Question about ad valorem tax on a used car purchase (Huntsville: sales, buy)

[Bucco Bruce]

My tag renewal month is October, which is next month. So, if I purchase a car now (September), will I have to pay the full ad valorem taxes when registering the car and then have to turn around and renew my tags and pay the valorem taxes again next month? Do they prorate the initial tax, like 1/12 for Sept and then tax you the full 12 months in October when I'd have to renew...or would I be paying in full both times? I'm kinda confused about this

Hopefully my question made sense. Just wondering if I should wait till October. I don't particularly care about paying the tag and reg in back to back months, just the ad val tax twice in FULL.

[LCTMadison]

No. You pay sales tax on the purchase, that is sent to the county by the dealership or you can just pay it when you register the car. Next year you will pay ad valorem tax (on a decreasing scale) when you renew your registration.

I would buy this month and just wait until October to register/tag the car. There is no reason to tag it this month only to have to renew in less than 30 days.

[MisterEd51]

The last time I bought a car the ad valorem tax was assessed from the date of purchase to the next renewal date. I bought the car in November 2011 while the renewal month was August 2012 which meant I paid 10 months of ad valorem tax when I bought my car. I think I remember the car dealer taking care of the registration paperwork when I bought the car.

According to my tag receipt on November 2011 they reduced the assessed value of my car by 10/12 before the calculated the valorem tax. In November 2011 the assessed value was $2400. The assessed value in August 2012 was $2900. Working backwards knowing that the assessed value is 15% of the fair market value the means that even almost a year after I bought my car they claimed the fair market value of my car was $19,333. Note in November 2011 I only paid $17000 for my car.

When you get your tag receipt for your car you can look to see how the fees are calculated
Assessed Value = 15% of fair market value car * fraction of year until regular renewal month
For Huntsville Ad valorem tax = $5.80 * Assessed Value

BTW, the clock for the the ad valorem tax runs even if you don't drive the car. I have a feeling that if you buy the car in September and register it in October they will still assess the tax starting in September.