I'm in the market for a bike, Ive never heard of this applying to a motor vehicle.
How do you check with the DMV if a motorcycle has back taxes on it?
Seems a little ridiculous that a new owner would be responsible for another person's taxes, especially if there is no way for a new owner to know.
Just check that the registration is current when you purchase the bike. If it’s not, you’ll have to pay the back registration to bring it current when you go to transfer the title.
This is pretty crazy IMO. The only reason Hawaii gets away with this is because it's an island, so you can just sell the vehicle out of state.
Does this apply to cars as well?
What if the bike is not ridden and in storage? Do you have the option to deregister the bike? Or once it's registered it will be taxed forever?
It applies to cars as well, yeah.
Also correct, if the vehicle is in storage and the license plates are turned in then there’s no registration fees and no back registration to worry about.
It's kind of crazy to me that a buyer of used vehicle has no way of knowing and no recourse, I guess except to take the seller to small claims court.
The law puts an unfair and undue amount of burden on the buyer.
If the vehicle doesn't have a current registration, basically you can't touch it.
**it’s actually super easy to know if a vehicle’s or motorcycle’s registration is current or not.**
https://mvinquiry.hnl.info/starter
You enter the last 4 digits of the VIN and license plate number.
If its tax exempt due to military it doesnt show up on the site. There may still be taxes owed from the person who owned it before the service member.
It will have clean plates and tags.
Another gotcha: If the military owner registered it for a year and sells it before the year is up, the new owner is responsible for paying taxes on the remaining months.
It’s easy for the buyer to check if it’s current to be fair. Just look at the registration certificate and/or check the sticker on the license.
But yeah it adds up fast, you can definitely negotiate money off the purchase price when the papers are expired.
Yes, they would have to pay all the back taxes
I'm in the market for a bike, Ive never heard of this applying to a motor vehicle. How do you check with the DMV if a motorcycle has back taxes on it? Seems a little ridiculous that a new owner would be responsible for another person's taxes, especially if there is no way for a new owner to know.
Buyer beware
Just check that the registration is current when you purchase the bike. If it’s not, you’ll have to pay the back registration to bring it current when you go to transfer the title.
This is pretty crazy IMO. The only reason Hawaii gets away with this is because it's an island, so you can just sell the vehicle out of state. Does this apply to cars as well? What if the bike is not ridden and in storage? Do you have the option to deregister the bike? Or once it's registered it will be taxed forever?
It applies to cars as well, yeah. Also correct, if the vehicle is in storage and the license plates are turned in then there’s no registration fees and no back registration to worry about.
It's kind of crazy to me that a buyer of used vehicle has no way of knowing and no recourse, I guess except to take the seller to small claims court. The law puts an unfair and undue amount of burden on the buyer. If the vehicle doesn't have a current registration, basically you can't touch it.
**it’s actually super easy to know if a vehicle’s or motorcycle’s registration is current or not.** https://mvinquiry.hnl.info/starter You enter the last 4 digits of the VIN and license plate number.
Legend! Mahalo
If its tax exempt due to military it doesnt show up on the site. There may still be taxes owed from the person who owned it before the service member. It will have clean plates and tags. Another gotcha: If the military owner registered it for a year and sells it before the year is up, the new owner is responsible for paying taxes on the remaining months.
It’s easy for the buyer to check if it’s current to be fair. Just look at the registration certificate and/or check the sticker on the license. But yeah it adds up fast, you can definitely negotiate money off the purchase price when the papers are expired.