New Vehicle Taxes
 

We are getting ready to purchase a new vehicle this week but a little unsure about taxes and fees the dealer is charging me that go to DMV. Anyone in Sumter County that would be will to share this info with me would be appreciated. I’m not at all interested in personal info I just have a couple add ons I question. Thank You

When you purchase a new vehicle, here are the mandatory fees from the DMV:

Sales tax, 6 percent plus $50
Title, $85.75
Tag transfer fee, $46.10

Note that, if you trade in a used vehicle, the sales tax is calculated only on the difference between the new car price and the trade value, so you save money by trading. Also, if you do not transfer a tag from another vehicle, you need to get a new tag, which will cost about $300, including the tag, registration, and plate. So, it is cheaper to transfer the tag, if possible.

What happen if I buy car out of state? Does the same 6% sales tax apply?

Yes. You can buy the car out of state, and register it in Florida, but you will still pay the Florida sales tax. I don't think you can escape the sales tax.

I also think there is a first time title fee of 225. in FL

OP, you can also stop by the Sumter County office in Pinellas Plaza (copper topped building), go in by the library, take a right, go to the end of the hall and slightly left, they will answer all of your questions.

The title fee is $85.75. I think you mean the first time registration fee, which is about $225. However, if you trade in an older car, you can transfer the registration to the new car for $46.10 and avoid the $225. Also, you don't pay the sales tax on the trade in value of the car. So, if you buy a new car for $30,000 and get $10,000 for a trade, the sales tax is only calculated on $20,000.

Why I originally asked is I paid $730 for registration and title on a new vehicle. As I understand it you cannot go to Sumter County office as I did with my car I brought from Maine, you must have dealer register and title it. The dealer of course gets a fee but I think they can charge what they want for their troubles. I suspect this is used as a profit center for dealers and is allowed by the state. If I'm off base here please someone let me know. There is no way I could come up with any where near $730 of State fees even with the $225 one time charge.

When we came to TV from out of state, we went to the DMV office at 466 and Morse. We were able to transfer our title, get our plates, get new drives license, all at the same place. Don't think you need the dealer to do it for you.

Assuming that you did not already have a car registered in Florida, then the registration and title would have cost $310.75 ($225 + $85.75). So, in my opinion, the dealer cheated you out of about $420. The dealer can charge a fee for anything they want, but that doesn't mean you have to accept it. I bought a car last year and I didn't pay the dealer anything, except the State fees. Also, I didn't pay the dealer a "document fee", which is another way dealers like to increase their profit by as much as $600. These are bogus fees. Whether or not you go to the Sumter County office yourself or the dealer transfers the title and registration for you is irrelevant. The dealer should not have charged you.

Buy out of state.
 

Never buy a car in Fl. Depending on the vehicle you will spend up to $10,000 more than you would in Tn or even Ga.

As stated, you still pay taxes/title and other fees but the price difference more than makes up for it. Plus you could have a nice getaway in the process!:a040:

DO NOT I repeat DO NOT pay dealer prep fees. Most all dealers in Florida try to get a crazy fee they call prep fees which are just charges to boost the price. The most you should pay , if any, is less than $200. This would include any money the dealer spent to get the car ready for you to take delivery. ( detailing etc.) Florida dealers are notorious for this. I went back to Illinois to buy a car for just that reason.

The only number you need to discuss with the dealer is the "out-the-door" price. If you do your homework and know what that price is, then you are just wasting time discussing anything else with the dealer. KBB.com and Edmunds.com will calculate a fair price, and almost any dealer will accept that price, if you know how to be firm. Also, KBB does not include any dealer prep or document fees because they are bogus fees.

Be careful and ONLY negotiate on the MSRP and not the additional strip next to the manufacturer's window sticker. This is a dealer ripoff that is common here in FL. I've seen an additional 1 to 3 thousand tacked on to the original window sticker. Do your homework and look up the car you want on KBB.com and find out what the actual price is. I had one Ford dealer tell me that if I ordered a car he would sell it to me for dealer invoice. Some even sell for below dealer invoice.
Bottom line is if you pay manufacturer's window sticker, you payed waaaaay too much.

The sales tax is paid in the state where the vehicle is purchased. If the purchase state is Maine, sales tax there is 5.5%. You then have to pay to FL the difference between the 5.5% and the FL state sales tax of 6% and an additional county tax (both Marion and Sumter) of 1%. For example if you pay $25k for the car Maine charges you $1,375 and FL charges you $375. If you buy in a state with equal or greater sales tax % you pay nothing to FL.