When you sell something, such as a vehicle or piece of equipment, on your own it is considered a private sale. For a private sale, the only proof of purchase is a bill of sale, which must be created by the seller. The bill of sale, which you can create on your home computer, serves as a receipt for the buyer, whether he pays with cash or check. Buyers may need a bill of sale for tax-related purposes or to show the amount of the purchase, such as with a vehicle purchase.
Step 1
Open a word processing program on your computer, such as Word or OpenOffice, and create a new document.
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Step 2
Enter in "Bill of Sale" at the top of the document. Center the words and format them in bold and a larger font than the rest of the document to make it distinguishable from the rest of the text.
Step 3
Create a section with the seller's contact details. This should include name, address and phone number.
Step 4
List the item being sold, a description of it and any other relevant details. For instance, if you are selling a car, include the VIN, year, make and model.
Step 5
Leave a space for the buyer's details, or create a section with these details if you already know what they are. This section should include the buyer's name, address and phone number.
Step 6
Enter the price paid for the item -- specifying that the payment was in cash if desired -- the date of purchase and a statement that the money was received for the listed item, which is sold "as-is" with no warranty, unless the item does have a warranty. Sample wording can be "I acknowledge payment of $5,000 in cash on 5/16/2011 from John Smith as full payment for the listed vehicle, which is being sold as-is."
Step 7
Designate an area at the bottom for both the seller and the buyer to sign once the sale is complete.
Tip
Make a copy of the completed bill of sale so that each party gets his own copy.
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