How it works. Pick the state and whether you're the buyer or the seller. You get the steps in order, whether your signature needs a notary, the paperwork to bring, and the buyer's deadline, each marked as the state's own rule or as good practice.
Make your checklist
Buying a car: Montana
Notary: yes
- Your signature
- No official page we opened says whether this signature has to be notarized here. Ask the agency before signing, or sign in front of a notary to be safe.
- Deadline
- The buyer has 40 days from the sale date to transfer ownership. Due by Sunday, January 10, 2027.
- Paperwork
- The original title, signed over
- Odometer entry or disclosure
- The agency's title application, proof of insurance and ID
Your steps
- Check the title against the car and the sellerGood practice
The VIN on the title should match the car, and the seller's ID should match the owner's name on the title. Ask about any lien listed on it. - Watch the title get signedFrom the state's page
Seller: Yes. Every owner signs the title in front of a notary public. Buyer: the pages we read don't say whether your signature needs a notary."All owners must sign the title in front of a notary public."
- Get a bill of saleNot confirmed
Not confirmed for this state. Ask for one anyway: price, date, VIN, both names and signatures. - Check the mileage entryFrom the state's page
The seller completes the mileage disclosure; the brochure says this applies to vehicles newer than nine years."Sellers need to complete the odometer (mileage) disclosure for any vehicle newer than nine years."
- Insure the car before you drive itGood practice
Most states require insurance to register. Arrange it before driving away. - Title it in your name in timeFrom the state's page
The buyer has 40 days from the sale date to transfer ownership. For a sale on Tuesday, December 1, 2026, that's by Sunday, January 10, 2027."As the buyer, you have 40 days from the sale date to transfer vehicle ownership to you."
- Plates and feesFrom the state's page
Plates belong to the seller, who takes them off before handing over the vehicle."The plates belong to you, not the vehicle."
Finding a notary: a local notary near the buyer and seller is the simplest route, since everyone usually signs at once. MCC Solutions meets people in person only in New Jersey; for other paperwork in the sale we also offer remote online notarization, where the receiving office accepts it.
Official source: Montana Motor Vehicle Division (Department of Justice) · More on this state
Before the money changes hands
Meet in daylight somewhere public, or at the bank or tag office where the payment can be checked. Count cash or confirm a cashier's check with the issuing bank before signing anything. The seller signs only when payment is final; the buyer pays only when the title is in hand with no open lien.
Every state on one page: car title notarization by state. For the full private-sale walkthrough, see the title transfer guide.
General information, not legal advice; we are not lawyers. Checked November 2026 against the official pages linked in each checklist. Forms, fees and deadlines change, a county office can add its own steps, and gifts, estates, liens and out-of-state titles follow other rules; the agency or an attorney can tell you how a rule applies to your sale. MCC Solutions is not affiliated with any motor vehicle agency.
Questions about the checklist
Which state's rules apply?
Usually the state that issued the title governs how it's signed over, and the buyer's home state governs titling and registration. When the two differ, read both: a title from a notary state still needs its notary even if the buyer lives somewhere that doesn't ask for one.
What does 'Not confirmed' mean in my checklist?
That step's rule wasn't stated on the official pages we could open for that state. The checklist still gives the safe default, and the agency link at the bottom is where to confirm it.
How is the due date worked out?
From the sale date you enter, using the state's own count. Calendar-day rules count every day; business-day rules skip weekends but not holidays, so a holiday can make the true deadline a day later, never earlier.
Can I sign the title before meeting the buyer?
Don't. In states that require a notary, the signature has to be made in front of the notary. Everywhere, a pre-signed open title invites fraud, and corrections or cross-outs can void it.
Does this page save what I enter?
No. The state, role and date travel in the page address only, so a link such as ?state=oh&role=seller opens the same checklist, and it works without JavaScript.