State Title

State titling is a process that enables an owner to record their ownership of a particular vehicle on a state level. In general, the state that is utilized to title the vehicle should be the state where it is kept the majority of the time, as opposed to the state of residence of the vehicle's owner. For most late-model automobiles and RVs, all states can title the vehicle. For boats, roughly half of the states allow for a boat title.

The following states allow for a state title to be issued for most boats: California, District of Columbia, Florida, Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, North Carolina, New Jersey, New Mexico, Nevada, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin & West Virginia.

If the vessel is kept in a state that does not allow for a state title, the boat can still be registered, allowing for use within a particular, however, the boat registration does not constitute a form of ownership. Alternatively, in most instances, ownership for larger boats (generally in excess of 25 feet) can be recorded with the US Coast Guard.

See Also: Coast Guard Documentation