Buying used car that is financed

[nola911]

Has anyone done this in a non-local market?

I paid a deposit for a car that I won on ebay. It is 800 miles from where I live. My intention was to fly down, pay for it, and drive back, just like I had on my last 2 cars. The owner of the car popped a new one on me last night- he does not own the car, the bank does, he has it financed.

I am thinking that it wouldn't be a problem in 99.9% of the cases to just get the title in the mail after the car is paid off, but what about the other 0.1% where someone sells something they love when they are desperate for money, then used it to pay off another loan, or just never pays the bank back.

The bank would come after me for their property- and rightfully so.

Can this kind of transaction be done on a Saturday, like any other car deal, or am I in for a mess of paperwork? I tried calling the guy to see if I can pay off the bank directly, but he hasn't called back yet.

Anyone deal with this before? Please advise