Wisconsin title.

[N1265]

Hi Guys,

not sure 100% where to post this question : I am from Ohio and I am going to buy a boat from Wisconsin. The seller says that Wisconsin does not title outboard motors or trailers and the only thing he has is a title for the boat itself ( 1972 Starcraft 18' holiday ) He also says that they do not need to get the transfer notarized , I find this kinda fishy and am wondering if there is a web site to confirm this ? ( or if anybody from WI can confirm )

Many Thanks,

 

[JASinIL2006]

I was looking at a Wisconsin boat that similarly didn’t require a title for the trailer. As I looked into what might be involved in getting the trailer titled and registered in Illinois, I actually decided it was going to be way too much hassle and I backed out of the deal.

It doesn’t matter what anyone from Wiconsin says; talk to whoever in Ohio registers and titles these things. They can advise you what would be needed to complete that transaction on a Wisconsin boat. My guess is it is going to be a real pain.

 

[GA_Boater]

As JAS said, forget Wisconsin and check the Ohio state officials.

Ask Ohio about a notary requirement. In GA only one person needs to be present to get a signature notarized. I've taken documents signed by the seller and I signed in front of the notary. In other states I've lived in both the seller and buyer had to sign in front of a notary. So check with Ohio.

Good luck luck on your project and hope to see you on the water.

 

[jbcurt00]

Ohio has pretty stringent documentation requirements so as noted start there. Make multiple inquiries to different BMV branches, the main office and the BMV website.

Many clerks dont know exactly what is required for boats from different states, older boats that pre-date HIN requirements, nor how to handle paperwork discrepancies they simply dont deal w it very often.

And as you already know BMV wants paperwork for all 3: trailer, boat & outboard. Many miss the trailer details when buying boats across statelines.

Good luck, it seems the seller knows whats required in his state, but what matters is Ohio. So at least it sounds like the seller is knowledgeable, and hopefully otherwise honest. And at 18ft, the boat had to be phyisically inspected and documented so there should be no problem w the boat portion of it w a valid title.

 

[roscoe]

In Wisconsin .

What you will/should get from seller:
a SIGNED registration card with the sellers name and signature,
a title, maybe, if the seller has owned it for many years, it may not have a title as they weren't required years ago.

Trailer will have a title and registration IF it is rated at over 3000# gross wt.

Outboards have no paperwork in Wisconsin.

Seller should also issue a Bill of Sale, with seller and buyer address and phone #, and details of all items, including serial number.

If the boat and motor paperwork are an issue in Ohio, pass.

The trailer can pretty easily be replaced with a new one that has paperwork.

 

[roscoe]

And at 18ft, the boat had to be phyisically inspected and

documented ..........

??????

Not sure what you are referring to.
Bought and sold several boats over 18' and none were ever inspected.

 

[jbcurt00]

@roscoe If you use Wisconson online registration as an out of stater, which I have, unregistered 18ftrs require an inspection to issue new registration in your name. I'd guess its to confirm boat your trying to register actually has the number your listing as a HIN is the correct number, and its the make/year you list.....

Unlike under 18ftrs, which is fairly easy w them trusting the info you plug in, and registration is issued via mail.

 

[roscoe]

i see, thanks for clarifying.

 

[WIMUSKY]

Doesn't sound fishy. I would do some research on your end and see what is required to register an out of state boat, motor and trailer and go from there. I wouldn't give up if it's a boat you really want. Just need to know how to go about the sale.
My boat has a Registration Certificate. Nothing for the motor, actually never heard of anything for motors, trailer isn't registered, not needed. As mentioned, I'm sure you hit a certain size/weight that changes.
I bought my rig in Mn where they did notarize the trailer. Being in WI, it's useless paperwork.
I'll attach a pic of the back of the boat certificate. It's the same for snowmobiles in WI, sign the front of the certificate and send the buyer on their way...

 

[Scott Danforth]

Wisconsin never had registration on motors as far back as I can remember. No trailer titles until over the 3000 GVW as indicated.

 

[72fj40]

N1265, you need to talk to folks with the state of Ohio who knows. Yrs ago I was interested in buying a boat in MI, which only requires the owner to sign the title over without it being notarized. I talked to someone in our local Ohio title office, and she said Ohio can't force other states to conform to Ohio laws. The State of Ohio has ways to deal with it. You may have to jump thru some additional hoops, but other folks have done it b4. You just need to figure out what Ohio process is. If I recall, I think Ohio only requires a weight slip and trailer manufacturer to get tags for it. Maybe a bill of sale. You need to do you own research.

 

[GA_Boater]

If you buy this boat, make sure you get a BOS for the boat and one for the trailer in addition to other Wisconsin paperwork. Don't try to use one BOS for both the boat and trailer.

 

[N1265]

Well, Here we go :

As suggested I contacted the local title office and was told I needed a Bill Of Sale for the Boat, Motor and Trailer witch needed to be signed by both the seller and buyer and have the date and purchase price listed on it. I was told I also needed the title for the boat that was signed off by the seller but it did not need any notary because Wisconsin is a "non notary" state. ( no title for OB Motor or trailer in WI ) I was also told I needed to take the boat to ODNR first with all the paperwork if it did not have a 12 digit HIN number before getting a title in my name for the boat and OB motor.

I then call the inspection station for ODNR and confirmed the paperwork needed and process.

After buying the boat and bringing it back to Ohio ODNR did the inspection and issued me a new 12 digit HIN number and paperwork to get a title for the Boat and OB motor, But when I took the same paperwork to the title agency they refused to issue a title for the Boat and Motor because the title was signed off by the Power Of Attorney of the boat owner. They say they need a copy of the POA to issue the titles.

I have reached out to the POA and asked for a copy, but have not received it yet..

I have never had to deal with POA paperwork before so my questions at this point are :

For the WI guys, do you need to show a copy of the POA when you go to get a boat into your name ? ( in Wisconsin )

For the OH guys, Do you need to show the POA paperwork to get boat in your name ( or when it is notarized in Ohio )

 

[GA_Boater]

It doesn't matter what we think. It's what Ohio wants.

I don't understand why a power of attorney is involved. Did you buy it from the owner or his representative? Who sold you the boat?

 

[N1265]

His represenative ( POA ) witch is his son, the owner is ill.

 

[Scott Danforth]

pick up phone, call the local Ohio DNR. talk to the folks on the end of the line. get answers, go from there.

 

[Captain Caveman]

You essentially bought the boat from someone that didn't own the boat. I can understand any government office being suspicious and wanting to see the legal papers that allowed the 3rd party (son in this case) to sell the boat for the rightful owner.

You've got to harass the son to get you the proper documents. If he doesn't, tell him that you want a full refund on the boat because he cannot legally transfer ownership. If that fails, threaten a lawsuit. This is also a good time to preserve your legal rights. Right everything down in a Word document, essentially laying out the basis for why you feel that the transaction was void due to the seller inaccurately representing his authority to sell the property.

Scott is right as well - work both ends of the line. Sweet talk the lady behind the counter in Ohio. See if somehow a phone call from the seller or some other solution can smooth things over.

 

[N1265]

UPDATE : I did get the paperwork I needed from the seller ( POA ) without much trouble and did get the boat and motor titled in my name. It is clear to me that a lot depends on who you talk to at these government agencies and when it comes to dealing with out of state boats it is hard to find two people on the same page. Many Thanks to all who replied to this thread .

 

[Captain Caveman]

That is always an important lesson. Never stop asking different people in government for a different outcome. Most importantly, I'm glad that the seller realized that the POA was a requirement and that he needed to send it to you.

 

[chris.olson]

For the WI guys, do you need to show a copy of the POA when you go to get a boat into your name ? ( in Wisconsin )

Glad you got it sorted out, but for future reference no, you don't in Wisconsin. The legal owners of the boat are shown on the title, but only if it is longer than 16 feet. Boats less than 16ft don't even have a title. If there is a POA involved they sign it by printing the owner's name then "by < signature> POA". End of story, it is accepted at face value. Only if there is a legal dispute in court over who owns the boat will the actual POA have to produced. As far as the WI DNR is concerned, they don't care who the boat belongs to as long as it's registered in somebody's name. Boats here in WI are common as dirt, they probably outnumber cars 3:1. The vast majority are sub-16' fishing boats. A resort might own 20 of 'em for rentals, tipped upside down on the shore with no outboard on it. If it's rented, grab an outboard off the rack and hang it on the back. The next time that outboard might be on a different boat. So they don't even bother to track outboards.

Some states, the red tape runs so deep you can't get to the bottom of it. Wisconsin is not one of those.