I don't get why some states impliment a use tax. (1 Viewer)

[Steven K]

Massachusetts:
Sales Tax: 5%
State Income Tax: 5.3%

New Hampshire (< 30 miles away)
Sales Tax: none
State Income Tax: none

Hmmm... methinks a move the Nashua might be something to think about...

 

[Yee-Ming]

Carl: thanks for the info. so am I right in saying that the licence plates actually change each time there's a new owner of the car? or was it only because you're in a different state?

seems like unnecessary paperwork to change licence plates on a car for each new owner, why not keep the plates but record that the owner of the car is now different?

 

[Scott Merryfield]

seems like unnecessary paperwork to change licence plates on a car for each new owner, why not keep the plates but record that the owner of the car is now different?

Whether the license plates are transferred or new ones are issued when the ownership of a car is transferred is irrelavent to most of this discussion. In either case, the transaction must be recorded at the new owner's Department of Motor Vehicles (or Secretary of State here in Michigan). At that time, a fee will be assessed to the new owner to either transfer the existing plate or issue a new one. The only thing you are saving with a transfer is the use of an extra piece of metal (the physical plate).

Personally, whenever I sell a vehicle, I never give the buyer an option to transfer the existing plate. I remove the plate before turning the vehicle over. The buyer must make a trip to the Sec of State in either case.

 

[Wayne Bundrick]

In my state the plate is associated with the person, not the car. If he sells the car then he keeps the plate and puts it on his next car. This wasn't always true, it used to be that the plate had to follow the car, but the law was changed in the past 5-10 years.

Also in my state, when you buy a car, you pay a sales tax on it based on where you live, not where you bought the car. Counties here have different sales tax rates ranging from 1% to 4% on top of the state sales tax. The car dealers in counties with high sales tax successfully lobbied the government to make an exception to the tax law for them so they wouldn't lose business to the dealers in counties with low sales tax.

 

[Yee-Ming]

Gentlemen: thanks for humouring a too-curious non-American!

interesting insight into the different way different countries do things: around here, the registration number generally stays with the car, and the change in ownership is reflected with the Registry of Vehicles upon surrender of the current log-card with a signed transfer form -- the Registry then issues a new log card with the new owner's particulars, and updates its records.