MA Sales Tax on a Bike...

[Garrett]

RMV website says "NADA Trade in Value" but NADA does not offer a trade in on the bike I"m titling (1986 GSXR1100).
The values they offer are:
Excellent $1685
Very Good $1215
Good $670
Fair $295

So which one are they gonna go by?

[importcustomx]

grab your ankles, because they are going to go by whatever makes them the most money!

[e30addict]

I'm convinced they just make it up. I've never been able to figure out how they come up with a value, despite what the website says.

[Garrett]

Agreed.

[SwiftTone]

Yep, agreed

[importcustomx]

I'm convinced they just make it up. I've never been able to figure out how they come up with a value, despite what the website says.

unless its new, it does depend on the person at the counter and the mood they are in, its ridiculous. I registered a 2005 f4i and 2004 f4i, a few months apart and the sales tax on the 05 was way cheaper than the 04...it was silly.

The registry are a bunch of pirates.

[AVI8_636]

With every vehicle I ever purchased while living in Ma, they charge you the higher of the two values.

Example:

Bike is worth $1000, but you paid $500, you pay the taxes on $1000.

Bike is worth $1000, but you got ripped off and paid $1500, you pay taxes on $1500.

Either way, you lose, MA wins. I'm so glad to be out of that state.

[Imbeek]

I just paid the sales tax on two used bikes a couple weeks ago, because both bikes came from Connecticut and I want to get Massachusetts titles in my name. I did both at the same time, using the same worker at RMV Springfield. On the one where the bill of sale said a value lower than their book trade-in value, they charged me the trade-in value they had listed; in other words, more than I paid. On the one where my bill of sale said I paid more than their trade-in value they charged me tax on my paid amount. So if you are hoping for a low book value on the bike, make sure your bill of sale doesn't say anything higher than that number!

[duganc1717]

Guess I'm lucky, every bike I have paid sales tax on since 06' has been under book value. In 2010 I bought a 2006 Gsxr-1000 pretty sure book value was still around $7800, paid sales on purchase price of $2200....

[nhbubba]

Either way, you lose, MA wins. I'm so glad to be out of that state.

Eh. As much as it pains me to say this, NH isn't all picnic either. Your reg fee is something of a dart thrown at the wall too.

I bought my 2011 used in the summer of 2011. Guy had it 3 months. The town clerk's book didn't cover 2011 yet and since the bike was not new, she would not take the number on my bill of sale. At one point she wanted to charge me road tax on $10k worth of bike! She actually said "Why don't we just call it $10k." Uh, how 'bout we not!

[AVI8_636]

Eh. As much as it pains me to say this, NH isn't all picnic either. Your reg fee is something of a dart thrown at the wall too.

I bought my 2011 used in the summer of 2011. Guy had it 3 months. The town clerk's book didn't cover 2011 yet and since the bike was not new, she would not take the number on my bill of sale. At one point she wanted to charge me road tax on $10k worth of bike! She actually said "Why don't we just call it $10k." Uh, how 'bout we not!

I know NH isn't the greatest either, but after spending my entire life in MA though, I'll take NH any day. I'll never go back to MA.

[jwm2k3]

This is all true except when purchasing from a dealer. The RMV1 form the dealer fills out will state the purchase price, RMV goes by that.

[e30addict]

This is all true except when purchasing from a dealer. The RMV1 form the dealer fills out will state the purchase price, RMV goes by that.

Unless they think you didn't pay enough, then they still charge whatever they want. The only exceptions I've ever seen is if the vehicle is new OR the selling dealer sends a runner to the RMV on the used veh.

[jwm2k3]

Unless they think you didn't pay enough, then they still charge whatever they want. The only exceptions I've ever seen is if the vehicle is new OR the selling dealer sends a runner to the RMV on the used veh.

Sorry, no. Its not up to the RMV teller...if you roll in there with an RMV1 form with the dealers tax ID and signature, they go by the sales price written on the RMV1. Period.

Silly BMW guy......quattro for life!

[e30addict]

Sorry, no. Its not up to the RMV teller...if you roll in there with an RMV1 form with the dealers tax ID and signature, they go by the sales price written on the RMV1. Period.

Please tell that to the clerks in Lawrence then. One of them scratched out what the dealer put and wrote in THEIR amount.

Silly BMW guy......quattro for life!

Those are fighting words

Saying quattro rules is simply the justification that one uses so they don't have to admit their car control needs improvement...... RWD and snows and I'll make your average Audi driver look like a noob

Audi's are too front heavy to handle well at the limit.

It is the best AWD system I know of though.

[Dannyf]

They just make the shit up. After I bought my 1198 in march I got an excise tax bill for $1,920.00. They claimed the Book value of the bike was 48K... I called them up told them they were wrong, they agreed and said they would send me the correct amount. 2 weeks later I get a bill for 1,120.00 claiming the book was now 28k. Once again I called them, this time I wasn't very pleasant when I asked where they get the MSRP from for their formula they couldn't tell me. Now granted this was at a town level but I am willing to bet the state uses the same black magic for getting values.

[jwm2k3]

Please tell that to the clerks in Lawrence then. One of them scratched out what the dealer put and wrote in THEIR amount.



Those are fighting words

Saying quattro rules is simply the justification that one uses so they don't have to admit their car control needs improvement...... RWD and snows and I'll make your average Audi driver look like a noob

Audi's are too front heavy to handle well at the limit.

It is the best AWD system I know of though.

True. Im currently driving a 2005 S4 with the V8....super nose heavy!!

And if the dealer puts the tax amount in there, thats what they pay for state taxes...an RMV employee scratching out the written in amount and putting in their own number?? No fuckin way I would have settled for that. I would have gotten irate and the registrar herself woulda had to come down and settle it. No a chance in hell.

[Raffi D]

The state has to make money somehow and it's a business after all. I forget if they just use the standard sales tax (6.25%) or have something in addition for vehicles. But just for example, if you paid $5k for a bike and expected to pay $313 in sales tax (assuming 6.25%) and they said your bike was valued at $7k and charged you $438, it's really not a big deal. That's apprx $10 per month that you probably spend on going out to eat anyway. You have bigger issues if that $10 a month is breaking your bank IMO. Lobby against how your taxpayer dollars are spent instead.

Granted some people are buying bikes that are well over $10k, it's all relative.

As for the case above with the "48k" that became a "28k" bike, that's just plain wrong.

[JohnnyV]

Wirelessly posted (Blackberry Bold 9930)

The state has to make money somehow and it's a business after all. I forget if they just use the standard sales tax (6.25%) or have something in addition for vehicles. But just for example, if you paid $5k for a bike and expected to pay $313 in sales tax (assuming 6.25%) and they said your bike was valued at $7k and charged you $438, it's really not a big deal. That's apprx $10 per month that you probably spend on going out to eat anyway. You have bigger issues if that $10 a month is breaking your bank IMO. Lobby against how your taxpayer dollars are spent instead.

Granted some people are buying bikes that are well over $10k, it's all relative.

As for the case above with the "48k" that became a "28k" bike, that's just plain wrong.

Are you fucking kidding?

Not really a big deal?

Because it may only work out to $10/month over the course of 5 years that makes it ok for the state to bend the rules and overcharge?

So say you go to buy a lawnmower. Price tag says $100. You go to pay, tax should be $6.25, right? Wrong, they decide at the register that the lawnmower you are paying $100 for is actually worth $200. So you pay $12.50

Next year you go back to the store to buy a new spark plug for your mower. Well hey, you now have to pay tax again on the mower you bought last year. Guess what though, your lucky day, the mower is only now valued at $150 so the tax you owe is now only $9.40.

But hey, its just a business, its ok.

God fucking help us all

[WordTooYoMamma]

Wirelessly posted (Blackberry Bold 9930)



Are you fucking kidding?

Not really a big deal?

Because it may only work out to $10/month over the course of 5 years that makes it ok for the state to bend the rules and overcharge?

So say you go to buy a lawnmower. Price tag says $100. You go to pay, tax should be $6.25, right? Wrong, they decide at the register that the lawnmower you are paying $100 for is actually worth $200. So you pay $12.50

Next year you go back to the store to buy a new spark plug for your mower. Well hey, you now have to pay tax again on the mower you bought last year. Guess what though, your lucky day, the mower is only now valued at $150 so the tax you owe is now only $9.40.

But hey, its just a business, its ok.

God fucking help us all

+1 Johnny -6.5% for Raffi

[jwm2k3]

+1 Johnny -6.5% for Raffi

6.25% buddy...

[FalArAk]

The state has to make money somehow and it's a business after all. I forget if they just use the standard sales tax (6.25%) or have something in addition for vehicles. But just for example, if you paid $5k for a bike and expected to pay $313 in sales tax (assuming 6.25%) and they said your bike was valued at $7k and charged you $438, it's really not a big deal. That's apprx $10 per month that you probably spend on going out to eat anyway. You have bigger issues if that $10 a month is breaking your bank IMO. Lobby against how your taxpayer dollars are spent instead.

Granted some people are buying bikes that are well over $10k, it's all relative.

As for the case above with the "48k" that became a "28k" bike, that's just plain wrong.

Wow.

They got you good.

Unfortunately, there are a lot of people like you in this state.

So..What branch do you work at ?

[snwbrdr435]

The state has to make money somehow and it's a business after all. I forget if they just use the standard sales tax (6.25%) or have something in addition for vehicles. But just for example, if you paid $5k for a bike and expected to pay $313 in sales tax (assuming 6.25%) and they said your bike was valued at $7k and charged you $438, it's really not a big deal. That's apprx $10 per month that you probably spend on going out to eat anyway. You have bigger issues if that $10 a month is breaking your bank IMO. Lobby against how your taxpayer dollars are spent instead.

Granted some people are buying bikes that are well over $10k, it's all relative.

As for the case above with the "48k" that became a "28k" bike, that's just plain wrong.

[drop]

The state has to make money somehow and it's a business after all.

state government is not a business. it would have gone bankrupt and shut down decades ago if it were.

[AVI8_636]

it would have gone bankrupt and shut down decades ago if it were.

Where have you been? We are bankrupt.