Selling tractor : do I have to tell Kubota Credit ?

[Turbys_1700]

This thread hopefully will help someone out there that my be ready to purchase a used tractor...
I am quite sure that the Kubota contract would require the original loan to be paid off by the purchaser...
Some loans have penalties associated with them if the loan is paid off early...
In this case with zero percent financing typically the company makes up the difference in the selling price versus the financing charges thus no early pay off penalty charge...

 

[lamarbur]

I keep reading here, tractors do not have a title, none in Texas either,, I hate to break it to you but if it is financed it has a UCC certificate which is a title, Difference is, this certificate is sent to the attorney generals office in your respective state,, Years ago I bought an L48 from Messicks. A year later I am hit with excise tax from the town. I couldn't figure out why,, then a little research and it came down to Kubota credit sent the usual UCC certificate to the AG's office in Hartford,,, They in turn sent a copy to my town because, someone at Kubota wrote compact commercial back hoe,, After showing the tractor to the assessors and the 3 point hitch, it made no difference,, UCC says commercial it is no longer a small farm piece, and I end up paying excise tax, which in Ct is far from cheap,,, UCC certificates are a form of legal title,,

 

[Tx Jim]

I keep reading here, tractors do not have a title, none in Texas either,, I hate to break it to you but if it is financed it has a UCC certificate which is a title, Difference is, this certificate is sent to the attorney generals office in your respective state,,

I own a Kubota M7040 that I paid cash for. It has no UCC-1 filed on it and therefore has legal documentation resembling what you state is a title. Closest thing I have to a title is a signed "bill of sale". I think a UCC-1 is a far cry from a legal title that a state issues for cars.trucks,motorcycles & trailers

 

[blueriver]

I've never owned a tractor with a title .. A UCC is not a title .. It's proof of a lien against it.

Let me ask this ... If you buy a tractor that has a lien and the seller fails to satisfy the lien .. the repo guy comes to collect the tractor can you stop him from taking it ?

 

[GManBart]

I keep reading here, tractors do not have a title, none in Texas either,, I hate to break it to you but if it is financed it has a UCC certificate which is a title,

UCC certificates are a form of legal title,,

Lien filings and titles aren't the same thing.

 

[dave1949]

This thread, and the previous one on this topic, seem so silly. All you have to do is read the contract, or ask a lawyer, and of course the difference between unsecured (credit card) and secured loans has been adequately explained by a number of people here. Yes, it's "wrong" to sell a car or tractor without paying it off, but it can be done without any evil intent or without anyone losing money, but of course that doesn't make it "right" or legal.

I suppose a smart buyer would check to see if there's an outstanding loan on a car or tractor before buying from an individual. But when I sold my last Kubota, it was still financed with Kubota. The buyer never asked or I would have told him, and we'd have had to do more paperwork, take more time, etc. But since he didn't ask, I didn't mention it. I got cash, took that cash to the bank the next morning, and sent a check that day to Kubota to pay it off. So I reckon I was illegal for about 24 hours. Personally, there's just no way I'd have gone any longer without paying it off because you never know what might happen in the future.

How does a seller of a tractor assure the buyer that a Kubota lien is cleared? Let's say the balance is large enough the proceeds of the sale are needed to clear the lien.

When selling a home with a lien, there are lawyers, bankers, title companies, etc. to verify and square all that stuff away. The sale is timed-stamped and recorded at the court house.

I have no idea how that process would be done with a tractor sale and not have somebody's money "floating" at one point or another. ???

 

[blueriver]

How does a seller of a tractor assure the buyer that a Kubota lien is cleared? Let's say the balance is large enough the proceeds of the sale are needed to clear the lien. When selling a home with a lien, there are lawyers, bankers, title companies, etc. to verify and square all that stuff away. The sale is timed-stamped and recorded at the court house. I have no idea how that process would be done with a tractor sale and not have somebody's money "floating" at one point or another. ???

Buyer:
First do a. UCC search that will reveal the lien
holder. Contact them to get the payoff in writing and make your payment to the lien holder and the seller. If there is equity you can pay that directly to the seller.
Seller:
When you make your final payment the lien holder will sign off the UCC.. You can provide a copy of the satisfaction of lien to the buyer.

 

[dave1949]

Buyer:
First do a. UCC search that will reveal the lien
holder. Contact them to get the payoff in writing and make your payment to the lien holder and the seller. If there is equity you can pay that directly to the seller.
Seller:
When you make your final payment the lien holder will sign off the UCC.. You can provide a copy of the satisfaction of lien to the buyer.

That makes sense, but there are still some holes. For example as the seller, if the buyer is paying off the lien directly at the time of sale, the seller needs some assurance that that actually happens--and there are ways for the buyer to commit fraud in that process it seems.

Since small tractors have entered the "consumer product" sphere, it seems like the buying and selling process controls have not reflected that change. To begin with, there is no tractor title with a lien showing as is done with vehicles. I understand the UCC filing sort of stands in for that, but ...

 

[Poopdeck Pappy]

I've never owned a tractor with a title .. A UCC is not a title .. It's proof of a lien against it.

Let me ask this ... If you buy a tractor that has a lien and the seller fails to satisfy the lien .. the repo guy comes to collect the tractor can you stop him from taking it ?

No, you cannot. The reason is this: The lien existed at the time you bought the tractor. So you bought the tractor subect to the lien.

If you bought a car with a lien on it and the seller didn't pay it off, they could certainly come and repo the car from you. Same thing with the tractor.

 

[Bird]

That makes sense, but there are still some holes. For example as the seller, if the buyer is paying off the lien directly at the time of sale, the seller needs some assurance that that actually happens--and there are ways for the buyer to commit fraud in that process it seems.

Since small tractors have entered the "consumer product" sphere, it seems like the buying and selling process controls have not reflected that change. To begin with, there is no tractor title with a lien showing as is done with vehicles. I understand the UCC filing sort of stands in for that, but ...

I agree with blueriver as to what should be done. As to the holes, I think the seller and buyer should go together, call for the payoff amount, then go to a bank and get a cashier's check, and both buyer and seller see that it goes in the mail.

Several years ago, I sold a motorhome that was still financed with a finance company 200 miles from where we did the transfer. We went together to the buyer's bank, where they called the finance company, got the payoff, as well as the name of the person who had the title in hand. Then the buyer's banker gave him a check for the payoff (payee, the finance company of course) and me a check for my equity, and the buyer immediately drove the 200 miles to deliver the payoff check and get the title. I offered to go with him or drive him in my vehicle, but he said he'd rather just do it himself.