Selling a car in Boise: the paperwork, in Idaho's order

Signing the title: signature, date, no notary step on the ordinary route

Idaho's title transfer instructions for a private sale ask for the seller's signature releasing interest and the date of sale on the certificate itself. Nothing on the Idaho Transportation Department's current titles page lists a notary for that ordinary sign-over, and the bill of sale form has no notary block either. The place a notary does appear is the duplicate-title application, which is a different situation covered on the title problems page.

Sign only in the seller's block, never in the buyer's, and write the date the car changes hands. A title with the buyer's name left blank is the beginning of the problem the private-sale page exists to prevent: the car keeps your name on the state's record until someone files it, and the release of liability described below is your protection when they do not.

If your title shows a lienholder, the lien has to be released before a buyer can title the car. The ITD fact sheet on electronic liens describes the ordinary paper case this way: "When the loan for a vehicle with a paper title has been satisfied, and the lienholder has signed off the title to release the lien and has provided the title to the owner, some owners like to take the paper title they receive and resubmit it to ITD so they can receive a new, clear title." Confirm the ownership document and lien-release evidence your buyer will accept; the pickup buyer requires a physical paper title for a title-based offer.

Source: Idaho Transportation Department: Vehicle Titles; ITD: Electronic Lien and Title fact sheet.

The bill of sale is a tax document: ITD 3738

Idaho's bill of sale is form ITD 3738, and it is not decoration. The Idaho State Tax Commission tells buyers of a car from an individual: "The seller must enter the total sales price on the bill of sale and sign the title. The bill of sale establishes the sales price, and it's proof of how much you paid for the motor vehicle." Both of you sign it, and the buyer shows the original at the counter.

Write the real price. The buyer owes sales tax on that figure, so a number written low to do someone a favour is a tax problem with your signature on it. Keep a copy: it is your record of the price, the date and the buyer's name if a question arrives later.

The form has an odometer block of its own: the reading without tenths, and boxes for actual miles, not actual, exceeds mechanical limits, exempt and no odometer. Fill it in to match the title, not instead of the title; the disclosure the state requires is the one on the ownership document, and the bill of sale should agree with it.

Source: Idaho State Tax Commission: private and nondealer sales; ITD 3738, Bill of Sale (PDF).

ITD 3738: original Bill of Sale PDF.

The odometer line: 2011 and newer, under 16,000 pounds

The Idaho Transportation Department lists, among the documents a private-party buyer must bring, "Odometer Disclosure for vehicles newer than 2010, weighing under 16,000 lbs." For a car under the quoted weight limit, Idaho’s listed cutoff is model year 2011: disclose the reading and status when the rule applies. ITD's 2021 notice to dealers put the same rule the other way round: "Vehicles that are over 16,000 pounds GVWR and vehicles that are not self-propelled will remain exempt from odometer disclosure requirements, regardless of age."

Write the reading without tenths, and tick the status. A reading that is not the true mileage because the odometer was replaced or has rolled over is disclosed as such, not rounded into a clean number; the status boxes exist for exactly that.

Source: Idaho Transportation Department: Vehicle Titles; ITD notice to dealers on odometer exemptions (PDF).

Your plates come off, and one filing is yours

Idaho is a plates-stay-with-the-seller state, by statute. Idaho Code 49-431 says that on a transfer "the registration card and license plate shall remain with and in the possession of the transferor, and before the license plate shall be displayed upon another vehicle owned by the transferor, the transferor shall have that vehicle registered as provided for in section 49-401A, Idaho Code." Take the plates off before the car leaves your driveway, whoever is driving it away.

Then file the state's Notice of Release of Liability, ITD 3858, within five days. It is the seller's own filing, separate from anything the buyer does, and it has its own page here with the form, the deadline and the online route: release of liability.

Source: Idaho Code 49-431; ITD 3858, Notice of Release of Liability (PDF).

What your buyer does next, so you know what they will ask for

The buyer's side is countable. The Idaho Transportation Department's instruction for a private-party sale with no lienholder: "You must file the following documents with a county assessor's motor vehicle office within 30 days of transfer to avoid a $20.00 late-filing penalty." The state title fee is $14, and Ada County adds its own administrative fee; ITD's county table lists Ada's total title fee as $21.00.

The buyer also pays Idaho sales tax at that counter, not to you. The Tax Commission: "You owe sales tax on the total sales price of a motor vehicle you buy from an individual unless an exemption applies," collected by the county assessor or ITD when the buyer applies for the title, at Idaho's rate: "Idaho's sales tax rate is 6%." So a buyer asking you to collect tax, or to write a lower price so they pay less, is asking for something the state does not.

What the buyer will want from you, then: the signed and dated title, the signed bill of sale with the true price, the odometer disclosure when the model-year and vehicle rules require it, and evidence releasing any recorded lien. Give copies of everything you hand over to yourself first.

Source: Idaho Transportation Department: Vehicle Titles; Idaho State Tax Commission: private and nondealer sales; Idaho State Tax Commission: sales and use tax rate.

Where the buyer files it: Ada County DMV offices

Ada County's assessor runs the motor-vehicle counters, and its locations page lists the offices that handle titles, plates and registrations, all Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. all on one number, (208) 577-3135. The Franklin Road office is at 8655 W. Franklin Rd. Boise; the downtown office is at 190 East Front Street, Suite 107; there are also offices in Meridian, Garden City and Star. The county page reads, for the first: "Franklin Rd, Boise Office Address: 8655 W. Franklin Rd. Boise, ID 83709 (208) 577-3135 FAX: (208) 577-3139 Hours: M-F, 8 a.m.- 5 p.m."

These counters handle the buyer’s title application and seller tasks such as a plate transfer or title problem; confirm the service you need before travelling. Both can be done at the same counters.

Source: Ada County Assessor: DMV locations.

If you sell to the pickup buyer instead

The pickup buyer requires the physical paper title for a title-based offer. Confirm the buyer details and the subsequent title work before handing over the car. Its help centre says, "We'll need the physical paper title to provide you an offer based on having a title," and at the truck, "If you answered the condition questions indicating that you had a title and/or keys, you'll need to be able to provide them to the driver at or before the time of pick up." Payment is on the spot: "You will be paid at the time of pickup, the Carrier will provide your check once the vehicle is secured and all documents are exchanged."

Your plates still come off first, and the five-day release is still yours to file; do not assume that collection completes your seller filing. The offer page goes through the sequence and the alternatives to the check.

Source: The buyer: electronic titles; The buyer: title and keys at pickup; The buyer: payment timing.

Choose the next step

If the title is not in your hands, in your name alone, or shows a lender, start with title problems. If it is clean, the five-day release of liability is the one thing left that is yours to do. For a question about the pickup offer, call the Boise line, (208) 441-4018.