Hello,
I live in Massachusetts and am moving to Denver, CO soon. I would like to buy a new or 1 year old car soon. Does it matter in terms of price and other factors to buy it in MA or CO? Thank You.
I went to under grad at MIT then moved to Boulder for grad school. Denver’s been home for 30+ years. Buy a car here in CO, not in MA. We use no salt and have no rust. If you buy a car in MA, you will have to pay sales tax and registration, then again in CO. Wait till you get here.
Car prices can vary from state to state, if I was looking for the perfect state to buy a used car from it would be one not near an ocean, never been on salted roads, and no mountains. New car you can compare prices on very easily. The new car prices will probably be extremely comparable, so sales tax would probably be the most significant factor.
You don’t have to pay sales tax twice and Colorado uses plenty of salt, and even worse liquid caustic solution to burn the ice off the roads…So that’s not an issue…
" I would like to buy a new or 1 year old car soon."
The only one year old cars for sale in Colorado are repo’s or rebuilt wrecks…Today, most leases are for 3 years and rentals usually are 2 years old…So if you are shopping for a “late model” used car, you might as well buy a new one…
Caddyman, I would note that with the bad economy and jobs losses over the past few years, you will find cars from people who have lost jobs and simply can’t afford them anymore. Just one of those it’s a horrible thing for them and a good thing for a person that can afford to buy that barely used car. As for the 2 year rentals and 3 year leases, yep, you can find them all over the place.
New cars have rebates, incentives, etc.
Used cars don’t and you don’t really know how the car was treated before you buy it.
I guess I’d agree with going new rather than one year old-cheaper in the long run and you don’t have to worry about the previous owner changing oil every 10K. I would think you’d find less rust in CO though but you shouldn’t pay sales tax again if you own the car already. You would have to pay for the license though and not sure if you can get a rebate on the unused portion of the current license from MA.
perhaps the 1 year old car is a left over previous year model that’s gathering dust on the car lot…
What is soon? Are you moving to Denver in a week? a month? a year? If you have a car in MA now, keep driving it and buy the next new(er) car after you move. You’ll need an address and place of residence to buy a car so figure to drive your current ride until you get settled into a new home - then go car shopping.
If all this is months and months away and your car is falling apart, then get a new one in MA. It really is all about the timing of your move west.
Some states are getting greedy and hit new residents with extra fees and a tax on the value of the car you are registering. You need to know more about the DMV process and fees in Colorado. You could end up paying sales tax on a new car in MA and then paying a similar “value tax” in CO, in effect paying sales tax twice.
and Colorado uses plenty of salt
@caddyman: I could be mistaken, but like twotone, I thought Colorado was one of the few states that didn’t use salt - but opted for alternatives like Magnesium Chloride.
Magnesium Chloride is salt.
I am a bit confused here. Assuming I bought the car in MA and paid all relevant taxes, why should I pay tax again in CO?
@UncleTurbo actually I am moving in July. so not too soon but not too far.
Are you planning to drive to Denver? Is your current car reliable? If it isn’t, this is one big argument in favor of buying now.
@lion9car my car is good enough to drive there.
Magnesium Chloride is salt.
@jtsanders: Thanks. Kind of stupid error on my part. I was thinking of Calcium Chloride vs Magnesium Chloride, where the former is the one which causes rust.
Check with Colorado DMV, perhaps they have a web site you can look at. Many states charge a one time tax (or fee) when you first register a car in the state. This fee is a % of the value of the car (not the value you declare, but the value as given in a book so the year, make, and model of the car determines the value). The fee can be 6% which the same rate as a sales tax.
So, you buy the car in MA and pay sales tax and register the car. You move to another state, if that state has a value fee to register the car you pay that too. If you are moving to a state with this kind of tax/fee to register the car you are better of buying a new car in that state. You wouldn’t ever need to change the registration of the old car if you do this deal in a month or so after your move. So, you just need to know all about the fees and costs of titling and registering a car in Colorado that you bring with you from MA.
It has always been a hassle to move to a new state and have to transfer the title and registering your car in the new state. But, the costs weren’t too bad. $5.00 for a new title and $30-40 for the yearly registration. Now it is different in many states. It can costs big bucks to register your car if it is a newer car, or a pricey luxury car. Each state has its own system and it own fee structure. There are big differences now state to state. Fee’s in PA are pretty much reasonable, but I think you pay a lot more in NC, SC, and TN to register your car for the 1st time.
And it dissolves steel and paint like it was butter…“If We Can’t Plow It Off, We’ll Burn It Off!!”
No biggie, @JoeMario. Any salt in this class, such as the 2 you mentioned or potassium chloride or sodium chloride will cause rust and should damage concrete, too. I imagine that CO uses magnesium chloride because it comes from the Great Salt Lake and transportation costs may not be too bad from Utah.
Maybe as an exercise try naming something that's not salt.
Sugar? 