Just went through this with my 74 in CA.
Jumped though all the hoops, but it wasn't that bad. And if I can do it, you can. I can't imagine any other state being as difficult as CA.
Look up rules for titling an abandoned vehicle in your state. Get a pretty good idea of what you need to do BEFORE going to the DMV.
Then just go to the DMV and ask bunch of questions and don't leave until they give you answers. Ask to talk to supervisor if you need to. Be VERY nice and enthusiastic about it. Be charming and make them WANT to help you, but be firm. Chances are, based on your research, you'll already know more than the workers, and possibly as much as the supervisor. You want to gently and inconspicuously "guide" them into giving you the right answers and materials.
Don't tell them you bought it, just tell them it's been abandoned on you property for years, and you've always thought about restoring it, and you want to know what you have to do.
I'm sure there's a way.
Here's what I had to do in CA:
1) Had to run a title check. Something like $12 through the DMV. Waited a few weeks for it to come back declared "No Title on Record" with an official stamp. This is to give the PO a chance to reclaim the car if he/she is out there somewhere. If anyone pops up in the database, the DMV sends them a notice. Highly unlikely anyone will come up, especially if the car has been sitting somewhere for years. If you bought it from someone, let them know your doing it, so they know not to interfere. Unlikely also, that someone who sold you the car is going to show up, interfere, or cause you trouble, unless they're a complete jerk.
2) Then you can declare it an abandoned vehicle on your property and you have to do a lien sale. Have to post a "public" notice of the auction with a specific date and time with something like a 40 day window for people to "see" and consider the auction. I posted mine on my front door, which is entirely legal.
Just has to be "visible" from a public area (the street). When no one shows up to buy the car on the day and hour of the auction you can officially "bid" and "win" it for whatever price you set. You end up paying no taxes, because the state allows you to offset any sales taxes from your purchase with "storage" fees you would have charged the PO for leaving on your property.
3) Then you have to have it inspected/validated at the DMV or through the CHP. They do it for free. But if the car is non-op, and you don't want to trailer it there, you can pay a private licensed service to come to your house and do it. I paid $60. They check to make sure the car is whole. Helps if the stickers and tags are still there, but they'll usually do it anyway as long as the VIN plate is there, and the car is whole.
4) THEN you can register and apply for a title.
The whole thing is pretty easy. The hardest part is you have to study up a bit (Google, forums, your state's DMV website and vehicle codes are you best friends for while), and you have to learn your way around some confusing, redundant forms. And the whole process takes a couple of months waiting between steps. But in the end, it's doable, and I thought worth it.
And ultimately satisfying, cause now the car is mine free and clear, titled in my name, and no one can mess with me.
I ended up knowing more about this than most of the DMV employees, which worked to my benefit. I knew the pitfalls. And I knew how to stick to the right story and not shot myself in the foot. And they're generally just as, if not more confused when it comes to this bureaucratic stuff. They don't want to be bothered. They just want to cover their own behinds. So if the forms are in order, they usually pass them through with no questions.
Whole thing cost me about $190 total, including registration for the year. In CA, you're not going to do any better than that with ANY car.
Just got my plates.
Good luck!
