Buying a New Car in Illinois

When buying a new car in Illinois, it can be helpful to have a clear idea of what bureaucratic processes you will have to go through in order to properly register and title the vehicle. You want to make sure that you cross all the "t's" and dot every "i" before you head out onto the streets with a new car or truck. This article provides a roadmap for navigating the paperwork involved in buying a new car in Illinois, and also helps you discover where to find the tightest concentrations of car dealerships to make cross shopping a whole lot easier.

New car buyers in Illinois are blessed with one of the biggest cities in the country to help bolster their chances of finding the perfect brand new vehicle to park in their driveway. There is no question that Chicago and its suburbs boast an incredible number of car dealerships, which makes it fairly simple to schedule a slew of back to back test drives and showroom visits. Perhaps unsurprisingly, given that Illinois is one of the most populous states in the nation, there is no shortage of car dealerships located anywhere else within its borders either - from north to south, the pickings are very good in terms of finding the brand you are looking for and getting behind the wheel for a spin.

Auto dealerships in Illinois will be only too happy to handle the registration paperwork for you, and then pass the fees on to you in the purchase price of your vehicle. The process is relatively simple, with a single year's registration costing $79.00 and coming with a standard state plate. A $65.00 titling fee may also be charged. When it comes to taxes, the situation gets a little more complex due to the fact that Illinois charges retailers a percentage of their gross receipts, and breaks things down across the state, city and county level. Depending upon where you live, you could be facing a sales tax of between 6.25 percent and 11.50 percent.

In addition to sales tax, all new car and truck buyers must also fill out an RUT-50 form, which deals with the state's vehicle use tax. This is calculated on the fair market value of the automobile in question, although cars whose purchase price is $15,000 or less pay a flat rate of $390. This can jump to over $1,500 if the car in question is worth more than $30,000.