How to spot a curbstoner in a private-party car ad

A curbstoner buys cars to resell them and lists each one as if it were the family car. The word covers anyone dealing cars without a license. California's DMV counts "unlicensed vehicle dealers, brokers, and salespeople, also known as 'curbstoners'" among the people it takes complaints about. Arizona's Department of Transportation says curbers "sell vehicles on street corners or vacant lots" and advertise on Facebook, Craigslist, eBay and OfferUp.

For a retail buyer, the danger is a bad car from someone who stops answering the phone. For you it is different. You buy private party to get a car before anyone's margin is on it, and a curbstoner's car already carries one.

Why a curbstoner's car costs a dealer more

Four things change when the "owner" is a flipper.

• The ask already has a markup in it. The curbstoner bought the car to sell it for more. You pay a second dealer's price and get none of the paperwork a dealer sale comes with.
• The title may be jumped. A flipper who never put the car in their own name hands you a title signed by someone you have never met. Depending on the state, that can hold up your transfer or leave a gap in the chain of owners. The Texas DMV tells buyers to "make sure the title and registration match the name and address of the person selling the car."
• Damage is easier to hide. An owner who drove the car for years knows its history and may tell you. A flipper owned it for a few weeks, may have bought it cheap because of a problem, and has no reason to mention it.
• No one can answer your questions. The person selling the car cannot tell you how it was serviced, whether it was hit, or why it is for sale.

Where the law draws the line

Each state sets the point where selling cars takes a dealer license, and the numbers differ. Arizona lets a person sell up to six vehicles in any 12 continuous months, and the seventh makes them an unlicensed dealer. Florida presumes anyone who deals in three or more vehicles in 12 months is a dealer. At the federal level, the FTC's Used Car Rule applies to dealers who sell more than five used vehicles in a 12-month period, and those dealers must post a Buyers Guide on each car.

That is general information, not legal advice. Rules vary by state, so check your own state's DMV for its limit and for what a mismatched title means for a car you buy.

How often it happens in Los Angeles

These are cars the sites list as private. Facebook Marketplace and OfferUp mark some sellers as dealers themselves, and those cars are not in the count. VinCount's marks also miss dealers whose own ad gives nothing away, so the true share is likely higher. The Los Angeles market report has the full breakdown and the reasons behind each mark.

The signs in the ad

One phone number on several cars

An owner has one car for sale, sometimes two. A number on five cars is a business. Of the 240 likely dealers in Los Angeles, 35 carried a phone number VinCount found on three or more different cars, and one number was on 12. Some Craigslist ads print a number. Facebook Marketplace hides it, so ask for it before you meet. Then search it on each site and in a search engine.

The same text on several cars

Flippers write one ad and reuse it. Among the likely dealers, 100 shared a passage of about 16 words with another car, and one passage appeared on 25 different cars. Copy an odd sentence from the ad, such as the part about test drives or payment, and search for it on the same site.

Financing, credit terms or trade-ins

An owner selling a Camry does not offer financing. In the Los Angeles count, 78 likely dealers offered financing, 12 advertised credit terms such as "bad credit OK", 10 named a down payment and 4 took trade-ins. Any of these in an ad listed as private is a lot's offer.

A business behind the ad

Look for a business name, "LLC", a stock number, doc fees, a warranty from the seller, or a website. Of the likely dealers, 37 named a business as the seller and 24 carried a lot's name, an LLC or a stock number. Doc fees or tax, title and license showed up in 10, a seller's own warranty in 10, and a business's website in 10.

Ad copy that reads like a lot's

Dealer copy lists options off the window sticker, ends with "call today", and says nothing about why the car is for sale or how it was driven. 80 of the likely dealers read like dealer-website copy, and 105 read like a business advertising its stock.

Photos from a lot

Check the photos yourself. Look for brochure photos in place of the car, rows of other cars behind it, the same wall or driveway in several ads, and dealer plate frames or window stickers.

Many cars from one seller

On Facebook Marketplace and OfferUp, open the seller's profile and see what else they have listed. Three sedans and a truck from one "owner" in a month is a pattern.

A title that is not in the seller's name

You find this one on the phone or at the car. Ask whose name is on the title before you drive over. "My cousin's" or "the guy I bought it from" means the car was never registered to the person selling it.

What does not prove a dealer

Some signs look like a dealer's but prove nothing on their own. Treat them as a reason to ask, not a reason to pass.

• The word "dealer" in the ad. Owners write "dealer maintained" and "bought it at the dealership".
• "Carfax available". Owners pull history reports too.
• One number on two cars. Households sell two cars at once, which is why VinCount waits for three different cars before a shared number counts.
• A parking lot meeting. Plenty of owners will not give a stranger their home address.

What to ask before you drive over

• Whose name is on the title, and do you have it? Ask them to read you the name.
• How long have you owned it? A few weeks with no records points to a flip.
• Why are you selling? An owner usually names a reason, such as a new car or a move.
• Do you have other cars for sale? Some flippers say yes, and that settles it.
• Can you send the VIN? Before you go, get a history report on it from a provider approved by the Justice Department's National Motor Vehicle Title Information System.
• Is the registration current, and in the same name as the title?
• Where is the car kept? A seller who will only meet in a parking lot is worth a second question.

If the seller turns out to be a dealer

A curbstoner's car can still be a buy. Price it as a car from another dealer, with their margin already in the ask. Do not pay until a title in the seller's own name is in your hand. If the names do not match, your state's rules decide what paperwork you need, so check with its DMV before you hand over money.

If you think a seller is dealing without a license, the state takes complaints. California's DMV has a complaint page that covers unlicensed dealers. Arizona's ADOT has a complaint form that asks for plates, VINs and copies of the ads.

How VinCount marks a likely dealer

VinCount reads every ad on its sheet and marks a car likely dealer when the ad offers financing or a lot's terms, names a business, reads like dealer-website copy, or shares a phone number or a passage of text with other cars. The reason shows beside the mark, so you can check it before you call. The mark is a read of the ad, not a finding about the seller.