holy crap, highway use tax - do I have this right?? (Durham: sales, real estate)

[scorp200]

I'm just getting around to my auto registration...

So I bought my car from a dealer in 2002. Still paying it off. Looking at DMV site...I owe 3 percent OF THE PURCHASE PRICE?!?!?!?

The car is no longer worth the purchase price and I bought it in NY.

This can't be right. Can it?? Oh my God.

I swear if this is true I despise this state and am leaving.

[coltank]

Vehicle taxes are based on the vehicle's value

[runhao_hu]

How about leasing? Will they charge the same 3% of market value?

To tell you the truth, if you are new to NC, as I do, you will find that tax burden here is higher than a lot of states, including MA. The only tax that is cheaper is the real estate tax per sq. feet. Other than that NC might give some tax incentives to Corporations if they can create local job opportunites.

Let's face the truth. NC is not a heaven, but it is a very nice place to raise family, because you will need larger house ...

Of cause, the whether (except summer) is nice.

[UNCMetsGal]

If you lease a car, YOU are responsible for the annual tax, registration, inspection, etc.., even though you do not own the car, nor possess the title.

-- From someone who leased a car and was PO'd about that little bit of info.

[lamishra]

From looking at the site, it seems that tax is only levied when a title is transferred in lieu of a state sales tax. I'm not sure why you would be paying it now?

North Carolina collects a 3% Highway Use Tax on vehicles in lieu of a state sales tax (General Statute 105-187.2). The tax is assessed each time a title is transferred. The maximum tax for commercial vehicles (vehicles with a weight greater than 26,000 pounds) is $1,000.00. All other vehicles are charged 3% with no ceiling.

Money that is collected for the Highway Use Tax goes towards the North Carolina Highway Trust Fund. That money is then used to improve the roads of North Carolina. Additionally, another portion of the money collected for the Highway Use Tax goes towards the State's General Fund.

Dealer Sales:

If the vehicle is purchased from a Dealer or a Leasing Company, the tax is 3% of the purchase price, less any trade in credit. A bill of sale must accompany each application.



Casual Sales:

Vehicles purchased from anyone other than a dealer must pay a 3% tax based on the vehicle's value according to a value table maintained by the North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles.

[MIKEJ]

I paid $223.00 to register my 2003 Toyota yesterday. Today I paid $30.00 to have my vehicle inspected. Now I'm awaiting the property tax bill which I have been advised will be 3% of the current value of the vehicle (not the value at the time of purchase).
As much as I enjoy being here in NC I too found the costs involved in registering the vehicle along with the yearly property tax bill somewhat "hard to swallow" but I take consolation in the fact that I am able to afford a much nicer home here.

[mm34b]

Originally Posted by scorp200

I'm just getting around to my auto registration...

So I bought my car from a dealer in 2002. Still paying it off. Looking at DMV site...I owe 3 percent OF THE PURCHASE PRICE?!?!?!?

The car is no longer worth the purchase price and I bought it in NY.

This can't be right. Can it?? Oh my God.

I swear if this is true I despise this state and am leaving.

Newcomers to NC get a break. They pay a maximum HUT tax of $150 when registering their out-of-state vehicles. This is a one-time tax. There's no sales tax on motor vehicles in North Carolina, only the HUT.

NCDOT Division of Motor Vehicles: Highway Use Tax (HUT)

[miamiblue]

This is what I found on the DMV website concerning Out of State Residents:

All transactions involving a vehicle titled out of state 90 days prior to registering in North Carolina will be taxed on vehicle value, with a maximum of $150.00 being assessed. If owned less than 90 days before applying for North Carolina Title, tax credit against the highway use tax due will be allowed for the amount of tax paid to the other state upon submission of proof of payment. If the vehicle was titled in North Carolina after 90 days of purchase from a dealer, no credit would be allowed. Full highway use tax would be due on the purchase price, less any trade-in credit.

It looks like you won't need to pay any more than $150.

EDIT: Looks like mm34b beat me to it while my computer decided to hiccup!

[lamishra]

Where did you get your car inspected? As long as it passed, it should only cost $9.25.

[cowboy_wilhelm]

Originally Posted by lamishra

Where did you get your car inspected? As long as it passed, it should only cost $9.25.

The $30 includes the emissions inspection for vehicles equipped with OBD II (1996 and newer) as well as the safety inspection.

Forty-eight of North Carolina's 100 counties require an emissions inspection:

Alamance, Brunswick, Buncombe, Burke, Cabarrus, Caldwell, Carteret, Catawba, Chatham, Cleveland, Craven, Cumberland, Davidson, Durham, Edgecombe, Forsyth, Franklin, Gaston, Granville, Guilford, Harnett, Haywood, Henderson, Iredell, Johnston, Lee, Lenoir, Lincoln, Mecklenburg, Moore, Nash, New Hanover, Onslow, Orange, Pitt, Randolph, Robeson, Rockingham, Rowan, Rutherford, Stanly, Stokes, Surry, Wake, Wayne, Wilkes, Wilson, and Union.

http://ncdot.org/dmv/graphics/emissionFuture.gif (broken link)

The different colors were the staggered starting dates for emissions inspections, all of which have passed.

North Carolina DMV - Vehicle Services