Car Title after loan is paid off

[ws6guy]

So my wife just paid off her car loan and the bank sent us the title with the lien release section completed. Also they sent us a letter saying we have to go the BMV and request a clear title in her name.

This is our 5th vehicle we have purchased and had a lien however we have never went to the BMV to request a new title after the loan has been paid off. We've sold 2 of the other vehicles and no issues.

But now the lady at the BMV told my wife she has to apply for a new title even though the lien release section is filled because the title is still in the banks name.

Makes me wonder if I need to apply for new titles for my other 2 cars that have been paid off for years.

 

[yepthatsme]

I am dealing with a problem like this with a recent purchase of an RV from an estate. The title was never changed after being paid off. Now the title has to be cleared again from the loan company so that the heirs can apply for a new, clean title and then sign it over to me. It's a real headache. Yep, you definitely want to make sure your titles are clean and in your name and not in the name of the loan company.

 

[chocktaw2]

So my wife just paid off her car loan and the bank sent us the title with the lien release section completed. Also they sent us a letter saying we have to go the BMV and request a clear title in her name.

This is our 5th vehicle we have purchased and had a lien however we have never went to the BMV to request a new title after the loan has been paid off. We've sold 2 of the other vehicles and no issues.

But now the lady at the BMV told my wife she has to apply for a new title even though the lien release section is filled because the title is still in the banks name.

Makes me wonder if I need to apply for new titles for my other 2 cars that have been paid off for years.

When you re-title, you want your name and your wife's name on the titles. And yes, a clear title is a treasure.

 

[ws6guy]

I should add that under the owners section of the title it lists our name and not the bank.

 

[DoggyDaddy]

I'm pretty sure that whomever held my loan sent me a clean title once it was paid off.

 

[chocktaw2]

I'm pretty sure that whomever held my loan sent me a clean title once it was paid off.

Ours didn't. Just notarized it was paid off. New title, their charge.

 

[yepthatsme]

I should add that under the owners section of the title it lists our name and not the bank.

Understood. But if something was to happen to the original title, how can you prove the lien has been lifted when you apply for a replacement. Better safe than sorry. Apply for a clean title.

 

[WebSnyper]

Hmmm... I've never done this either. Just dropped them in the safe deposit box. May have to check this out, but never had an issue transferring a vehicle with a title like this before, but will review it.

 

[maxwelhse]

Understood. But if something was to happen to the original title, how can you prove the lien has been lifted when you apply for a replacement. Better safe than sorry. Apply for a clean title.

I've been down that road... or at least I've been down it 20 years ago. The nightmare was getting the BMV to agree about what I had to do. The doing of it wasn't a big deal.

I had to send registered letters to the last 3 addresses listed on the title and ask them whether or not the title still had any liens on it. In my case, I knew all 3 letters were coming back unopened, and they did. Took it all down to the BMV and got my title.

For fun: I knew they were coming back because I knew all of the people at those addresses where in some stage of the incarceration system.

 

[natdscott]

Normal.

Take the paid off Note, the existing RELEASED title, $15.00, ID, and your happy face to the BMV, and apply for a title.

That way, it will be so fresh and so clean, clean.

 

[nra4ever]

I feel like an outkast.

i have never applied for the new title. Never been a problem so far.

 

[k12lts]

I should add that under the owners section of the title it lists our name and not the bank.

Exactly. The title was never in the banks name, it is in your name with the bank listed as lien holder. When the vehicle is paid off the bank signs off and sends you the title. At that point it is a “clear” title.

I‘ve bought many vehicles like this and the transfer is not a problem. You can pay the BMV to issue a new title but why?

 

[Bugzilla]

I’ve always thought the ways vehicle’s titles are managed is a joke. The title should never change, like a birth certificate. You move out of state, new title. Sell the car, new title. Pay off the loan, new title. Each of these should be noted on the title so you can trace the history of the vehicle.

 

[White Squirrel]

Exactly. The title was never in the banks name, it is in your name with the bank listed as lien holder. When the vehicle is paid off the bank signs off and sends you the title. At that point it is a “clear” title.

I‘ve bought many vehicles like this and the transfer is not a problem. You can pay the BMV to issue a new title but why?

Agree completely. I have never had a vehicle that was "titled" to the bank. Every vehicle I have ever had was titled in my name, with just a lien put on by the bank. Once the lien is released and the release notarized, the title is in my name and it is clear.