[ewave]

In Texas when you purchase a vehicle, you have to pay 6.25% State sales tax. The tax is paid to the Tax Collectors office which is part of the DMV at the time that you title the car.

Now the law, (IMHO) is really screwed up. This has to do with when you purchase a vehicle that you were leasing. When you start the lease you pay sales tax on the total value of the vehicle (so for a Viper, tax on about $70K). Then if you chose to buy the vehicle at the end of the lease, once again you get to pay the sales tax on the Payoff value of the car (maybe this is about $50K value). At that time the title is transferred to you from the leasing company.

As a Texas Resident you can not get a title issued in your name without paying the sales tax.

The buyer of the car does not pay the sales tax to the seller. They pay it directly to the DMV.

Have you seen a copy of the title? Does the owner show up as a leasing company?

I'd be so angry if I was in your shoes. This should not be your financial obligation ot pay the Texas taxes, unless you are licensing the car in Texas. I'm sure you will have to pay your local state's sales tax.

This sounds like a really raw deal!