To sell a car privately in Texas, the paperwork comes down to three documents: the signed Certificate of Title with the odometer reading filled in, a completed Application for Texas Title and/or Registration (Form 130-U), and a bill of sale. After the handover, you file a Vehicle Transfer Notification with TxDMV within 30 days to end your liability for the vehicle. Everything else — plates, insurance, the buyer’s trip to the tax office — flows from those four steps.
Sign Over the Certificate of Title
The Texas Certificate of Title is the legal proof you own the car, and signing it over is the moment ownership transfers. On the back of the title, sign and print your name exactly as it appears on the front, enter the sale date, and record the current odometer reading. The buyer signs there too.
Be careful. Any mistake in this section can void the title and force you to apply for a corrected one before the sale can close, so check every field before you hand it over.1Texas Department of Motor Vehicles. Buying or Selling a Vehicle
The odometer reading is not optional for most cars. Federal rules require an accurate mileage disclosure on every title transfer, and falsifying the number is a crime under both federal and state law. The disclosure can be skipped only if the vehicle weighs over 16,000 pounds, is model year 2010 or older, or is not self-propelled (such as a trailer). Vehicles from model year 2011 forward do not reach the age exemption until 20 years after their model year, so in 2026 every 2011-or-newer car still needs the mileage recorded.2eCFR. Part 580 Odometer Disclosure Requirements
Fill Out Form 130-U With the Buyer
Form 130-U is the Application for Texas Title and/or Registration, and it is the document the buyer takes to the county tax assessor-collector’s office to put the vehicle in their name. Both of you fill it out and sign it. The form asks for the vehicle identification number, the sale price, and both parties’ information. You can download it from the TxDMV website or pick one up at any county tax office.1Texas Department of Motor Vehicles. Buying or Selling a Vehicle
Put the real sale price on the form. Knowingly providing false information on a title application is a third-degree felony in Texas, and the county tax office cross-checks the price you report against the vehicle’s standard presumptive value when assessing the buyer’s sales tax. Shaving the number to save the buyer a few dollars creates serious legal exposure for both of you.
Write a Bill of Sale
Texas does not strictly require a bill of sale for a private vehicle transaction, but writing one is a mistake to skip. It is your personal receipt showing the vehicle changed hands, what you were paid, and when. If the buyer later disputes the price or the condition of the car, this document is your evidence.
A workable bill of sale includes:
- Full names and addresses of both you and the buyer
- The sale date
- Vehicle details: VIN, year, make, model, and color
- The sale price
- An “as-is” statement confirming the car is sold with no warranty, which heads off later repair demands
Both parties sign, and each keeps a copy. The bill of sale also helps the buyer at the tax office if they need to challenge the standard presumptive value to lower their tax.
Clear Any Lien Before You Sell
If you still owe money on the car, the lienholder’s name sits on the title, and you cannot legally transfer ownership until that debt is paid. Either pay off the loan in full before the sale, or coordinate with your lender to use the buyer’s payment to satisfy the balance at closing.
What happens after payoff depends on how the lien is recorded. Most Texas lenders participate in the Electronic Lien Title (ELT) program. Once the lender marks the loan satisfied, TxDMV is notified electronically within 10 days, removes the lien from the record, and mails you a clean title.3Cornell Law School Legal Information Institute. 43 Tex. Admin. Code 217.104 – Electronic Lien Title Program
If the lien is recorded on a paper title, the lienholder must execute and deliver a release-of-lien document to you after the debt is satisfied. You then submit that release along with your title to TxDMV or your county tax office and apply for a new title in your name alone.4State of Texas. Texas Transportation Code 501.115 – Discharge of Lien
Build in waiting time either way. Don’t schedule the sale for the same week you pay off the loan. Having the clean title in hand first keeps the buyer calm and prevents a stalled closing.
File the Vehicle Transfer Notification Within 30 Days
This is the step that protects you. Within 30 days of the sale, file a Vehicle Transfer Notification (Form VTR-346) with TxDMV. Once filed, TxDMV updates the motor vehicle record to show you sold the car, and you can no longer be held responsible for parking tickets, toll violations, or other charges the new owner racks up.1Texas Department of Motor Vehicles. Buying or Selling a Vehicle
The transfer notification does not move the title into the buyer’s name. That happens when the buyer walks into their county tax office with the signed title and Form 130-U. The buyer has 30 days from the sale date to do so before delinquent transfer penalties start accruing.1Texas Department of Motor Vehicles. Buying or Selling a Vehicle
You can submit Form VTR-346 online through the TxDMV website or mail a paper copy. File it the same day you sell the car if you can. Waiting until day 29 is asking for trouble if the buyer runs a red-light camera in the meantime.
Pull Your Plates and Update Your Insurance
Before the buyer drives off, remove your license plates and registration sticker from the vehicle. Texas plates belong to the owner, not the car, so leaving them on means any violations tied to those plates still come back to you. You can transfer the plates to another vehicle you own at your county tax assessor-collector’s office, or surrender them there if you don’t need them.5Caldwell County, Texas. New License Plate Laws to Take Effect July 1
Call your insurance company once the sale is final. If the car you sold was the only vehicle on your policy, cancel the policy; if you have other vehicles, remove the sold car from the coverage. Have your bill of sale handy, since most insurers want proof the vehicle changed hands before they’ll process the change. Do not cancel coverage before the buyer takes possession. Until the title is signed and the car leaves your driveway, you are still the owner.
How the Buyer Drives the Car Home
Because you keep your plates, the buyer leaves with no tags on the vehicle. Texas offers a free Vehicle Transit Permit, which the buyer can print online through TxDMV. It is valid for five calendar days from the date issued, long enough to drive the car home and reach the county tax office for title transfer and registration. Only one permit can be issued per vehicle, and the buyer must carry at least Texas’s minimum liability insurance before using it.6Texas Department of Motor Vehicles. Vehicle Transit Permit – Eligibility and Requirements
One thing is no longer part of the sale: as of January 1, 2025, non-commercial vehicles in Texas no longer need a safety inspection before registration. Neither you nor the buyer needs to arrange one.7Texas Department of Public Safety. Vehicle Safety Inspection Program Changes Now in Effect
Protect Yourself at the Payment Step
Private car sales attract a predictable set of scams, and most target the payment. The safest options are a cashier’s check from a bank you can verify, or cash for lower-value transactions. Digital platforms like Zelle and Venmo may not allow transaction limits high enough for a car, and reversals on peer-to-peer services can leave you without the money and without the vehicle.
Watch for these red flags:
- Overpayment schemes, where the buyer sends a check for more than the price and asks you to wire back the difference. The check bounces days later and you are out whatever you sent.
- Fake escrow services, where a buyer insists on a specific escrow company you’ve never heard of. Scammers build convincing sites that mimic legitimate services.
- Urgency pressure. Anyone pushing you to skip paperwork, finalize immediately, or accept an unusual payment method is usually not someone you want to deal with.
Meet in a public place, bring someone with you, and never hand over the signed title until payment has fully cleared. If you take a cashier’s check, verify it by calling the issuing bank at a number you look up yourself, not one the buyer gives you.