i've tried to pick up a few in florida under similar circumstances and found it almost impossible. tax collector's office always tell me i have to go back to the owner who registered it last and aquire a clean title. that is why you see "clean title" in so many fl ads. i've heard of locals taking the boats to alabama & registering them there(all you need is a bill of sale) and then transfering them to florida. i think this more of a "myth" than a way to get a boat registered in fl. i have a cousin whos family owned a marina with stack storage and wet slips. a guy comes up in a 20' sailboat and ask to tie up during a storm. they say yes and he stays a day or two, then disappears. boat sits for a week or two and starts taking on water. they lift it with the fork lift and set it on stands. he went back to texas and abandoned the boat. they tried to get title for 2 years against storage leins, no go. finally just crushed it and put it in a dumpster..
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