Buying a used car

[blub]

I'm thinking about buying a used car and I'm wondering about some of the details, having not done this before.

For the most part, I've been following a set of suggestions [1] that I found linked from this forum. I test drove a car today that I liked, and I have a pre-purchase inspection scheduled with a reputable mechanic on Thursday. Assuming that inspection goes fine, how do I proceed? The asking price is reasonable, so I'd only be negotiating based on important issues raised in the inspection.

* How do I transfer the money for the car? Cash? Is there a less sketchy way to do this?
* Pay before or after having the title transferred? Half before/half after?
* Should I have the seller come to the tax office to process the change of title? I don't think it's required: if I he signs the appropriate paperwork, I can do it myself, but if the paperwork has been done wrong, then I'd be in a bad spot.

Basically, any tips for doing this without exposing myself to unnecessary risk? I'm in Texas.

[1a] http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2012/08/3rd-edition-how-to-buy-a-used-car-first-contact/
[1b] http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2012/08/how-to-buy-a-used-car-part-two-the-test-drive-2/
[1c] http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2012/08/how-to-buy-a-used-car-pt-3-due-diligence-the-inspection/
[1d] http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2012/08/how-to-buy-a-used-car-part-4-negotiating-3/

[aFrugalFather]

You can meet at their bank and see them get the cashiers check right there, or you can meet at your bank to cash their cashiers check. 

[memorytoast]

posting to follow! Thanks for those links!