Buying a Car from a Private Seller in New Jersey

Buying a private-party used car in New Jersey? Let's ensure you know how to get through the car-buying process successfully.

When you buy a vehicle from a private seller, there are important details to manage along the way. PrivateAuto streamlines private vehicle purchases with our smooth transactional process, including instant unlimited payments with no fees.

A private-party deal gives you more car for your money, while dealerships offer “convenience”.

We're big fans of the private seller route for the following reasons:

1. You drive the deal on your terms. PrivateAuto allows you to make offers and negotiate the best deal directly with the seller.
2. Get a better price by cutting out the middleman and going straight to the source. Dealers must buy low and sell high to make a profit and keep the lights on. You don’t need to fund them.
3. Avoid pesky dealer fees. Car dealerships charge documentation fees that range from $50 to over $1,000.
4. Enjoy security and convenience when you do the deal with PrivateAuto. Our transactional marketplace gives dealer-like convenience in the palm of your hand. From scheduling the test drive to sending instant payments, you’ll love how easy the process is.

While these websitesplaces help you find used cars in your area, all of them lack transactional capability. We call them "meetingplaces" because they leave you to your own devices when it comes down to closing the deal.

Another major downside to most of these websites: they mix dealer inventory with private-party cars. Most of them don’t have an easy way to filter by private-party vehicles, so you’re left burrowing through a glut of dealer listings to find the private offerings.

We’re the world’s first and only fully transactional marketplace, offering self-service technological solutions for every stage of the deal.

We have nothing against other listing sites. If you find your car on one of them, we’re happy for you. But we still want you to have the transactional security and convenience that our users enjoy.

That’s why DealNow was created. DealNow is the easiest way to close your own vehicle deal, anytime. It’s the safe and simple way to avoid fraud, sign documents, and instantly transfer money, all in one app. Invite the seller to DealNow and fast-track your transaction.

You want to get the very best car for your budget. PrivateAuto allows you to make offers on vehicles you like. You never know if the vehicle’s owner will accept less than their asking price until you try.

On other sites, you’d have to message the seller and have an awkward conversation. PrivateAuto lets you make an offer with the click of a button. The seller can then accept, reject, or counteroffer.

It’s advisable to do preliminary research on the car you’re about to spend thousands of dollars on. A vehicle history report can help you avoid buying a faulty vehicle.

We have partnered with AutoCheck to provide vehicle history reports on premium listings. AutoCheck gets its data from the following sources:


Doing an AutoCheck on a vehicle uncovers valuable insights into the car's background.

When you've found a car you like and settled on a price, it's time to take it for a spin.
Other marketplaces force you to exchange contact info with the seller and have a back-and-forth conversation about scheduling. Your privacy is compromised, and you waste a lot of time.

We keep your sensitive info private and secure. All communication happens through our secure messaging system. Our in-app scheduler makes it easy for you to schedule the meetup: just select from the seller’s available times and show up at their designated location.

Before buying the car, you should inspect it. Even better, arrange a professional pre-purchase inspection by a qualified mechanic (especially if it’s a higher-mileage vehicle).

Here are some of the things to inspect:

A bill of sale is not required in New Jersey, but we recommend you always complete one with the seller. The bill of sale is a legal document that protects both of you by memorializing the terms of the sale.

Here are the necessary elements in a bill of sale:


PrivateAuto provides an official New Jersey bill of sale as part of our standard in-app transaction process. At the appropriate stage of the transaction workflow, the buyer and seller will be asked to sign the New Jersey bill of sale electronically in the PrivateAuto app.

Now is the time to pay the seller. Existing payment methods are inconvenient, risky, or expensive (or a combo of all three). That’s why we created PrivateAuto Pay.

You can send unlimited funds to the seller with no transfer fees. Holidays, weekends, or nights—anytime. The seller will receive the money immediately. It’s convenient, secure, and most importantly, easy to use. Its instantaneous nature provides escrow-like safeguards for you to control the deal.

If you are not in a situation where you can pay cash for your next car, you can apply for a used car loan directly through the PrivateAuto app. When your application is approved, your profile will show that you have verified funds, which will set you apart from other buyers.

Our lending partner will pay the seller in full when you close the deal and send payment. You will make monthly car payments to the lender. It's that simple. Curious how much your payments will be? Our car loan calculator will tell you.

After you’ve paid for the car, you and the seller will each fill out and sign the title certificate, and the seller will give it to you. This is the crowning step that makes you the official owner of the vehicle.

Both parties need to fill out the title certificate thoroughly. The following info is required:

Federal law requires the seller to complete the odometer reading statement (also known as an odometer disclosure). In many states, the title includes an odometer disclosure. For other states, an additional odometer disclosure statement is required as a separate document.

If in doubt, you could always complete the Federal Odometer Disclosure Statement to make sure your bases are covered.

Inspect the odometer to verify that the seller’s entry is correct. Keep in mind that sellers who tamper with a car's odometer to obtain a false reading can face serious consequences.

The PrivateAuto app has a field for the odometer reading so that both the buyer and the seller can check the mileage before moving forward.

Always verify the VIN to compare it to that written on the title. You want to avoid having the wrong VIN on the car title, as this will cause all sorts of grief later on.

The PrivateAuto app has a field for the VIN, where both the buyer and seller can check it for accuracy. This helps to eliminate errors (or the rare case of outright seller fraud).

Before driving the new-to-you car home, you’ll want to have it covered under an insurance policy. Most states require liability insurance at a minimum; it’s up to you whether to get more coverage.

PrivateAuto makes it easy to compare rates and get car insurance right in our app.

You technically own the car at this point, but the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission needs to be aware of that. It’s time to register the car in your name, transfer the title in the state records, and get new license plates.

They will require the following:

Some states allow the license plates to remain with the car when sold. New Jersey requires the seller to remove the plates from the car. As the buyer, you’ll apply to the MVC for new New Jersey license plates. The cost of a standard plate is $6.

To complete a title transfer or registration in New Jersey, you will need to perform emission testing unless you meet one of the following exemptions:


If the car that you are buying does not meet any of these criteria, find a local NJ MVC-authorized emissions check station and proceed with the test.

For the locations of smog check stations, visit the New Jersey MVC website.

For most cars, the fee for performing this test will be $50.