Used Boats

[eyepatrol]

I thought I read somewhere that there is no sales tax on used boats. Is this correct???

[blakjack23]

I'm 99% sure that is true. When I bought my used boat from TN and registered it here I only had to pay tax on the trailer because thats the only thing MN titles.

[Northlander]

When I bought my used boat from a private party in Mn. and brought it over to Wi. I had to pay the tax. It sucked too. Wi. wants a piece of everything you buy.

[Pat K]

If you buy a used boat from a private party there is no MN. sales tax. If you buy it from a dealer you pay sales tax.

Pat K

[BarryG]

Down here in MOMO land you pay tax on the tax you pay!!!!

[ChuckN]

Correct on the boat, but only on private party sales. You DO have to pay sales tax on the trailer. Be prepared to give the state the value of the trailer when you transfer as it will be taxed.

[eyepatrol]

Well that makes a difference, especially when looking at a $30K or so boat. Buying a $30K boat from a private party could save nearly $2,000 on boat tax as compared to buying from a dealer. I suppose there are pros and cons to buying from either or, it's just the "risk" you take when buying used.

Are warranties transferrable when buying used? We were looking to buy new, but I don't think we'll be able to afford new. Slightly used (1yr old, maybe 2yrs) is more likely what we'll need to do.

[Satchmo]

Basscatcher--The warranties on the boats are generally not transferable from the original owner, but the balance of warranties on most brands of outboard motors can be tranferred for a small fee. It's usually only $25 to $50 for most of them.

[eyepatrol]

Thanks for the info SATCHMO. By the way....you have mail!

[primetime49]

You do have to pay sales tax a first time on any boat brouhgt into mn ,its called first time registrtion and even if you bought it from a private party the first mn reg will include sales tax,also you always have tax on trailers etc.if you go out of state and buy a motor only and that state does not have sales tax you are ok,but other states will charge you tax on this motor.all new boats or any boat brought in from another state has a first time tax.When titled here and resold by privte party only trailer is subject.

[sparkyaber]

Primetime, I beg to differ, I just bought a boat motor trailer in Oklahoma. I only paid tax on the trailer. The only issue I had is that the motor and boat had titles in Oklahoma not the trailer, and only the boat needed a title here in Minnesota, as well as the trailer. I just needed to tell the gal at the DMV what the trailer was worth so she could tax me on it.