bill of sale question

[brijones1]

I bought a boat last year that is less than 12ft long and the title that was given to me is no good since the guy had white out on it.  All I need according to the dmv is a bill of sale.  My question is;  To have my newly made bill of sale signed and sealed by a notary, do both parties involved have to be present or can I just mail him the bill of sale, have him sign it and send it back to me, in which I will take to a notary.  Its such a pain in the a$$ to do the right thing sometimes.  I have to get it registered since it will be powered.

[CapBob]

the letter of the law  requires the notary witness both signature.....but that will be up to your notary

[Luna Sea 5]

when I get my small boat, all that was needed was a written letter from the old owner, including his name, address, social, price, and signature.

[Bucktail]

It sometimes depends on who you get at the DMV.  Some are OK with a signed letter or store stamp on Statement of Origin and some are sticklers for that Notary stamp.  I've heard both from customers that have bought boats from me.

[Kenny]

Hey Brijones,

I worked as a remarketing agent for an equipment leasing company a few years back and used to deal with title problems similar to yours almost every day.

There are 3 scenarios that I can come up with for you. I'm assuming that the title was filled out and then some portions were whited out by the Seller, not you.

Scenario # 1

DMV May take a written Bill of Sale from the Seller. It would have to have both Seller and Buyers signatures notarized.


Scenario #2

You would have to get a signed and notarized Title affidavit from the seller explaining why some portions were whited out and give an explanation as to why the corrections were made, ie: a previous buyer backed out of a deal to purchase the boat after the title had been filled out. Or whatever the reason, it needs to be explained in detail.

Example:

Title Affidavit

To NJ Division of Motor Vehicles

Re Year Make Model and Vin Number of the boat.


To whom it may concern,

This letter is to certify that the above referenced title was incorrectly filled out and portions were then whited out by the seller ( his name ) This was done for the following reasons...


__________________________
Sincerely, Name of Seller

Signed in the presence of the notary


Scenario #3

DMV can be a pain in the arss and say no to both of the above and make the seller apply for a duplicate title, voiding the one you have.

Problem here is that when the duplicate gets mailed it will go to the seller, not you.

I would go to DMV and ask them exactly what they require you to do. Every one and every person you deal with can give a different answer.

I hope this helps you.....
If you have any questions drop me a pm

Kenny.

[brijones1]

Thanks Kenny for the help.  I will be able to do scenerio 1 and hopefully thats all I need.  If thats not accepted, I will try the others you posted. 

[Kenny]

Glad to help. 

[striper74]

If you have a good relationship with with your insurance agent, they may be willing to notarize the doc. for you without both parties present. 

Not all agents are notarized, but many are.  It's worth a shot!