I found the car I want but the owner told me he owes a couple of grand more that the selling price. He assures me he will pay the remaining balance off in full when I send my payment in to his finance company.

Now tomorrow I am supposed to meet him and he told me he would let me see the loan information on his financing company's website. He also told me we can call them and they will mail the title directly to me since I am purhasing the car.

Now the guy seems like a pretty legit guy but I want to cover my ***. I dont want to be left holding the bag and be ****ed in the **** for the remaining balance. I told him that the fact he was upside down was a concern for me and he assured me he would pay off the difference in full. He also told me he is a registered real estate agent (showed me his card) and that they dont issue those with shady backgrounds etc...



Any words of advice on how to do the paperwork? I know we have a few peeps on the forum that most likely have dealt with this before. I havent because this is the first time I buy a car that hasnt been paid off.

 

In all seriousness though, I'm always skeptical of the "Route your payment to this offshore bank account and I'll give you the car, then pay it off after" type crap. I'd make sure you're protected...

 

I would be very careful. See if you can put your bank or credit union in the middle like an escrow. They won't give a loan if they don't have the title.

 

You might try and do the deal through a registered car dealer. Here in Jersey a car dealer will act as transfer agent. They usually charge a fee but it would be well worth it for the peace of mind.
And you pick the dealer! Good Luck.

 

I'm no expert on this but I don't like the sound of it. I would want a some legal expertise on my side. The title will still be in the hands of the lienholder. I don't see how he can sell it without that document or a representative from that enterprise. I'm sure this stuff happens all the time. I am very interested in finding out what the best course will be.

 

I did this once and what I suggest is that you arrange your payment in some verifiable form (like a cashier's check or money order) and actually *go with* the seller to get a cashier's check from their bank and then send in the payments to the finance company together. I even went as far as went to the post office with the guy, paid for Priority Mail, insurance and delivery confirmation on the payments that I sent. That way you know:

1. The seller has the money they say they do
2. They actually pay off the car
3. The title goes to you right away and the seller isn't dragging their feet

Good luck and hopefully it's all legit and you get the car you want.

 

Well I have already driven the car and the guy showed me his ID and registration papers. So I know it's not a scam but I just want to make sure that he will pay the rest of the car note off as he promises to do.

 

Since he now owes more on his loan than the amount you're buying the car for, that means he has to have the difference money from some source other than your purchase price.......why not insist that he pay that amount to his finance company BEFORE you buy the car, and confirm with the finance company (not just looking at their web page) the exact amount necessary for them to release the title to you. That way he won't be "upside down" when you buy the car. He has to pay the money anyway, why not insist that it be paid before you buy the car?

 

What assurance will you have that once all the money is received, the title won't go to this original owner? You may win a court case, provided you had all the documentation noted in a post above, but who needs that?

I am not experienced in these matters, so I am truly curious, not simply editorializing.

 

+1

The real issue is not weather you are going to pay, but if he is going to buck up! He needs to bring his money in verifiable terms before you or with you IMO.

 

I agree with the above. Offer to purchase the vehicle once he pays down to the sale price and you have verified through the lienholder that the title will pass directly to you (or your bank, wherever the money is coming from).

Realtor or not, he shouldn't be trying to sell the car at a price that won't pay off the loan. If he's got the money to cover the difference, he needs to go ahead and pay that difference and sell the car free and clear.

 

No one is going to buy it until he pays off that difference, so why doesn't he just do it?

 

One of my friends spent a stressful month trying to get the title to a car after a case like this. You need to at least get the other guy's finance company involved to be sure that you get the title.

 

First question, does the finance company have a local office?
The seller can arange to have the title forwarded to the local office. then you can both go, pay the money and you walk out with the title.
"And Bob's you Uncle".

 

Figured you guyz deserved an update.

I bought the car.. turns out he was only a few hundreds upside down. So I sent a check to his finance company and then he recieved the title 2 weeks later.

 

Think about what you are doing! The finance company does not OWE you anything. If he brings the amount due to exactly what you are paying and there are no additional charges or interest and you pay off the title, the lender will "clear" the title with the state of origin and return the title to the"owner", who is the seller. If the lender has another way of doing it, I would get them to put somethin in writing and then call back a gain to confirm that is what they will do. Even if you see the seller's licence, and possibly know here he works, what is to stop him from moving, getting his title and reselling the car? The recommendation that you go through a car dealer or appropriate 3rd party is in your best interest. If you are financing the car, what about your lender handling the transaction. Do you know that a bank check can be stopped? ?(See the caveat on Craig's list about this subject)

Have you had the car checked by a competent mechanic or MINI dealer?

 

And after he received the title he transferred it over to you???

(Just wanted to be sure...)

 

Yes of course. The guy was an honest guy I should say. Because when I/we called the finance company to send the payoff check, they said if I sent a request to have the title send to my house they would do it. So with my payoff check for his car I wrote a letter saying I was paying his car off as a buyer so to send the title to me but they still sent the title to him, which is no big deal since he called me as soon as he received it.

I took phisical possesion of the car the day I mailed the payoff check (we went together to the post office) We wrote the bill of sales and had them notarized and we also took compies of each other's driver license.

The car is a not a mini, its a bmw. I knew the car would need a few things fixed on it and I do my own work. In my 8 years that I have been driving I have never taken any of my cars to a shop.

 

Glad to hear that things went well.

OMG! Your poor MINI! What happened or did I miss that thread? I'll bite....What about your organs.....