jfdlaw
Silver Member
One of my friends bought a 2001 Deere 4200 TLB a little over a year ago. He found it in NC listed in one of the online classified (trader) sites. They struck a deal, he wired the money and had the tractor shipped here to NY. It was what was promised and everyone was happy . . . UNTIL HE GOT THE PHONE CALL.
Deere credit called. The seller had financed the tractor and while he took the money, he had not paid off the loan.
What we think happened is this: My friend had some work done at the local deere dealer. They registered the tractor on their system, when the seller quit making payments they came looking here. Told him they would be happy to let him keep the tractor if he paid the $20,000 balance on the loan.
Lessons for buyers of used tractors: 1. since they have no title on which liens would be recorded, finance companies frequently file UCC liens. You need to do a lien search in both the local county and state capital to make sure there are no liens on the equipment. 2. run the serial number by the dealer.
In this case the second point would not have been helpful, but the first might have revealed the lien. I say might because the UCC system in many states is weak and not set up for consumer use. In our state a search of the state UCC filings often takes 10 days and costs about $40. The county search is hit and miss, because you can't be sure which county the seller resided in when he bought the machine.
It's another thing to keep in mind when making the decision to go new or used.
Deere credit called. The seller had financed the tractor and while he took the money, he had not paid off the loan.
What we think happened is this: My friend had some work done at the local deere dealer. They registered the tractor on their system, when the seller quit making payments they came looking here. Told him they would be happy to let him keep the tractor if he paid the $20,000 balance on the loan.
Lessons for buyers of used tractors: 1. since they have no title on which liens would be recorded, finance companies frequently file UCC liens. You need to do a lien search in both the local county and state capital to make sure there are no liens on the equipment. 2. run the serial number by the dealer.
In this case the second point would not have been helpful, but the first might have revealed the lien. I say might because the UCC system in many states is weak and not set up for consumer use. In our state a search of the state UCC filings often takes 10 days and costs about $40. The county search is hit and miss, because you can't be sure which county the seller resided in when he bought the machine.
It's another thing to keep in mind when making the decision to go new or used.
