I have a 20' trailer that I have owned for a couple of years. I didn't buy it new and it is a shop built trailer. I never registered because I only used in the community that I live in (private Roads). I now have a need for it out on the public roads and need to get it registered/titled. I had the axles looked at by a shop and they said they are 7000 # axles. it has brakes and the emergency brake away kit. My question is how do I go about getting this thing registered? I have talked to the Tax Assessor office and they said I need to find the vin number. I have been all over this thing and can't find one! Any help out there?
I also cant find the bill sale or the comtact info from the guy I bought it from.

If it is a shop built trailer you will have to register it as a homemade trailer and it will have to be inspected by a (i think) dps officer. You can then put your vin# on the trailer and take that to the tax assessor. If the trailer is a few years old and has odviously been used and you have no proof of purchase then you might have a hard time convincing the dps it is not stolen. That is why you now have to get a homemade trailer inspected. It was just too easy to steal a trailer, throw the license plate away, go to the tax assessor, and register a "homemade" trailer.

Good luck

find your regional dps office they should be able to do the inspection and issue you some vin #s as well as fill out the paperwork your tax assess. will need

Go ask your county tax assessor/collector.

To make it clear, go ask someone at the tax office that has experience in registering trailers, not some bimbo.

I wonder if you could get away with registering at the cutoff which I believe is 4000 lbs. As far a bill of sale goes you could just tell them that you made it. If you were to get pulled over I do not know if a trooper going to look at the dual axles and then the weight on the registration card. I know they have cracking done on hunters pulling trailers tagged farm use.

why not read the post before posting a stupid answer...

It's only stupid your your stupid mind.


I have four trailers, two boat, a utility and a car hauler. NONE have VIN numbers. Pay real close attention. NO VIN NUMBERS! I have the renewal for my utility trailer in front of me now. It was bought from a dealer and guess what....IT HAS NO VIN! On the renewal it has a space for VIN. Guess what! It is blank! This particular trailer was bought in Houston and registered in Gonzales County with only a receipt. My new boat trailer was bought in Tennessee. Guess what! It has no VIN. It was registered in Gonzales County with only a receipt. It too is blank where it says VEH. Identification No.
So, I guess you are saying the Gonzales Tax/Assessor is stupid for registering them. My car hauler has a serial number. But again, no VIN. The serial number is nowhere on the liscense receipt either. It was registered last month. So how did I register them? I'll make it easy on you...I took the receipts to the County Tax/Assessor's office and told them I needed plates. And $38.60 later I had plates.

not trying to step on any toes!!!! serial and vin are 1 in the same ,hoping not to offend anyone !

No offence taken. But the serial number was not used by the Tax office as a VIN. It's not on the registration anywhere.
All a person has to do is go to the tax office and tell them it is a homemade trailer and what the load capacity is.
here is what is on one of my trailers registration:
License No xxxxxx
PLT TRLR PLT
Month/Year : Dec/2010
Veh/reg CL: Misc/trailer
Year/Make/Body Style: 2001/HMDE/UT
Vehicle Ident. No.:
Fuel Type: N/A
Empt Wt/Carrying Cap:500/500
Gross weight/Tonnage: 1000/0.00
Reg Fee: $28.60
local Fee: $10.00
total Fee: $38.60
Nowwhere is there a vehicle identification number.

your tax office is very easy then !! great for you, mine is not so easy, bad for me , i only have to deal with them once a week on 25-30 tags ! every week ! maybe he might get lucky and have it easy,but with this being the first time the trailers being issued tags that is not looking promising. laws have changed on tags and reg. in the last 2 years.had the trailer been reg. previosly he would have no problems, now it's a $$ thing with the state!instead of just trying to get their finger in your pocket book they are trying to stick the whole arm in to the shoulder ! lol

Guess that's the difference in living in Texas and living in North Texas. Two different worlds.

and we can type...

OK. But I'm still right.

wrong--your LEFT...

follow along.. in the mans FIRST post he said.."I have talked to the Tax Assessor office and they said I need to find the vin number."

then you give the really smart answer to ..Go ask your Tax Assessor .. He ALREADY DID THAT...
so you think all he has to do is go back and tell them YOU said he didn't have to do, what they say,because your so much smarter..thats stupid..

No, I'm right and your just another a dumb liberal that belives you are entitled to grip and complain and have things done your way.

Yes, that is exactly what he needs to do. Or you liberal North Texas yankees can go ahead and belive your ways are right. I will never understand how you liberals try so hard to make life hard.

Well here is the run down for shop made trailers or trailers without a VIN. Go to the tax office and tell them you want to register a trailer. If you try to register it as homemade you need to contact your DPS Office for an inspection were they crawl all over it and inspect it for any VIN numbers that may or may not have been there. Also if you built it you need to take all material reciepts with you to the DPS inspection. Or if you bought it from someone that built it like I did. Make sure you have proof of purchase. Like a canceled check or a reciept. With my trailer this is turning into a big pain in the a$$. I still haven't recieved a vin for my trailer and it feels like your guilty of stealing your own trailer. It may be different for smaller trailers but I don't think so. I'm just trying to be legal and it is almost impossible. I think I'm going to have to tear the floor out of my trailer sandblast the frame and repaint so it looks new. This is what I have learned in the past week. I'm taking it on Tuesday for the inspection but from the conversations I have had with the DPS schedule lady she says it may be hard to pass this inspection with a possiblilty of my trailer being impounded!!!!!

Sorry this post jumped all over the place but I'm just wore out with this registration stuff.

OK, do what TP&W had me do on a boat that had no serial number or VIN or any other number. Stamp your TDL on the frame and register it.

The rules on different depending on the carrying capacity. They are much stricter when you go over 4000 gross weight. I registered a homemade with a 2000 gros weight for the first time last spring and it was a piece of cake.

yes sir your right! but hey ya'll did have a bicycle race there a month ago so look out progress is moving your way! just hope it never get's to ya!you have some really great country down in your neck o the woods!