If you buy the car, to drive it to Texas, you first need to get it insured. Then take your insurance card with you to your local tax office. You can get a "one trip tag" to drive it from Ca. to Texas, or, you can get a "30 day" temporay tag. That will let you drive it from Ca. to Texas, then down to get it inspected, where they will issue you a green form showing it is from out of state and has been inspected in Texas, and then to the tax office to get it registered in Texas. The one way trip tag will cost you $5.00 and the 30 day temp tag will cost you $25.00 You pay NO Ca. taxes, only Texas taxes of .0625 when you go register it. I have done this a couple of times in the last few years is how I know the procedure.
Have a safe trip.
Daryl (cwmoss)

 

You are almost right.

As I stated before from years of experience. California will charge you a sales tax if you take DELIVERY in California. Then Texas will credit the tax you paid to the tax you owe in Texas. The tax rate is higher in Cali. almost 9% so you won't have to pay in Texas but you will also not get your over payment back.

A California dealer is required to collect the tax if he delivers the car to you in the state of California whether you have a temp tag from you own state or not doesn't matter.

If you buy private party and get the "paper" title from the seller along with the temp tag you will not run into a problem. Unless you get a ticket is Cali on your way home which could make things complicated.

If the seller has a pay off due to a bank or credit union you can not get the title unless the tax is paid

WHY?

Because the bank does not have the actual paper title. Cali uses what they call "paperless title" when the car is encumbered and will not issue a paper title to the buyer until they collect the sales tax UNLESS you can prove you took delivery out of state.

Bottom Line...I would not buy a car in California unless the seller had the paper title in hand. Then I would have the seller write a check for $50 bucks to my buddy to "deliver" the car to me out of state. Then I would drive the car home.

And I would make sure the car was insured in my name and had the insurance card with me on the way home.

To the OP ..You will probably have to pay the dealer the tax and the tax will be a credit you any tax liability in Texas.

 

Here is California's Board of Equalization comment on their web site. I added the bolding.

http://www.boe.ca.gov/sutax/faqex.htm

The purchase of a vehicle, vessel, or aircraft from a dealer outside California, (including property purchased from a California dealer and subsequently delivered or picked up at a location outside of California where title is transferred to the purchaser), or from a non-dealer either in or outside of California, for use in this state is generally subject to the use tax. The question is whether the property is deemed to be purchased for use in this state or not. The law provides for a test period to be used in determining whether property is purchased for use in this state. If the provisions of the test period are met, the property is deemed to not be purchased for use in this state and therefore, not subject to California use tax. If the provisions of the test period are not met, the property is deemed to be purchased for use in California and the use tax applies.