the rest is depend of the seller. Not much they can do. If i have doubt, i should avoid doing it.

 

I bought my truck from a privat party who owed on it. My bank sent the money directly to their bank w/ a letter stating that the vehicle lien needs to be signed over to my bank as I am the new owner. I buy and sell stuff all the time that needs to be payed off. If buying, I go to the sellers house so I know where they live . If selling I have the buyer come to my house so they feel comfortable and get a warm fuzzy that I won't rip them off. Bill of Sale on all transactions. But, always go with your gut.

 

I BELIEVE IF YOU DO THE TRANSACTION AT A DEALER OR AAA YOU WILL BE OK. THEY WILL PROCESS THE PAPERS AND THE TITLE SHOULD COME STRAIGHT TO YOU. I HAVE USED AAA MANY TIMES AND NEVER A PROBLEM.

 

Absent the pink slip, make sure you've got a signed bill of sale in addition to the registration.

Make sure the paper trail makes sense - the address on the registration matches the address you're buying the truck at, the name matches the sellers name (ask to see ID) etc..

Once you've registered the truck in your own name, and the lienholder has released the lien, you should be able to acquire a new title in your own name even if the title later gets lost. It's more of a pain to do it that way, though, so leave a self-addressed-stamped-envelope with the seller so he can immediately forward the title on to you once he gets it.

You only go through "DMV HELL" once. After that, you learn to be extraordinarily meticulous and careful on your vehicle sales and purchase transactions, to the point where folks who haven't yet gone through their own version of "DMV HELL" will wonder why you're so uptight.