# Selling horses on payment in PA



## iridehorses (Oct 22, 2007)

Welcome to the forum.

You are right in that it is an extremely risky proposal but there may be several way to protect yourself.

First off, I'm not an attorney so my suggestions are not to be taken for law.

I would have a contract set up by an attorney similar to an installment sales contract which spells out the terms and conditions of the sale - especially as to when the payments are due and the remedy by you if they are not paid within the specified time.

Another way, and one in which I have used, is to have a bill of sale with the terms and conditions on it plus a series of checks dated for the proper amount and the dates they are to be deposited. If a check bounces or is stopped, you have legal rights. (I used to live in PA and if it is still the same, if you bounce a check you can call the Constables and they will call on the person - it is a crime to bounce a check in PA).

In all cases, especially if the horse is registered, I would hold on to the papers until the final payment has cleared the bank. There would also be a stipulation that the horse will not leave the place where it is going without written permission from you. If the horse is going to be sold, you are to be paid in full before.

All bills of sale should state that once the horse leaves your possession, that the horse becomes their responsibility for anything that happens. That they had the right to a vet check and the horse is being sold "as is where is" and no guaranty is made as to it's fitness for any purpose the new owner intends.


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## Joe4d (Sep 1, 2011)

People shouldnt finance toys, MY thoughts are if the person cant afford to buy the horse how are they gonna afford to take care of it ? You can do a contract but do you really wanna deal with the hassle of collecting or going and repo ing the horse ? Id just tell the person you are not a bank and am not really up on finance, contract and payment laws and procedures. So you are not interested.


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## Joe4d (Sep 1, 2011)

I'd suggest they try a bank or credit card company. If they have good credit and income the bank will give them a loan, If they are jacked up the bank wont. Think about it. If a bank, with lawyers, contracts ,collection agencies and repo men on the payroll wont loan them money, why should you ?


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## Daily Ride (Oct 28, 2011)

I disagree with the comment if they can't afford it they can't afford to keep it. If a family was upgrading because of their child's talent they may be looking to get a horse that is outside of their immediate cash flow. Buyers can be quite capapble of making board payments and afford to buy a $2000 horse but the $4000 horse is out of their league unless they make payments. Having a talented rider on one of your horses goes a long way to future sales as well.


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## MHFoundation Quarters (Feb 23, 2011)

I've not sold any on payments. I'm just not trusting enough. The last one I sold the buyers took out a personal loan to purchase, but she was 15k, most people don't have that laying around.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Golden Horse (Feb 20, 2010)

I was extremely lucky, when I bought Alto, my stud, I obviously wanted him in time for the breeding season. The seller had a new stud and didn't want the hassle of two boys around during the season, so she sold him to me on payments. 

I was amazed that she let me do that, and it was the first time she had sold one on payments and let the horse go before all payments were made. She obviously held onto his papers until I finished paying for him, and his value to me was limited without any papers.


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## Daily Ride (Oct 28, 2011)

Situations do arise that make taking payments look very appealing. My situation was prompted by a farm being sold that I was leasing. I was forced to bring 5 horses back to the farm that was already at capacity. I am glad your situation worked from both the buyer and seller's perspective.


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## SaddleOnline (Oct 20, 2011)

It happens from time to time - especially when the owner is out of room/out of money. 

Just have a good contract, keep the papers, etc... if you can't afford to keep the horse, then it can be a good option if you find the right buyer.


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## Saddlebag (Jan 17, 2011)

I made a deal with my bank, they don't sell horses and I don't give credit. I agree about payments, if a buyer has to make payments they can't afford a vet bill or farrier so who suffers? The courts do little to protect the seller, contract or not. It's just not worth the hassle to let the horse go unless paid in full.


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## trailhorserider (Oct 13, 2009)

I bought my second horse on payments. But the lady I bought him from was the barn owner I was boarding with, so I think she felt she could keep an eye on him. :wink:

Actually, when I first asked about him she refused to do payments, but after trying to sell him for a little while she came back and said she would do payments. So I did payments and payed board on the horse at the same time. Worked out great for both of us. 

But, it is definitely risky. I don't think I would ever sell a horse on payments. Of course I would never sell one of my horses either. If I had to part with one, I would rather give it to the right person. But I have trail horses, not valuable breeding or show stock. So it would mean more to me to find them a good home than trying to sell them.


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## Golden Horse (Feb 20, 2010)

Saddlebag said:


> if a buyer has to make payments they can't afford a vet bill or farrier .


Not so, I could not afford the payment outright for Alto, and the shipping to get him home all at once, being that I could get 100 trims for the cost of the horse, and making payments also allowed me to keep my vet emergency money untouched.

It really annoys me when people keep repeating that old chestnut, it MAY be true SOME of the time, but not in every case.


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## Horsesdontlie (Mar 11, 2011)

Golden Horse said:


> Not so, I could not afford the payment outright for Alto, and the shipping to get him home all at once, being that I could get 100 trims for the cost of the horse, and making payments also allowed me to keep my vet emergency money untouched.
> 
> It really annoys me when people keep repeating that old chestnut, it MAY be true SOME of the time, but not in every case.


I agree, If I was looking for another horse I wouldn't be able to spend over a certain amount because I would be unwilling to dive into emergency funds that are already reserved for vet bills....farrier and ect. I make plenty a month to pay for the normal bills and to put little more into savings each paycheck. I would think payments would be a good option.

I sold a horse once with out people giving me a full price, more of a deposit on trail loans. The first person that tried him paid me 25% of the agreed upon selling price, which I returned to her when she decided they didn't match well. The second person also put down 25% that I held onto until they said they wanted him, then they paid the other 75% a month later. I had a one month lease contract, that they had the option to buy once it was up. There were no payments in the lease but a $500 deposit.


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## SaddleDragon (Sep 20, 2010)

I have bought on purchase plans and brought the horse home before it was paid off. But I trust me. LOL
Would I do it? Maybe. If I needed the horse gone for herd issues or lack of ability to care for it, I would ( with good refrences). If the horse was no problem and it didnt need to go, I wouldnt. It would also depend on the horses worth. A $20,000 show horse, NO. A $500 4-H horse, yep.


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## SaddleDragon (Sep 20, 2010)

Joe4d said:


> I'd suggest they try a bank or credit card company. If they have good credit and income the bank will give them a loan, If they are jacked up the bank wont. Think about it. If a bank, with lawyers, contracts ,collection agencies and repo men on the payroll wont loan them money, why should you ?


 
The person that needs a loan thru a bank, should pick a more reasonable horse. A bank note for a horse, that is more irresponsible than asking the breeder to give payments. Thats the horse that will end up in danger.
What a rediculious thought.


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## SaddleDragon (Sep 20, 2010)

Joe4d said:


> I'd suggest they try a bank or credit card company. If they have good credit and income the bank will give them a loan, If they are jacked up the bank wont. Think about it. If a bank, with lawyers, contracts ,collection agencies and repo men on the payroll wont loan them money, why should you ?


 
The person that needs a loan thru a bank, should pick a more reasonable horse. A bank note for a horse, that is more ignorant than asking the breeder to give payments. Thats the horse that will end up in danger.
What a rediculious thought.


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## Joe4d (Sep 1, 2011)

whats the difference in a bank note or a private loan ? It is still borrowing money to buy a horse. Not very sound financial management. But as a seller if someone wanted to buy a horse on credit I would send them somewhere that is professional and has the legal resources at their disposal to deal with problems if something goes wrong. 
Making payments on a horse that stays on the sellers property until paid off is more like a layaway plan and not really what the OP asked about.


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## Golden Horse (Feb 20, 2010)

SaddleDragon said:


> The person that needs a loan thru a bank, should pick a more reasonable horse. A bank note for a horse, that is more ignorant than asking the breeder to give payments. Thats the horse that will end up in danger.
> What a rediculious thought.


*Le Sigh* 

There is a world of difference between buying a nice family trail horse at a $1000 give or take, and yes you should save up.

When we are talking about breeding stock then it may not be possible to afford the quality that you want all at one go, and we are all agreed that you shouldn't breed grades or poor horses. That's why I paid installments on my stud, some people sink their money, and someone elses in a mare.

I would imagine that a lot of competition horses are paid for with borrowed money one way or another, it is more of a business deal than a pleasure purchase.


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## goneriding (Jun 6, 2011)

It would have to be an "isolated" situation for me to sell on contract and the horse wouldn't leave until final payment. I bought a horse on a payment plan along time ago, paid $7500 for her. The seller let me take her home right away. After about 6 months I told the seller I wanted to pay her off which was a good sum sooner rather than later. The seller was "funny" about her papers be readily available. My gut went hmmmm, after a little research(lesson well learned)this filly's dam wasn't paid for. I contacted the legal owner of the filly's dam and she said if you pay me you will get your papers. If you don't you won't. The woman who purchased the filly's mare was in major debt to this woman. I said ok, so I dropped a check in the mail and within a week I had my papers. I was young but I learned a valuable lesson.


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## Courtney (May 20, 2011)

I think it really depends on the situation and the cost of the horse. If I was trying to buy a horse for $1000, I'd fully expect the seller to laugh at me if I asked for a payment plan. However, I can appreciate that a lot of finished, great horses cost a lot more than that. If I was looking at a 10K or 20K horse, I'd ask about a payment plan, but would definitely understand if the seller required the horse remain at their location until paid in full.

When I was selling my gelding, I had him listed at $400. I had a very interested family show up to look at him, but they wanted to pay me in monthly installments of $100 or $200. Right away, red flags started going off -- if they couldn't afford the $400, how on earth would they afford to have his feet done or his teeth floated? Heaven forbid they need both done in a single month!


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