Car registration question (Bangor, Hope: house, transfer, to buy)

[Fern435]

Can I switch a car title/registration over to Maine a month before I'm moved in?

The registration here in Virginia will expire a few weeks before our move to Maine. I would like to drive the car up to Maine just before the Virginia registration expires and re-title/register the car in Maine. I will already have our Maine address; just won't have the household stuff moved in.

Each state does their registration process a little differently. I'm pretty certain the Maine DMV offices will be more pleasant to work with than the ones here.

Thanks!

[SailorGirl2001]

Yes you can. We switched over ours the day after we closed on our house but we didn't move to Maine full time until 6 months after that.

I would call your new local DMV and town office to find out the documents that you will need to present. And don't forget your checkbook for that excise tax. Hope you don't have a new car!

[Maineah]

Originally Posted by Fern435

Can I switch a car title/registration over to Maine a month before I'm moved in?

The registration here in Virginia will expire a few weeks before our move to Maine. I would like to drive the car up to Maine just before the Virginia registration expires and re-title/register the car in Maine. I will already have our Maine address; just won't have the household stuff moved in.

Each state does their registration process a little differently. I'm pretty certain the Maine DMV offices will be more pleasant to work with than the ones here.

Thanks!

Don't be too sure! Dealing with the DMV is a pain at best. SailorGirl is right about the excise tax. Maine has a terrible excise tax law. It is based on the price of your car when new and totally disregards the purchase price. Heaven knows we need all that tax money so the welfare checks can go out every month because there is NO WAY they put the excise tax money into the roads! We'll be driving on dirt again someday but people will still get their State Gum'ment check!

[Zarathu]

The good thing is that the excise tax goes pretty much back into the local community. In PA anything you pay for car registrations is never seen or heard from again.

So what you want to do is find some old car at a car show that has been completely rebuilt and buy that. Your original price will be cheap as heck, and it will be reduced by a huge amount because of the years since you bought it.

Don't bring your brand new BMW into Maine and register it. You won't like the excise tax yearly on a brand new $50K BMW.
A 1945 Willys jeep that cost $900 new would be good. $3.60 excise tax.

Excise Tax is calculated by multiplying the MSRP by the mil rate as shown below. The rates drop back on January 1 st of each year.

YEAR 1 .0240 mil rate
YEAR 2 .0175 mil rate
YEAR 3 .0135 mil rate
YEAR 4 .0100 mil rate
YEAR 5 .0065 mil rate
YEAR 6 .0040 mil rate

For example, a 3 year old car with an MSRP of $19,500 would pay $263.25. or at the 6 year level $78.



I'll be paying $70 FOR MY 2003 Ford Focus ZTW wagon, and I expect to pay about $36 for my 1995 Jeep Wrangler. But a $50K BMW would be $1200 excise the first year.

I have a great place in PA where the owner is really good at finding great used cars for cheap. I'll always return to PA to get my cars.


Z

[NJ2ME]

I THINK you need to have your Maine DL first before registering your vehicle. We just moved here in March, and I had surgery less thgen a week after arriving and wasn't allowed to drive to go to Bangor to get my license, so could not do my excise tax and registration forms at my town office. My husband who got his DL right away was able to do his stuff at the town office once he had his temperary DL form from going to DMV (piece of paper wioth DL # as waiting for the real DL to come in the mail). So as long as you get your DL... which means you need whatever forms that requires stating your now a resident... I'm sure you can register your vehicle too.

My car registration also expired in NJ 3 weeks before moving... and I HAD to pay the 79.00.... and then move to Maine and register all over again..

[Fern435]

Thank you for the replies! I will call the town office/local DMV and double check all the documents for transferring the registration (and a driver's license shortly after). A while back, a poster here supplied a link about the Maine excise tax that was very helpful, too.

Mostly good experiences with DMVs in the states where we've been. When we moved to northern Virginia, however, the DMV offices had just had a corruption problem. People who were not eligible for any driver's licenses were able to buy them under the table. They also have the unfortunate distinction of being the ones that issued drivers licenses to the 9/11 terrorists.

Each person that waited on me gave us a slightly different list of items and was very rude. One person insisted I needed to show her my marriage license. I've never had to present my marriage license to transfer a current driver's license to a new state. They also refused to accept my military ID card as a valid form of identification.

Maine's DMV website has clear information. I'll try to be prepared.

[Fern435]

Originally Posted by NJ2ME

I THINK you need to have your Maine DL first before registering your vehicle. We just moved here in March, and I had surgery less thgen a week after arriving and wasn't allowed to drive to go to Bangor to get my license, so could not do my excise tax and registration forms at my town office. My husband who got his DL right away was able to do his stuff at the town office once he had his temperary DL form from going to DMV (piece of paper wioth DL # as waiting for the real DL to come in the mail). So as long as you get your DL... which means you need whatever forms that requires stating your now a resident... I'm sure you can register your vehicle too.

My car registration also expired in NJ 3 weeks before moving... and I HAD to pay the 79.00.... and then move to Maine and register all over again..

Thank you, NJ2ME! Great information. This is exactly what I was wondering about (driver's license transfer being required before the car). Every state is a little different.

[Maineah]

Originally Posted by Zarathu

The good thing is that the excise tax goes pretty much back into the local community. In PA anything you pay for car registrations is never seen or heard from again.

So what you want to do is find some old car at a car show that has been completely rebuilt and buy that. Your original price will be cheap as heck, and it will be reduced by a huge amount because of the years since you bought it.

Don't bring your brand new BMW into Maine and register it. You won't like the excise tax yearly on a brand new $50K BMW.
A 1945 Willys jeep that cost $900 new would be good. $3.60 excise tax.

Excise Tax is calculated by multiplying the MSRP by the mil rate as shown below. The rates drop back on January 1 st of each year.

YEAR 1 .0240 mil rate
YEAR 2 .0175 mil rate
YEAR 3 .0135 mil rate
YEAR 4 .0100 mil rate
YEAR 5 .0065 mil rate
YEAR 6 .0040 mil rate

For example, a 3 year old car with an MSRP of $19,500 would pay $263.25. or at the 6 year level $78.



I'll be paying $70 FOR MY 2003 Ford Focus ZTW wagon, and I expect to pay about $36 for my 1995 Jeep Wrangler. But a $50K BMW would be $1200 excise the first year.

I have a great place in PA where the owner is really good at finding great used cars for cheap. I'll always return to PA to get my cars.


Z

My Father in Law had a Bentley a few years ago. It was $8,000 for the excise tax. The girl at the town office nearly had a heart attack!

[grunzen]

We just moved back here home to Maine. I went over and registered the car first. Then weeks later got our licenses switched over. Registering the car is easy because it's at the town office. You can show them your out of state license as proof of who you are, but you will need something (lease, bill, mortgage) with the correct address to show where you will be living. When you have to go to an actual DMV make sure you have plenty of time and a book to read.
Also keep in mind, as soon as you register your car you need to take it for a state inspection. Those can be a hassle depending on which garage you take it to.

[Zarathu]

You can get information on the Maine Vehicle Inspection stuff(only Cumberland County requires an emissions test) at:

State Police: Vehicle Inspections & Crashes: Motor Vehicle Investigations