I recently purchased a new(er) pontoon boat, so I’ve listed the old one on Craigslist. I’ve bought/sold boats on Craigslist before, it’s not as bad as you might imagine.
Anyway, after dealing with dozens of flakes, I have a buyer who has asked all the right questions, sounds sincere, and we’ve settled on a fair price. He is coming tomorrow afternoon, cash in hand, and would like to leave with the boat once he hears it run.
The snag is that he is driving from Canada, our neighbor to the north. With previous boat sales/purchases, the protocol involves going to the notary, transferring title to boat and trailer, paying fees, getting a new plate, etc.
Canadian dude says notary is uneccesary. He just needs seperate bills of sale for the boat and trailer. Is he correct? If so, can I just write up bills of sale on a piece of printer paper? For a ten thousand dollar total do I just make one for 9 (boat) and one for 1 (trailer)?
He’s going to have to pay taxes and duty when crossing back to Canada. The better the documentation of the sale the easier it will be for him to settle accounts. An itemized invoice, or separate invoices for boat and trailer are going to be sufficient. Invoice should have both the seller’s and buyer’s information, including name, address, phone number. A notarized bill of sale is not necessary, but would not be a bad idea. A notarized ‘no liens’ statement would also be good.
It’s not as complicated of a process as importing a car. Importing marine pleasure craft.
If I was your buyer, I’d call CBSA and get clarification as to what they will accept as “proof of ownership”. Likely, the bill of sale is sufficient.
Oh, and the ubiquitous, “Happiest days of a boat owner’s life, etc…”
Oh, and pardon if I’m stating the obvious, but: bills of sale should include whatever serial/hull numbers can be found on the trailer, motor and boat. Also, copies of any registration certificates you may have for the boat and trailer.
The more backup paperwork you provide to the buyer, the less likely he’ll be back on your doorstep asking for a refund because he couldn’t get the boat across the border.
And double check the lazarettes for any forgotten recreational substances.
Well, after all that the dude didn’t buy my boat. He looked at two yesterday in his price range and went with the other one, smaller outboard but better seats.
The pontoon boat I purchased a few weeks ago is a pretty nice, but older, boat. The owner put a ton of money into it. The price was right and I hurried to withdraw cash to seal the deal.
We met later at a local notary. She arrived before me, and completed her end of the paperwork. I showed up, did my paperwork, paid ~$300 in various state boat commission and DMV fees, and we left.
Outside I realized I still had a wad of cash that I had with me to pay 6% PA sales tax. I mentioned it to her and she rolled her eyes. She’d told the notary the boat was old and not worth anything, so she was gifting it to me. She told me everyone does it that way.
In the United States the certificate of title for a vehicle (also known as a car title or pink slip; or pinks in the plural) is a legal form, establishing a person or business as the legal owner of a vehicle. Vehicle titles in the U.S. are commonly issued by the state DMV. A title indicates whether a vehicle or boat has a lien on it.
