Buying a used car....in New Hampshire. Any tips or warnings? (Lowell: sales, loan)

[bostonguy1960]

I'm considering buying a used car from a dealer in New Hampshire.

I live in Massachusetts, and have not bought a car in 30 years!

Plus, I'm not a car guy, so I'm probably a dealer's wet dream.

Is it usually beneficial to buy a car in New Hampshire if a Massachusetts resident (all things equal on a specific car), maybe due to different tax laws or general policies?

Any tips, pitfalls or warnings? Or just don't bother buying out of state, period?

I assume I'd drive back here with New Hampshire temporary plates and a New Hampshire inspection sticker; maybe 21-30 days to update it all to conform to Massachusetts laws?

Thanks!

[massnative71]

You pay sales tax to Mass. when you register, so no real savings there that I'm aware of. Lemon laws used to be weaker in NH, not sure if that has changed or not.

[BosYuppie]

Did this a couple years ago. NH will not issue you a temp plate. I was sent with a loaner car to go wait at the Haverhill DMV for a plate and then go back and retrieve the car. It's worth the $100 or whatever for them to handle that for you.

You'll still be paying MA sales tax (required to get the plate)

Really unless it's a screaming deal or a specific car you're looking for, you should probably just buy it in MA.

[gf2020]

I have purchased several cars from dealerships in NH. They will know how to handle your transaction as a MA resident. They can not issue you a NH temporary plate. In each case, they used a runner service to process the transaction at the Lowell or Wilmington RMV office. You then have 7 days to get the car inspected in MA.

[lrfox]

Originally Posted by BosYuppie

Really unless it's a screaming deal or a specific car you're looking for, you should probably just buy it in MA.

This. Generally speaking, there's not much advantage to buying in NH over MA. If you can find the same car comparably priced in MA, it's a little bit less of a hassle to buy it here.

[bostonguy1960]

Good replies so far. Thanks.

[BostonMike7]

Only car I ever bought in NH was at a shady used car lot. They did NOT do anything to help me with regards to MA registration and basically told me I was on my own. I knew that, and bought the car anyway. In that case, you either tow it back, or illegally attach plates.

I'd probably buy from a major dealership in NH, but I doubt I would buy from a used car lot or private individual in NH again....unless it was a very specific car I needed.

[Shrewsburried]

If you're you're buying through large dealer just over the NH border, you shouldn't notice much of difference. As someone else stated, they have dedicated 'runners' who can leverage the Lowell RMV (if greater Nashua) or whatever the closest RMVs happen to be if near 93 or the seacoast. Turn around should be quick.

They also file the correct documentation to ensure you pay MA sales tax on your purchase price (e.g., after rebates) and not MSRP/book, per MA tax law. Everything runs through the MA RMV.

The only minor inconvenience is that since the dealerships service department is in NH, they do not provide MA inspections. This means you'll have to get a sticker on your own time within 7 days of purchase. Not a big deal if you're saving $$$ through that dealer.

[mdovell]

Why is there a lemon law...yeah...


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_IExD-J4_F8

[bizcuit]

I did this in August. I was trading in my old car. They switched the plates and they were able to issue temporary registration at the dealership. The permanent registration was mailed to me about a week later. I was able to drive it off the lot and home that day.

The dealership does a regular weekly run to submit paperwork to MA. They also have a sister dealership in MA. The only reason I bought the car this way was because this dealership had the car, make, model, year and transmission that I wanted. I wasn't trying to get a better deal or dodge taxes.