- Jun 7, 2003
- 4,815
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California...
I've been looking to buy a gun for a couple of months now. I've tried out several guns at ranges and decided on what I want. I've looked in all the stores in my area, and they're selling my gun for $560 to $600. There are several large (out of state) Web retailers who sell the same gun for $450 + $20 shipping.
As in most (all?) states, though, they can't just go and send you a gun; they need to send it to a licensed dealer who'll hold the gun for ten days, run a background check, etc. In most states this will cost $20 to $30, but most dealers in my area want $50 to $100 ($20 goes to the state and the rest is for profit). I've found a $50 guy, but it seems that he also wants to charge me sales tax.
Understand that I'd be buying the gun from someone in another state, and I'd be paying that person in the other state. The local guy will be paid $50 for his costs and his service, but he's otherwise not part of the transaction at all. Below is part of an email that he sent me this morning. He does point out that he won't know how much I paid for the gun, but I imagine teh Web retailer will probably include an invoice... and I really interpret this situation as the guy collecting a little extra and trying to pass it off as California sales tax, and I'm not happy about it.
Thoughts, comments, suggestions?
I've been looking to buy a gun for a couple of months now. I've tried out several guns at ranges and decided on what I want. I've looked in all the stores in my area, and they're selling my gun for $560 to $600. There are several large (out of state) Web retailers who sell the same gun for $450 + $20 shipping.
As in most (all?) states, though, they can't just go and send you a gun; they need to send it to a licensed dealer who'll hold the gun for ten days, run a background check, etc. In most states this will cost $20 to $30, but most dealers in my area want $50 to $100 ($20 goes to the state and the rest is for profit). I've found a $50 guy, but it seems that he also wants to charge me sales tax.
Understand that I'd be buying the gun from someone in another state, and I'd be paying that person in the other state. The local guy will be paid $50 for his costs and his service, but he's otherwise not part of the transaction at all. Below is part of an email that he sent me this morning. He does point out that he won't know how much I paid for the gun, but I imagine teh Web retailer will probably include an invoice... and I really interpret this situation as the guy collecting a little extra and trying to pass it off as California sales tax, and I'm not happy about it.
Thoughts, comments, suggestions?
As far as the sales tax goes, I?m not sure, I just heard about a few larger dealers that are apparently being sued by the state for tax evasion for not collecting sales tax on out of state purchases. For the time being I think it would be in my best interest to collect the tax until a definite procedure is identified. That being the case, I would have no idea how much you paid for your gun $100 or $1000; so in theory, I guess you would tell me how much you paid for the gun and the tax would be based upon that figure. In the mean time I?ll be checking with the state board of equalization and DOJ to try and get an answer.