How do I get the title to my car?

How to get the car title?

• My husband is in the Army and our first duty station is in europe. When we first got here, we found out that the bus system for our post was crap, so we would need a car. Through bookoo we found an owner that was willing to sell to us for a decent price. He was getting ready to PCS (permanent change of station aka moving) and didn't want to take it with him. (Even though the Army will ship 1 vehicle free in this situation, it is a hassle.) When all three of us went to our bank to apply for a loan, we found out that the first owner didn't actually have the title. He purchased the vehicle in New York and financed through Bank of America, and he said there the bank will hold on to the title until it is paid off. Our bank contacted the Bank of America to find out they did indeed have the title, but they would not fax it over for record purposes. After both banks went back and forth, we had a final meeting two weeks later. Our bank approved the loan considering special circumstances, but required us to have it paid off before we PCS so that we can officially hold the title. Our bank did paperwork so that we could register and insure it without the title being in our name. Now, a year and a half later, our bank has been sending my deployed husband letters saying we need to retrieve the title from the original owner. Problem is, the original owner has long PCSed to Colorado. He won't answer our calls and emails, so we've considered trying to contact his command only as a last resort (and after redeployment). What I want to know is after we contact him, what exactly are we supposed to do? How does he need to retrieve the title to send to us? Can we take legal actions to force him to comply? Or is there any way we can retrieve the title without his involvement?

• Answer:

  Hopefully you have a Bill of Sale. But you need to go to the BMV and talk to them. I think you can apply for another title. It takes a week or 2 but you should be able to get it.