Selling private Canada to US

[islandr]

Hello All,
What is the financial process for selling privately from Canada to the US in terms of payment? I know that a personal cheque or cashiers check from a US bank can take up to 2 weeks to clear, as well a wire transfer can be 1-2 days. Obviously we don't want to sign over the trailer until we have full payment. What have others done for payment? Any thoughts or ideas would be appreciated.

[Viajante]

I bought from private Canadian seller. The wire transfer took about 4 hrs. It seemed to be the best way. There are limits on bringing cash to Canada.

[FMLNM]

We did our purchase from a Canadian owner by wire transfer and it took only an hour or two. Be sure you get all the necessary info from the seller ... Our seller went to their bank and got their bank to fill out a form with all the needed info. They emailed it to us and we took it to our bank. Very easy and quick...plus a fee to the bank...about $30 as I recall....

[islandr]

Originally Posted by FMLNM

We did our purchase from a Canadian owner by wire transfer and it took only an hour or two. Be sure you get all the necessary info from the seller ... Our seller went to their bank and got their bank to fill out a form with all the needed info. They emailed it to us and we took it to our bank. Very easy and quick...plus a fee to the bank...about $30 as I recall....

So did you pay before you received the trailer?

[FMLNM]

Yes. The trailer was at ETI and they were doing some upgrades on it for us. The previous owner had ETI put it on the website for sale and that's how we found it. Granted, that makes for a very secure transaction....

[Viajante]

I did not pay in advance. We went to seller's bank to arrange the wire, then to provincial title/insurance place to sign the transfer of ownership. Meanwhile the brake controller was installed.

[fudge_brownie]

As a buyer you can expect you are going to pay in advance. Of course if the deal is local you can agree on a price and then initiate the wire while waiting but there are a lot of variables to overcome such as bank requirements to initiate wires before 2:00 pm, weekday only transfers and holidays, also banks will only guarantee next day delivery of a wire.

As a seller the only safe method to accept payment is a wire. In my mind it means you have to work in the parameters of a wire.

For cross border transactions you have to determine what the exchange rate will be. I believe this is very hard to find ahead of time, plus be cautious of extra fees or even fractional percents of the total taken out at transfer time.

[LeonW]

I am curious about what happens with all the importation certificates and the certification that the trailer meets US standards when you buy from a private party in Canada. The reason I ask is the DMV has been very insistent that I can't register my new trailer until the importation certificate is stamped by the person at the border crossing (Sumas). I think one of the reasons that ETI delivers the trailer to their US customers in Sumas is that they can make sure that the form gets stamped. As I recall, ETI uses an importer (or at least their name appears on the form).

Now that I think about it, if the DMV is following their rules, they should ask for these forms even if the transfer is from a US owner. But that makes me curious -- if you purchases a "pre-owned" escape, did the DMV want the importation forms?

[GerriJ]

We are in the process of selling our trailer and have had a number of inquiries from the US so I checked with my bank and with Tammy at ETI. Both said to request a Bank Draft (Cashier's cheque in the US) in advance. Both said there is minimal wait for the cheque to clear. It is preferable to have the trailer held by a third party until the transaction is completed so that the buyer is protected.
Incidentally there is no limit on the amount of money you bring into Canada provided you declare the exact amount over $10,000 that you are carrying as soon as you enter Canada. I just saw this on TV last night.
All Escape Trailers carry a decal (N56) that indicates that the trailer meets all DMV rsafety requirements for Canada and the United States. All the importer (buyer) needs to do is present a completed Form 7501 to the US Customs Officer when they enter the Us and have it stamped. Take the stamped 7501 to your local DMV office and register the trailer. This is what Tammy told me.

[FMLNM]

Originally Posted by GerriJ

All Escape Trailers carry a decal (N56) that indicates that the trailer meets all DMV rsafety requirements for Canada and the United States. All the importer (buyer) needs to do is present a completed Form 7501 to the US Customs Officer when they enter the Us and have it stamped. Take the stamped 7501 to your local DMV office and register the trailer. This is what Tammy told me.

That's the way it worked for us. Make sure you do not lose that 7501 after it is stamped at the border!!
And because we were concerned about towing all the way back to New Mexico without a license plate, we just took the one off our previous Scamp and put it on the Escape when we picked the trailer up from ETI. We figured we were less likely to get stopped on the drive home with a license plate than without one.
Since ours was not a new trailer but was at the ETI factory, we brought it through to the US, not ETI.

[Viajante]

You need the stamped 7501 form, which was done for me at Osoyoos. The advantage of crossing at Sumas is that they are familiar with the trailers. Also have a bill of sale and copy of previous registration for you state DMV. If your state issues plates in advance, fine. Mine did not so I simply taped a copy of my state application form to the inside of the back window and drove home without a problem.

Contact Tammy for forms. She knows the procedure.

There is a sticker on the side of the trailer re compliance with construction standards.

Importing was not a big deal. Just be patient at the border (it took only 20 minutes) and have the 7501 ready to be stamped.

[Viajante]

Re paying, I used a wire transfer. The sellers bank, RBC, charged 1.5%. Plus I paid about $40 for the wire. Does the cashiers check avoid the fee? I doubt it, but worth looking into. If the wire takes you into the next day, big deal, enjoy the trip. Even if cash is ok to bring into Canada I wouldn't. As a seller I would rather have the wire transfer.

[JohnB]

How about a certified cheque or money order.
That pretty well guarantees the payment I think!

[fudge_brownie]

My U.S. bank said the only method you can trust is a wire transfer. All other methods are easily forged. A wire guarantees that you have received the money.

For motor vehicles many eBay buyers will use www.escrow.com, this is particularly useful when you are having something shipped. It comes with some steeper fees, about 1%.

[mk1549]

Originally Posted by FMLNM

That's the way it worked for us. Make sure you do not lose that 7501 after it is stamped at the border!!
And because we were concerned about towing all the way back to New Mexico without a license plate, we just took the one off our previous Scamp and put it on the Escape when we picked the trailer up from ETI. We figured we were less likely to get stopped on the drive home with a license plate than without one.
Since ours was not a new trailer but was at the ETI factory, we brought it through to the US, not ETI.

I know someone who did the same thing(not me) switching a license plate and that was a very expensive ticket.
Depending where you live, you'll have a minimum of ten days to register your trailer here in Alabama it's 20.
All you have to do is show the officer your bill of sale and there should be no problem.

[FMLNM]

Originally Posted by mk1549

I know someone who did the same thing(not me) switching a license plate and that was a very expensive ticket.
Depending where you live, you'll have a minimum of ten days to register your trailer here in Alabama it's 20.
All you have to do is show the officer your bill of sale and there should be no problem.

We had all the paperwork with us and figured we would explain the situation if we got stopped...but we hoped we were less likely to get stopped if we had a plate than if we had none. NM would not issue us a plate before seeing the VIN on the trailer because it was a used trailer we were purchasing. Fortunately we were not stopped.

[CathyAndDon]

Buying a used Escape in Canada, and importing into U.S. with filled out Form 7501.
Does anyone know what the Duty rate would be on a $10,000 used Escape Trailer?
All I'm finding is that the rate is a percentage based on the purchase price, AND that each article has a specific Duty Rate base on a number of different factors. I find the Auto rate is 2.5% and Motorcycles are either free or 2.4% (quite a range!). Can't find a rate for camp trailers.

[FMLNM]

Originally Posted by CathyAndDon

Buying a used Escape in Canada, and importing into U.S. with filled out Form 7501.
Does anyone know what the Duty rate would be on a $10,000 used Escape Trailer?
All I'm finding is that the rate is a percentage based on the purchase price, AND that each article has a specific Duty Rate base on a number of different factors. I find the Auto rate is 2.5% and Motorcycles are either free or 2.4% (quite a range!). Can't find a rate for camp trailers.

We didn't have to pay anything to bring the trailer into the US. When we got home and registered it with our local DMV then we had to pay the sales tax on it. That rate is determined locally.

[Vermilye]

Originally Posted by FMLNM

We didn't have to pay anything to bring the trailer into the US. When we got home and registered it with our local DMV then we had to pay the sales tax on it. That rate is determined locally.

Same for here in NY. We did have to do a transfer in Ontario at their DMV which is the equivalent of the title in NY. That also gave us a temporary license plate good for getting it to the border. The 7501 & bill of sale were used to register the trailer in NY.

[A&B]

Originally Posted by CathyAndDon

Buying a used Escape in Canada, and importing into U.S. with filled out Form 7501.
Does anyone know what the Duty rate would be on a $10,000 used Escape Trailer?

No duty on goods manufactured in North America....NAFTA