CA sales tax

[iw84u]

hi all, i recently won an 05 elise on ebay from a dealer in fresno, ca. i am trying to decide whether to fly out and drive back to NC or have it shipped. the dealer tells me that if i pick up the car, he will have to charge me CA sales tax (8%-10%). is this true? i don't see why, if i come with registration and a NC tag. he says it's the CA law.

thanks.

[Randy Chase]

Where will it be registered? NC?

The dealer I believe has to charge CALIF sales tax if he sells it to someone that physically takes possession of the car in this state.

Some states have a way to apply the sales tax to their own requirements, in other words you get that as a credit to your state when you register.

Can you take possession of the car across the border in Nevada?

[IsellLotus]

That might not be true.
I have sold cars to people and not charged them the sales tax in the state they are registering the car in. Depending on the state, I think you would pay the tax when your title the car. Some states may be different though.

[RoadDad]

Cali is so screwy with everything, who knows?

I bought my car out of state and paid my state's tax to the dealership. They had the car delivered with their state's temporary tags and I registered the vehicle here without paying further tax.

It didn't matter that the car was delivered vs if I had picked it up in person.

[larez2]

iw84u, congrats on your purchase, we've been waiting for you:
2 hours left

Welcome to to Lotus Community.

Randy Chase is correct - if you take delivery from a dealer at their retail location in CA, you have to pay CA sales tax, but you won't have to pay NC sales tax. If you get it shipped, you don't pay CA sales tax, you'll just pay the NC sales tax. Wierd.

FYI, I had considered purchasing the exact car you bought and at the time Fresno Lotus was going to include the stock wheels and stock coilovers (car currently has stiffer coilovers on it) Hopefully you'll be able to score them too.

HTH,
Larez2

[FIRME]

There are several ways you can do this but first off, taking delivery in CA will result in paying CA sales tax in the county you took delivery. If you do this, the dealer can give you a one way trip permit (about $20 or less) which allows you to drive straight to the state you'll be registering in and this permit would need to be pasted on the front windshield, passenger side bottom corner. You can also pay the dealer to register the car for you so that you do not have to hassle with it.

Or you can meet the dealer in state line Nevada but you'd need to get some paperwork notorized stating that you did not take delivery in CA in order for the state not to go after you or the dealership and you pay no sales tax for CA.

You can also have the vehicle shipped to you with no sales tax added to the bill and you'd be responsible for the registration and tax.

[CALtd]

What if it is delivered in Tijuana? For boats, title is transferred 7 miles offshore and the boat heads to Ensenada for 90 days.

[JoshS]

Also you can still negotiate price to pay less sales tax. I use to work on game shows (among 59 other full time jobs) and back then we told people who won a car to negotiate a deal for the car anywhere else get it on paper and that's the tax they have to pay. Since you won the car the dealer could sell it just a little over invoice, he makes no money on the tax and should work with you. His argument might be the state would go after him because he collected less tax then on comparable cars. Your argument, no sales person got a commission.

[FIRME]

Originally Posted by CALtd

What if it is delivered in Tijuana? For boats, title is transferred 7 miles offshore and the boat heads to Ensenada for 90 days.

Wouldn't work, you still need to register the vehicle and that's when they hit you for taxes.

[FIRME]

Originally Posted by JoshS

Also you can still negotiate price to pay less sales tax. I use to work on game shows (among 59 other full time jobs) and back then we told people who won a car to negotiate a deal for the car anywhere else get it on paper and that's the tax they have to pay. Since you won the car the dealer could sell it just a little over invoice, he makes no money on the tax and should work with you. His argument might be the state would go after him because he collected less tax then on comparable cars. Your argument, no sales person got a commission.

Actually, there is a sales person collecting a commission on this transaction and maybe 20-30 years ago you could have negotiated this type of deal when most deals were written by hand but now a days, dealerships are audited on a byweekly to monthly basis by DMV and ANY discrepencies in paperwork can cost the dealer $$$ and just not worth it anymore to them.

[iw84u]

i just spoke to gsm, if i come with nc tag, they will not charge me sales tax. so monday, i'll call ncdmv see about getting the tag. can you say "road trip" it'll be my first cross country.

will keep ya'll posted.

[FIRME]

Originally Posted by iw84u

i just spoke to gsm, if i come with nc tag, they will not charge me sales tax. so monday, i'll call ncdmv see about getting the tag. can you say "road trip" it'll be my first cross country.

will keep ya'll posted.

I've been dong this for 14 or 15 years and I've never heard of this so make sure this is 100% accurate or else you might be in for a big surprise.

[iw84u]

Originally Posted by FIRME

I've been dong this for 14 or 15 years and I've never heard of this so make sure this is 100% accurate or else you might be in for a big surprise.

but why wouldn't that work? if i have nc tag, that means i've already paid the sales tax for nc. and the car is registered to me. it's out of CA's jurisdiction.

[FIRME]

Originally Posted by iw84u

but why wouldn't that work? if i have nc tag, that means i've already paid the sales tax for nc. and the car is registered to me. it's out of CA's jurisdiction.

Yes, but you're driving off or taking delivery in CA and unless the dealership can provide a bill of lading that states you took delivery out of CA, this is what DMV will ask the dealer.

Hey, give it a try but I've gone through this road plenty of times when speaking with DMV and there are no short cuts to this.

What you say makes sense, but you have to understand that CA specifically states that if you take delivery in CA, you will be charged CA sales tax and if they see that you haven't, they're going to ask for a bill of lading or some other type of proof as to why you didn't pay. You won't have to worry about the dealership throwing you under the bus as it's their job to submit ALL paperwork to DMV and they'll have all your info to collect their money.

[Randy Chase]

Agreed with Firme. Any company selling any tangible product in the state, if it is delivered in this state, must collect sales tax. Period.

[lotusforsale]

Originally Posted by iw84u

but why wouldn't that work? if i have nc tag, that means i've already paid the sales tax for nc. and the car is registered to me. it's out of CA's jurisdiction.

I don't know about NC specifically, but I doubt the motor vehicle admin would issue to you a tag unless you had all info needed to secure a title, which includes a fully executed bill of sale.

Does your state have any required safety inspection required for titling/registering used cars?

[andykeck]

I bought a car from a CA dealer and had it shipped up to Seattle. I didn't pay CA sales tax but did have to fill out a bunch of paperwork to get out of it. The key was that I didn't take delivery in California.

Made no difference one way or the other as WA sales tax was higher than the CA rate, and here in Washington you have to pay the gap between what you'd owe here and what they collected out-of-state.

[JoshS]

Originally Posted by FIRME

Actually, there is a sales person collecting a commission on this transaction and maybe 20-30 years ago you could have negotiated this type of deal when most deals were written by hand but now a days, dealerships are audited on a byweekly to monthly basis by DMV and ANY discrepencies in paperwork can cost the dealer $$$ and just not worth it anymore to them.

He can give the same deal he gives employees, family etc. as long as he is not selling below his cost after rebates, etc.

[iw84u]

FYI, I had considered purchasing the exact car you bought and at the time Fresno Lotus was going to include the stock wheels and stock coilovers (car currently has stiffer coilovers on it) Hopefully you'll be able to score them too.

HTH,
Larez2[/quote]

yes, i am getting them also. what is the cost of the upgrades? is the ride much harder but improves handling with the stiffer coilovers?

thanks.

[NCZ06]

Originally Posted by iw84u

i just spoke to gsm, if i come with nc tag, they will not charge me sales tax. so monday, i'll call ncdmv see about getting the tag. can you say "road trip" it'll be my first cross country.

will keep ya'll posted.

Congrats on the purchase. I really like the SSR wheels on that car! I bought my car in VA and showed up with a NC tag and did not have to pay VA tax. It seems a little unfair that you'd have to be taxed in two states when you buy a car.

Good luck on the trip back home. What part of NC are you in? We have a pretty active group in the Charlotte area now. Check out www.carolinacarclubs.com for details.