Problem getting a title

The 923 I recently purchased was never titled by the past owner. He bought the truck from GL out of Barstow. And never did anything with it. I didn't think it would be a problem, but I went to get a title an the dmv says that GL must get the title as their name is on the sf-97.
So I called GL and they said it must be the original buyer that gets the first title.

Well the main problem is I live In Phx, az. And I'm not sure what to do now. I could go back to Cali with the title and have him do it but I thought they do inspections and really don't want to drive the truck 500 miles there and another 500 back again.

HELP PLEASE

No real way around this. Sorry for your luck. We've seen this all to often.

Caveat emptor

That might be why there are so many warnings on this site to never buy anything but a parts truck WITHOUT a clear title.

You could part it out.

I'll pay you a dime for it without the title.

In all seriousness though, most members on here I would hope would be up front about no title. Only place somewhat safe to get a truck without a title is GA. They won't issue a title for anything over 10 years old unless specifically requested.

Well he gave me the the sf-97, the sf-97 reassignment form, and a bill of sale. It sounds like he's gonna help me with getting it done I just don't know if there is any easy way.

That's good to hear. In some states it is illegal to sell a vehicle without a title. Glad tohear that he's gonna work with you.

What he did is called "Skipping Title". Most states do now allow it. And the ones that do are tighting up on it as they want the tax money.

http://community.lawyers.com/forums/t/125750/630992.aspx
http://www.merchantcircle.com/blogs...971-6080/2013/1/Vehicle-Title-Skipping/997819

Here is the deal with GL and the SF-97.

GL buys from the government and the SF-97 is issued to them as the first buyer. GL is setup as a dealer in Florida and has the legal rights to "re-assign" the SF-97 to the auction purchaser. The SF-97 now technically belongs to the original auction buyer.

That buyer can not re-assign the SF-97 to anyone else unless they are also a dealer.

He needs to title the truck in his name and then assign title to you.

What you now have is an expensive yard ornament.

Yes what he said you need to have him get the title.

What about giving me a power of attorney for the vehical ?

Please REread post 7 & 8

Most likely, you can take the CA inspection paperwork and get it inspected in AZ without driving 500 miles to have it done. You then send it to the previous owner to do the paperwork. You will now be paying to title it twice and be at the previous owners mercy (as far as getting him to do anything).

Arizona doesn't require inspections anymore . .

I didn't see those other post when I posted earlier

redneck20 said:

Arizona doesn't require inspections anymore . .

I didn't see those other post when I posted earlier

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It does not matter if AZ requires inspection. If CA requires it for the title then you need to have it inspected -otherwise no title from CA. I would bet AZ would inspect it for you if you requested it.

This is how I know it works in AZ. When you get a truck from GL you send off for the SF-97.
When the SF-97 comes you receive the SF-97 and a power of attorney from GL to the
you. Then you go to DMV they do a title to GL then do a 2nd title from GL to you.
You can not have a 2nd level of a power of attorney in AZ. You maybe able to get away
with it by going to a 3rd party DMV place.

The guy you got the truck from should of received at power of attorney to him. So I think you need
to get him to get a title in CA and send it to you. I do not know how it works in CA as far as do you need to the
truck to get a title.
Also in AZ now you can not just get a title, you have to get tags also.

The inspections that are being referred to are VIN inspections. Totally different that a safety inspection.

Never get legal advise from the internet. Contact an attorney.

I just got off the phone with him , I think we have a plan of attack on my screw up.

I had this problem years ago when I bought a 1969 Honda 350 Scrambler motorcycle without a title. I tracked down the original owner in Montana who sold the Honda at an auction in Las Vegas to the guy I bought the bike from. The guy in Montana wouldn't help at all. I ended up making a "statement of facts" to the CA DMV. They saw that I had made a good faith effort and granted me a CA clean title.

Lesson learned, I avoid anything without a title now. Maybe AZ has a similar process. They might work with you if you explain things to them.

redneck20 said:

I just got off the phone with him , I think we have a plan of attack on my screw up.

Click to expand...

Good deal!!! good luck.

swbradley1 said:

That might be why there are so many warnings on this site to never buy anything but a parts truck WITHOUT a clear title.

Click to expand...

Another good idea, when buying a truck without a title (for parts or not), is to have the VIN checked by LE to make sure it is not stolen. I've had this happen to me on an old car a guy gave me years ago. It was a piece of junk but I thought I could fix it up. Ended up having to give it back to the original owner. (Thankfully I didn't put any money into it) FYI

M35A2-AZ said:

This is how I know it works in AZ. When you get a truck from GL you send off for the SF-97.
When the SF-97 comes you receive the SF-97 and a power of attorney from GL to the
you. Then you go to DMV they do a title to GL then do a 2nd title from GL to you.
You can not have a 2nd level of a power of attorney in AZ. You maybe able to get away
with it by going to a 3rd party DMV place.

Click to expand...

To clarify, the reason for this is that the SF97 has a "Transferor" and "Transferee" which is the seller and buyer, respectively. The SF97s from GL have the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) listed as the transferor (seller) and Government Liquidation listed as the transferee (buyer). They provide a power of attorney to you to sign for them and obtain a title in their name, and then in your name.