help?: GA sailboat laws? taxes? title?

[Mudpuddle]

I am new to all this so please be gentle.
I have looked at all the DMV and I'm waiting for the wildlifegame guys to get back to me.
I have a 17 foot Siren sail boat 1983 model that has been sitting in the back yard since 1985. It is in Georgia, Fulton Co.
I want to sale the boat and I find conflicting information all over the place. 1) no taxes on sailboats 2) there are taxes 3) no title needed 4) title needed.
You have to be a lawyer to read some of the notes to figure out what is going on, which I am not one.
So anyway Its been in the back yard since 1985. Last time it was on the lake was 1984-85. Last time the boat or trailer had tax or stamps or fees on it was 1984-85. What trouble am I looking at here?
I called the DMV since they handle boat info/tax and got the run around and was told there no taxes on boats. But they could not site me a web page. So I really don't trust them ether.
Help?
Thanks.

 

[RECESS]

There is no boat title in Georgia, you just register. There is an ad valorem tax but it is so small I doubt you will care. There are charges for registering your trailer also. Georgia is rather low in taxing boaters compared to other states. My ad velorem tax was so low, I did not really think of it as a tax. If you plan to trailer the boat to public waters, you need to have the boat registered with the numbers on the boat along with the decal.

We get off pretty easy in Georgia,.

 

[Peggie Hall HeadMistress]

Ad valorem tax depends on the county...

The county the boat lives in, which--depending on the size of the boat and whether it lives in the water or on a trailer at your home--may or may not be the same as the county you live in. And Fulton County property and ad valorum taxes are considerably higher than even DeKalb next door (where I lived for 26 years, btw). That's the bad news.

The good news is, even in Fulton Country the ad valorem tax on a 19' sailboat prob'ly IS peanuts compared to the $300 Hall County (Lake Lanier) socked me for a 20 yr old 32' twin engine power boat.

 

[Mudpuddle]

27 years of back ad valorum tax may be peanuts to you guys, even a pound of peanuts can add up to a tone. When I called the DMV they said there were no taxes on the boat. And I can't find any info on the web anywhere to back it up. Makes me a little scared to even check for it, rather than sell the boat might as well trash it if the ad valorum is to high.

 

[Joe]

27 years of back ad valorum tax may be peanuts to you guys, even a pound of peanuts can add up to a tone. When I called the DMV they said there were no taxes on the boat. And I can't find any info on the web anywhere to back it up. Makes me a little scared to even check for it, rather than sell the boat might as well trash it if the ad valorum is to high.

Just go down to the DMV and find out how much it will cost to register the boat, for crying out loud. I'm sure the vessel's value is minimal...and you can simply fill out a certificate of non-operation for all the time it's been sitting in the yard. But I know one thing....... you'll never know unless you go down and ask... the worst thing that happens is you tell them, "never mind". Of course, you could simply add the cost of registration to the price and pass it on to the unwitting buyer.

 

[Mudpuddle]

Be nice.
I thank everyone for their help, I have some good leads on what to do now.

 

[Ed Caldwell]

In Georiga:
BOAT registration is done by the Department of Natural Resources and can be done online here: http://www.georgiawildlife.org/boating/registration

TRAILER registration is done at the county tag office (DMV)

Both of these registrations will automatically flow to the county tax assessor for calculation and billing of the ad valorem tax. For a boat that old, I bet there will be no ad valorem tax due, even in Fulton County. I'm in Cobb and we have not had to pay ad valorem tax on our 14 year old Seadoo for several years.

You will have to renew the boat registration every 3 years, and the trailer registration every year.