The process
How it works
Four things happen on your side. Everything else is ours.
Tell us about the vehicle
Your details, the VIN, and a few photos from your phone. We check the VIN as you type it, so a mistyped character gets caught now rather than a month from now.
Print the two forms we send you
We fill them in for you: the Montana VIN inspection form and a bill of sale. You print them at home. Print at 100%, not “fit to page.”
Get the VIN inspected
A mobile notary comes to your vehicle, checks the VIN against the paperwork, and signs. Most customers pay about $25. We’ll show you how to find one.
Mail the envelope back
Tracked, with a prepaid label. From there we prepare the Montana application, have our signature notarized, and file it.
Our side of the desk
Then we take over
We complete the Break/Bond Title application, the notarized statement of value Montana requires, the VIN history report, and the photo package and mail the whole thing to the Vehicle Services Bureau in Helena. Montana takes roughly a month.
When the title arrives, we sign the vehicle over to you and mail you both documents. You’re the owner of record.
Timing
How long it takes
| Your paperwork back to us | Depends on you, usually a week |
|---|---|
| Montana processing | About a month |
| Title in your hands | Typically 5 to 7 weeks total |
Questions people actually ask
Straight answers
Is the title real?
Yes. It’s a certificate of title issued by the State of Montana’s Vehicle Services Bureau. The same certificate any Montana-titled vehicle carries. We prepare and file the paperwork; the state issues the document. Montana’s own application instructions expressly provide for filing for a title only.
Do I get plates or registration with it?
No. This is a title and nothing else. Registration is between you and your own state, and the Montana title is exactly the ownership document your state’s counter will ask for when you transfer it in.
Do I have to be a Montana resident?
No. Montana doesn’t require the applicant to be a resident, and it doesn’t require the vehicle to have held a Montana title before. That combination is why this route exists at all. Most states gate on one or both.
Does the vehicle have to go anywhere?
No. It gets inspected where it sits, a barn, a driveway, a storage unit. The mobile notary comes to it, not the other way around.
What about motorcycles?
Street motorcycles 30 years and older follow the identical rule, at the same price. We don’t handle off-road or dirt bikes.
What if there’s an old lien on the vehicle?
A recorded lien that was never released has to be resolved before anyone can title the vehicle, us included. If you know of one, sort that out first. If you’re not sure, email us before you pay anything.
What if Montana rejects the filing?
You get your money back. We prepare the forms ourselves and check them before they go, so rejections should be vanishingly rare, but if one happens and we can’t fix it, you don’t pay for a title you didn’t get.
Four steps on your side
Start with the vehicle’s details today.
You’ll pay securely on Stripe, then tell us about the vehicle. $299 flat. The VIN inspection runs about $25 and you arrange that near you.