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Buying Deceased Person's Motorcycle

ctwo

ctwo

Merely Rhetorical
Joined
Feb 5, 2015
Location
auf der motobahn
Moto(s)
motato
Name
Heyou
It has been a long time since I bought a used vehicle, and invariably, I always seem to get the paperwork screwed up, mostly confusion over who signs which line. The text is plain confusing to me.

I may be looking at a bike this weekend and I was told the owner has passed away, so the brother is selling the bike. That's all I know about it.

I have read this: https://www.dmv.ca.gov/portal/dmv/?1dmy&urile=wcm:path:/dmv_content_en/dmv/vr/checklists/probate


I suspect the brother is just selling it, so I will need the "affidavit for transfer without probate" document completed by the heir, have them sign the deceased person's name in the "usual" place, and the heir sign's line 1, and a BoS, plus I will need to pay TWO transfer fees (about how much are they?).

How would I know who is the actual heir and is there anything else I should be aware of?

BTW, should this be in LEO forum?

Thanks!
 
When we sold a vehicle like that we had to supply a Death Certificate to the DMV.
 
Is the bike gold-plated? Previously owned by Elvis? A California-plated 2-stroke? An oval-pistoned NR500 or NR750? There are so many bikes for sale in California I find it's almost never worth dealing with paperwork hassles...
 
A guy I knew would just have the brother (or anyone, really) sign the required name on the dotted line, and pre-date the siggy needed. :dunno

While it certainly falls under the heading of fraud, he's never known the DMV to give too much of a fuck as long as their forms are filled out.
 
fubar929 said:
Is the bike gold-plated? Previously owned by Elvis? A California-plated 2-stroke? An oval-pistoned NR500 or NR750? There are so many bikes for sale in California I find it's almost never worth dealing with paperwork hassles...
Click to expand...

But if you had to put a dollar figure to the savings worth the hassle what would it be? What about $1000 cheaper than a comparable live owner bike sale?
 
buellistic said:
When we sold a vehicle like that we had to supply a Death Certificate to the DMV.
Click to expand...

+1 ...I was told the same thing when selling a bike belonging to a friend who had passed away.
 
I bought a horse trailer off a guy where he and his wife were both on the title, and had to supply a copy of the death certificate as well.

Some DMVs aren't great at dealing with these situations, not sure where you're located, but Concord and Napa I've had good luck at with employees who have brain cells they can rub together.
 
+1 on the death certificate, based on personal experience last year.
transfer fee is $15 + taxes

If the person selling you the bike is not on the title, you have to provide documentation to prove changes in ownership leading to you ( bill of sale).
 
There should be an executor of the probate which is the person who is assigned to handle the matters of selling the deceased persons property. That person has power of attorney to transfer and sell property as required. The court has to approve this executor and the court should issue a document stating so (which the executor should have).
 
Yea, when I sold my Dad's car (we sold it to Car Max), they required the death certificate and, I think, my Administrator paperwork.

I do give kudos to them, it was a painless process.
 
Get a AAA membership. It's worth it just for their DMV services. The people there are easy to deal with and usually know what they're talking about. I've had nothing but good experiences when dealing with the Concord office, which happens to be across the parking lot from the Concord DMV.
 
Thanks for the feedback.

When you say "we" had to supply death cert to DMV, that sounds like you all went to the DMV to do the paperwork. I was kind of expecting the paperwork would all get done on the sidewalk, like usual... Maybe I'll get copies of the death cert, executor order document, and the documents I mentioned.

I also have AAA, so maybe I should give them a call and see if there is an office around there, open on a Sat.

It's probably a good deal, listed about a grand under KBB, but I do not think they're selling for that too quickly anyway. Last thing I want is paperwork hassle though, and what I could see happening is that his brother sells the bike, but it belongs to the widow...
 
You need a certified copy of the death certificate, not just any copy.

It would be convenient if he had signed the paperwork before he died.
 
Your only other choice is to have the survivor get a new Pink in there name only....
 
In another state, I needed a short certificate, they called it. Go to AAA and just get what they need, no big deal really.
 
Too risky for me at any price.

Determine your risk tolerance and pay accordingly.

I would be wary of submitting myself to the mercy of a stranger, a potentially living owner and the DMV of California.

...

But Mean Dad is probably right, nobody is ever going to care about the brothers forged signature.
 
Blankpage said:
But if you had to put a dollar figure to the savings worth the hassle what would it be? What about $1000 cheaper than a comparable live owner bike sale?
Click to expand...

To get me interested in dealing with a paperwork shit show like that, I'd probably need to save $7500+.
 
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