Posts by Lawrence Taylor10

Sandra Parker3 said:The guy was just asking about how his dad could take ownership of the car with the least amount of financial headache, which led to questions about whether gifting it would be better given the tax implications—you know, weighing gifting versus inheritance—but if they actually want to transfer the title, then...
The whole thing boils down to getting rid of the liability; whether it's a gift or not, you'll still have to deal with that part, at least that's my take on it.
🙂

Let them do whatever they want. They have legal options available, so they should use them. They've received both legal advice and practical suggestions.
In my opinion, these two lack any backbone. They're being driven around by their wives, and now they're trying to lecture us on this forum.
The fact that they haven't even used the vehicle for six months because she won't hand over the keys tells you everything you need to know.
I'm certainly not towing it for them.👍

First in line are always the spouse and children.
The second tier consists of the surviving spouse if there are no kids, followed by the parents.
There are also third, fourth, and other tiers of succession.

I don't see why we're even debating this here. Nobody has died, so there's no probate or inheritance laws to apply, and nobody's even filed for divorce.
This is about a car. The father and son are too chicken to just take it back, so instead, the daughter-in-law swiped the keys. Now they're scrambling for a way to drive it because she’s been the one driving both of them around up until now.🙂

Vicky said:It’s all about whether the paper trail is clear. If a father takes out a personal loan from Chase just to hand the cash to his son for a car, then no, it isn't legally transparent.

If the title says the son owns the car, then legally, he owns the car. Period. Since there isn't a divorce proceeding happening here—which isn't even what we're discussing—the son can simply gift the vehicle back to his father.

Sandra Parker3 said:If the car isn't going to be part of the marital assets anyway—since the dad is the one actually paying it off—then what's the point of even doing a gift transfer and getting hit with a special tax?

Because the title is in his name. Period.

goldengull3 said:Keep in mind that if the vehicle was purchased using marital assets during the marriage, it is considered community property, regardless of whose name is actually on the title.

That doesn't apply here. The details at the start of the question make that perfectly clear.👍

neonsurfer13 said:I’m asking on behalf of some family friends. I’ve actually been on here months ago looking for advice for them, and now they’re back with another mess. So, their son is having major marital issues, and one of the biggest sticking points is that his wife is refusing to hand over the car keys. This has been going on for over six months now. The car is technically registered in his name, but his father is the one actually paying off the loan through Chase. I don't know how they set up the paperwork, but that's the situation. Now, the father wants to take possession of the vehicle, but since the daughter-in-law is hoarding the keys, he's stuck. The son is perfectly fine letting his dad use the car however he wants, but the old man has no way to actually get behind the wheel. First question: what’s the easiest way to transfer the title to the father while keeping the costs as low as possible?
Second thing—and this is the headache—how do you even start the car if you don't have the keys? What can be done here that won't absolutely wreck them financially?

Any advice at all would be appreciated.

You already have your answer. Use a Gift Deed to transfer the car from yourself to him. As for the keys, the father should just file a report with the local police department about the withheld keys. Problem solved. You asked for the simplest, least expensive route.👍

neonsurfer13 said:I’m asking on behalf of some family friends. I’ve actually been on here months ago looking for advice for them, and now they’re back with another mess. So, their son is having major marital issues, and one of the biggest sticking points is that his wife is refusing to hand over the car keys. This has been going on for over six months now. The car is technically registered in his name, but his father is the one actually paying off the loan through Chase. I don't know how they set up the paperwork, but that's the situation. Now, the father wants to take possession of the vehicle, but since the daughter-in-law is hoarding the keys, he's stuck. The son is perfectly fine letting his dad use the car however he wants, but the old man has no way to actually get behind the wheel. First question: what’s the easiest way to transfer the title to the father while keeping the costs as low as possible?
Second thing—and this is the headache—how do you even start the car if you don't have the keys? What can be done here that won't absolutely wreck them financially?

Any advice at all would be appreciated.

It's simple. If the car is in the son's name, he can just gift it to his father. Get a gift deed notarized and the matter is settled. As for the keys, legally speaking, the wife has essentially stolen them. If she refuses to return property to its rightful owner, you report it to the local police department for theft. If she won't play nice, let the law handle it.👍