DH and I finally decided to replace his old car with a newer one. We found one we like at a good price from a private seller and agreed on the terms. No money has changed hands yet, since we need to order a cashier's check from our out-of-town bank, and the seller didn't care if we left a deposit. We're planning to go over Tuesday, when we'll have the check, and do the sale.
The wrinkle is, she's still making payments on the car, so she doesn't have the title. She needs our money to pay off the loan, at which point the bank will send her the title (10 days or so). We can't register the car without the title, and as the seller, she keeps the license plates. So we'll take the car home with our Bill of Sale but we can't do much with it.
I've never bought a used car from someone who didn't have title to the car. She seems entirely trustworthy, but of course it occurs to me that she could take our money and do whatever she wants with it, not pay off the loan, and then even if we have possession of the car, that doesn't do us much good.
Any thoughts? Is there some common way to resolve this issue? Can I get the cashier's check made out to her lender and have them send me the title directly? Or something else?
The wrinkle is, she's still making payments on the car, so she doesn't have the title. She needs our money to pay off the loan, at which point the bank will send her the title (10 days or so). We can't register the car without the title, and as the seller, she keeps the license plates. So we'll take the car home with our Bill of Sale but we can't do much with it.
I've never bought a used car from someone who didn't have title to the car. She seems entirely trustworthy, but of course it occurs to me that she could take our money and do whatever she wants with it, not pay off the loan, and then even if we have possession of the car, that doesn't do us much good.
Any thoughts? Is there some common way to resolve this issue? Can I get the cashier's check made out to her lender and have them send me the title directly? Or something else?