Colorado Bill of Sale (CO)

What's different in Colorado

Colorado gives the buyer 60 days from the date of purchase to title and register the vehicle, and a private sale is transferred at the buyer's county motor vehicle office, where the title transfer fee is $7.20; after the 60 days, late fees are assessed at $25 for each month or portion of a month, up to $100. When the seller is not required to collect sales tax, the buyer generally must pay all applicable state and local sales taxes to the county clerk at registration, and county clerks cannot register or title a vehicle until those taxes are paid. A bill of sale is required when the sale price is not listed on the title. If all of the information is completed correctly on the title, a bill of sale is not needed for the title transfer, although the Colorado Division of Motor Vehicles calls one best practice. The Division's own form is DR 2173, the Secure Motor Vehicle Bill of Sale, sold through vendors the Division lists, and the Division names a written equivalent as the alternative to it.

The odometer reading goes on the Certificate of Title or on a DR 2173: the exact mileage is filled in on one of the two, and a bill of sale can carry the federally required odometer disclosure if it is done on DR 2173. Beginning with model year 2011 vehicles, the disclosure is required for every transfer of ownership for the first 20 years of the vehicle's life. Exemptions are vehicles that are 20 years or older, vehicles with a gross weight rating of more than 16,000 lbs and trailers (not self-propelled). For the seller's report, the Division's page points to the Report Release of Liability, made online through myDMV or at a county motor vehicle office within 5 days of the sale. A blank vehicle bill of sale is on this page as well.