robin1234

I thought I read a couple of threads on this topic over the years, but now I can't find them.

Here's the situation; we live in New York State and are thinking seriously of buying a new car, a Honda Fit. Problem is our nearest Honda Dealer is 130 miles away. We are planning on spending a week at our daughter's in Massachusetts in mid-April, and she came up with the bright idea, why don't we buy the new car at the Honda dealer in Hyannis which is just a few miles from her house.

Usually when we buy a new car in NYS, we get the dealer to do the running, switch the plates from the old car to the new car etc. so all the bureaucratic stuff is done for us. How would this work if we bought a car at a dealer in Massachusetts? We'd be driving down in the car we wanted to trade in, and trade it in at the Honda dealer in MA. Is there a way to do it so we wouldn't have to register the car in MA?

Any insights gratefully received!!

AmerLisa

Get the dealer to do it?

Rete

Here's how my daughter handled buying a new car from a NJ dealer but she lived and registered it in NYS.

She bought the car from the NJ dealer. She had to have proof of auto insurance on the vehicle and the dealer in turn completed the sale, put a temporary paper plate in the back window and she had 10 days to register the car in NYS. She did not pay NJ State tax on the vehicle but had to pay NYS tax on it when she registered it.

PS it was not registered in NJ at all. The paper plate was only a temporary dealer plate.

Poppy girl

Yep I bought a car from NV dealership will do it.

ian-mstm

We live in Kentucky and bought my car at a dealership in West Virginia. Your current insurance should cover you for a new car - just be sure to let them know the first business day that you've got a new car. The dealership will send the paperwork wherever you want it... so just tell them you want the car registered in NYS. Most dealerships will attach temporary plates so you can drive the car off the lot.

Ian

robin1234

Thanks all! I guess what confused me is that our local dealer actually sends someone physically to the DMV, he/she does the paperwork and I don't have to do a thing. So I don't really have a clue as to what the paperwork involves. I guess in this case I'd be bringing back the NY plates to NYS, bring them into the DMV myself and we'd still be able to keep the same plates.. sorry to be so clueless but aside from the IRS, I'm not very good with bureaucracy!!

Michael

Whatever you do, make sure that the dealer is not charging you sales tax since you will have to pay a user tax (same percent as sales tax) when you register the car in NY.

Jerseygirl

A few months ago we bought a new car from a dealership in Manhattan. We had a temporary paper plate in the back window for 2 weeks. The dealer arranged for the car to be registered in NJ and they collected the NJ plates. It was just like buying a car in NJ...simple.

robin1234

Thanks .. in this case, it is about 200 miles from Hyannis to the nearest NYS DMV so of course the MA dealer would not physically go to the DMV...

EricK

I live in CT and bought a car from a main dealer in NY, they did everything for me, I had a temp paper plate for a couple of weeks and the dealer sent the CT plates through in the post once they had registered the car for me.

They charged me the local CT tax rate on the car rather than NY tax.

Rete

Registering a car in NYS is simple. You need the bill of sale, tax payment in full, auto insurance card, and your old plates. You can d/l the form online, complete it and bring it with you.

The thing that might not work for you on having the new dealership registering the car for you is that you are not buying within the tri-state area, i.e. NY, NJ, CT. Rather, you are buying in Massachusettes which is quite a haul.

Why not just buy it at a local (130 mi trip) in NYS and save the aggravation if you don't want to do the actual paperwork yourself.

Rete

You live in Stamford, a stone's throw from the NY border. Likely that you purchased your car in Yorktown, Maophac <sp> or there abouts.

Bob

Shouldn't be a problem, at a guess you can send your old plates into the DMV if you have to get new ones, but the DMV should have forms to transfer the plates to a new car.

Ask your insurance company, I bet they probably even have a runner service that deals with registering and plating the car, all you do is give them the cheques. I know that's what I did when we moved to MA from ME.

Rete

That might work with a local agent but if you are dealing with an agency such as GEICO that won't work. No local agent to do the running for you.

I've been in person to DMV here in Yonkers many times and while it is filled to the brim with people, it wasn't all that difficult or long a wait to register a new vehicle.

Where the OP lives it will probably be a walk in the park. He can always go to an office that is well in the boonies.

Rete

User Tax? Don't believe that is used in NYS. He will pay the sales tax applicable to the area he lives in. If one county of NYS is 7-1/2% but his is 5-1/4% he will pay the 5-1/4%