Overhaulin'

is it just me or is paying sales tax on a used car just really the goverment double dipping?

ok this all started when i bought a trailer ya i know a trailer but its nice and i liked it any way on to the point i payed no sales tax because it was used 1 year old but it had been bought once so no more sales tax so i buy a car 2004 honda civc $13,000 and have to pay $1200 in taxes witch just killes me i know the goverment needs money to run but hell so do the people like me and you that get taxed every day on every thing we buy so here it is why is there tax on a used car ok the first answer is incorrect i bought a trailer i.e. a product with no sales tax your gonna have to do better than that one for the best answer on this one

Public Comments

1. A sales tax is just that: a sales tax. It doesn't matter if its new or used; it is still a sold product.
2. I thought that any time a local monetary-based transaction occurs, it will be taxed SOONER or LATER. Transactions outside the city & state are taxed according to city and state tax code & national-wide transactions are taxed according to federal tax regulations. I am sure depends heavily on your local tax laws. If no one here can help, you might be able to look on your state/city's website (if they have one) for more information about tax details. There could be several possibilities & I would be very wary about having gotten the trailer tax-free unless you know specifically why it was tax-free (AS OPPOSED TO some individual handing you the title while you hand him the cash & no receipts being exchanged or paperwork filed with the local tax office--aka under the table). Sorry if I could not have been better help, but yeah, be careful about that trailer--you might still have had to pay taxes on it unless you know specifically why... PLEASE take everything on this forum with a grain of salt. Complete strangers are not necessarily licensed tax professionals, and by no means is ANYONE on this forum credible just because they say so--especially for something as potentially life-altering as failure to pay the government its due. Be very careful & informed. If someone here gives you advice for tax stuff, at least ask for & check their credentials before following through with any actions.
3. A car is different than a trailer. You paying tax on the car is not the government double dipping. The original buyer was credited when he traded the car for the unused tax, and so it goes down the line. It's sales tax, it's part of life, are you just venting? Or do you really want to know why the state charges sales tax?