ecrabb
08-21-2011, 06:59 PM
This subject came up in a for-sale thread, and I thought it might be interesting to learn about the costs we all incur buying cars in our respective states, counties, cities, or villages, and whether the costs would have been different had you purchased the car elsewhere.
I'll start. Whether I bought a car locally, had it shipped from out of state, or whether I went and drove it back, Iowa makes me pay a sales tax when I register the car. So, these are the costs I'll have when I got back to Iowa with my new (to me) ZHP. I'll use a $15,000 '04 for example.
- 5% sales tax at registration application time ($750)
- Title Fee ($25.00)
- Registration ($251)
So, a total of $1,026 to get set up for the first year, and it's the same regardless of whether I buy the car five miles from home or 1000 miles from in Houston.
Every year after that, I'd have about the same $251 registration fee (use tax). It goes down a bit every so often as the car gets older (and diminishes in value) until the registration fee bottoms out at about $50 for older/cheaper (say $2000) cars.
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The other aspect of this is whether you pay a tax in the state the sale takes place (if that's out of state). I know many states exempt sales tax on cars that are leaving the state. For instance, in Florida and Texas, you'll pay no sales tax if you're leaving with the car and titling/registering it in your home state. Here's what the Texas Motor Vehicle Tax Guidebook says on the subject:
http://www.window.state.tx.us/taxinfo/taxpubs/tx96_254.pdf
A motor vehicle purchased in Texas for use exclusively outside Texas is exempt from the motor vehicle sales tax. To be exempt, the purchaser must not use the motor vehicle in Texas, except for transportation directly out of state, and must not title or register the motor vehicle in Texas. The purchaser should issue the seller at the time of sale Form 14-312, Texas Motor Vehicle Sales Tax Exemption Certificate – For Motor Vehicles Taken Out of State.
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So, what did you spend on "government goodies" when you bought your car?
Cheers,
SC
I'll start. Whether I bought a car locally, had it shipped from out of state, or whether I went and drove it back, Iowa makes me pay a sales tax when I register the car. So, these are the costs I'll have when I got back to Iowa with my new (to me) ZHP. I'll use a $15,000 '04 for example.
- 5% sales tax at registration application time ($750)
- Title Fee ($25.00)
- Registration ($251)
So, a total of $1,026 to get set up for the first year, and it's the same regardless of whether I buy the car five miles from home or 1000 miles from in Houston.
Every year after that, I'd have about the same $251 registration fee (use tax). It goes down a bit every so often as the car gets older (and diminishes in value) until the registration fee bottoms out at about $50 for older/cheaper (say $2000) cars.
--------------
The other aspect of this is whether you pay a tax in the state the sale takes place (if that's out of state). I know many states exempt sales tax on cars that are leaving the state. For instance, in Florida and Texas, you'll pay no sales tax if you're leaving with the car and titling/registering it in your home state. Here's what the Texas Motor Vehicle Tax Guidebook says on the subject:
http://www.window.state.tx.us/taxinfo/taxpubs/tx96_254.pdf
A motor vehicle purchased in Texas for use exclusively outside Texas is exempt from the motor vehicle sales tax. To be exempt, the purchaser must not use the motor vehicle in Texas, except for transportation directly out of state, and must not title or register the motor vehicle in Texas. The purchaser should issue the seller at the time of sale Form 14-312, Texas Motor Vehicle Sales Tax Exemption Certificate – For Motor Vehicles Taken Out of State.
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So, what did you spend on "government goodies" when you bought your car?
Cheers,
SC