You might have nailed it on the proverbial head with your mentioning of 'county.' Someone from Georgia a while back mentioned that you have to register it in the county you reside in. This was the thread from member Jmcgee, but he does not indicate where in Georgia he lives. I have not seen him post lately, so I have a feeling he gave up on his Hawk.
http://chinariders.net/showthread.php?t=17545
Thanks for clearing up the confusion, but I did have a feeling that you had to go through the same process whether you brought in the unregistered/untitled bike from NC or mail-ordered it.