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Your car is capital asset, so yes capital gains tax is payable on the appreciated amount (profit) over your initial purchase cost plus any upgrade dollars you invested in getting the car to it's current condition.

The percentage capital gains tax on classics and collectibles depends what tax bracket you are in, but figure 20% if you owned it more than year (long term capital gain).
I'm not used to dealing with state taxes, I bet a move to NV is looking attractive right now!

Looks like yes state capital gains is taxed at the highest marginal rate of 13.3% in CA. Sales tax is for the buyer to worry about and dependent on their home state.
If the car is being considered like Real Property is, then everything that it cost you to maintain it is figured into the equation.

What you pay the landscapers to cut the grass, your heat costs (you need to prevent the pipes from freezing).

The deductible you had to pay on body shop repairs, etc.

The exception would be gasoline to drive it. Even tires, oil changes, wear and tear items should be included.

The longer you own it, the larger the total costs will be. I own mine since 1985.

If you work it right, you will be at a loss unless you had something like a 427 Cobra that you paid $5,000, for in 1975 and just sold it for $1.2 million. That would be a stretch to cover it.

I don't know if you bought a building to house it safely in could be worked in? The accountant I know who tried that is due from release from prison soon I think?

Don't go by what I tell you, get a CPA in your state to do it. Even if you don't have state income tax, you need to pay capital gains on the FED.
Doug has some excellent advice, I never considered all your maintenance costs, although online opinion seems to vary.

Turbotax online versions are free until you file so you can upload all the data and see what it spits out.

Better still seek advice from a CPA.

Julian
Most would not feel comfortable with a $200k cash deal.
Most transactions like this are going to be done by wire transfer.
You both sit there with your smart phones while the payment is transferred to the others account.
Any transaction of $10,000, or more is required to be reported to the IRS.

With real property, there is a time period given to reinvest. I don't know what you do with a car.

So I guess this is like winning a lottery. You are going to loose a significant amount to taxes UNLESS you document your expenses.

I would also point out that your CPA is going to probably want a percentage as a fee in order to save you taxes.

As far as cash transactions go, here's a thought, if one was in the category of being struck by lightening and YOU and ONLY YOU discover a very significant find sitting concealed some where AND SOMEHOW the subject of the owner offering the vehicle to you, one of the selling points for a reasonable cash transaction would be the above, technicalities.

That is, if you want a ga-zillion for the thing, then everyone is going to need a lawyer, whitnesses, a bodyguard and a CPA.

The sale needs to be documented, etc. and the seller is going to probably loose something like 50% in fees and taxes.

So the pitch is, if you take cash, the seller is getting something out of nowhere and can hide whatever they want.

That argument would seem likely to go nowhere with the nature of the seller, but who knows? If they have half a brain and think about it, it could happen.


There was a genuine GT40 sitting in a garage in Beverly Hills. All sorts of old bed mattresses and other stuff were piled on top of it.
Now the car as I understood it was being sold by the son. The father had bought it as a used race car back in 66 or 67. He was going to restore it but never quite got around to it.

The father passed away and the son had control of the car.

Now normally this is one of those "finds" that should have been sold for a few thousand dollars. The son wasn't really a car guy but started to investigate. I heard the sale number was $12million to a private buyer.

I can't count that high plus I wouldn't even be able to tell if they were real $100's or phony. The new ones all look phony to me.

It's a nice number BUT it is a real problem if you ask me. Even if it was a cash transaction, how much room does the money take in the house and how much medication do I need to take in order to sleep in that house with it?

Let's not even mention house invasions and guns and such, ok?



State DMV agencies have gotten smart on this subject though when you go to register. There is a "classic car value" list.

If you go in there with a bill of sale for $100 for a 65 427 SC, you are going to set off all sorts of flashing red lights.



I personally know of someone who advises on this specific subject with Cobras. Most of the buyers are "Captains of Industry". The purchases are completed by their "on staff attorneys or permanent on retainer attorneys".

He described it to me as very much like a "house closing". His full time job is a "real estate agent" so he is familiar with the type of procedure".

It all kind of puts the kibosh on a real barn find where the owner just wants you to tow the car away and you can keep the chickens.


...oh. With those kinds of expenses EXPECT an audit by the IRS folks. Don't counterfeit those receipts.

They probably won't put you in jail. They will just fine you and if you can't pay, take your house. Wink

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