A bill of sale is a short document that records the transfer of ownership of an item from a seller to a buyer. It's used for private sales of cars, boats, motorcycles, trailers, ATVs, and general property. It doesn't transfer legal title — that's the state's job — but it's the piece of paper that proves the sale happened, on what date, for how much.

The as-is statement matters

Almost every private-party bill of sale should include an as-is clause. Standard wording: "The item is sold AS-IS, WHERE-IS, with no warranty of any kind, express or implied. Buyer accepts the item in its present condition." This protects the seller from post-sale complaints about condition. Solda's template includes this by default.

Signatures and dates

Both parties sign and date the document. Two copies — one for each party. Some states or high-value sales benefit from a witness or notary; Solda includes an optional notary block that you can fill in or leave blank.

Vehicle-specific fields

For cars and motorcycles, federal law (49 CFR 580) requires an odometer disclosure on any vehicle under 20 model years old. For boats, include the 12-character Hull Identification Number. For trailers, the VIN or serial number and the number of axles.