First off I purchased a pistol about 20 years ago - simple.  Went to the 1200 building, took 10 question "test", got my form for the 9mm I was planning on purchasing ... done.

Last week, I thought it was a good time to purchase another and since I have a SBR on order that will be under 26" ... Went online and it says to go Records Unit of the Oakland County Sheriff's Office in Pontiac.  Drive to the campus and finally endup were I think I should be.  Walk in and ask an officer inside that tells me - you need to take a CPL class, pay the fee, get finger printed ...

First off I plan on getting my CPL (have already registered for class in Jan) but I was under the impression that I don't NEED to do this to purchase a pistol, just follow the following:

How to Obtain a Permit to Purchase a Firearm

   To obtain a handgun purchase permit, you must appear in person at the Records Unit of the Oakland County Sheriff's Office in Pontiac.  
   Please bring valid, government issued photo I.D. with your current address on it when coming in to obtain a permit. If you choose to have the permit notarized at Records, there is a $5 cash notary fee   this service.
After obtaining the permit, you will have 30 calendar days to purchase the firearm, and 10 calendar days to submit the MSP(Michigan State Police) copy of the purchase permit to the Sheriff's Office for registration.  This may be done in person or by mail.  It is very important that the information on the purchase permit is accurate and legible.

Will someone please confirm the  correct steps?

Thanks

If you're buying from a dealer, you shouldn't need a purchase permit.

Yeah, you do not need a cpl to get a purchase permit. hell, a cpl bypasses the whole need for a purchase permit.

A couple years ago, we found out my wifes CPL was expired when she was buying a pistol from Jay's.

She filled out the 4473 and walked out with it.  Purchase permit is still required for private purchase, without a CPL.

Most dealers are set up with the state now so that you don't need a purchase permit.   They handle that part of it right there at the gun store. 

All dealers are. There is no setup. It's part of state law. Holding an FFL allows them to fill out the RI-60 with their license number and eliminates the need for a purchase permit.

So, with this being the case with dealers, the only reason a person (without a cpl) would need to get a "purchase permit" would be to buy from a individual (person to person sale) ???

YES>>>THIS

I thought the dealer had to "buy in" to the NICS check system to be able to sell without a purchase permit?  

Under MCL 28.422 and MCL 28.422a, it doesn't make any enrollment criteria for FFL holders. FFLs are required to fill out the RI-60 with their license number and the NICS transaction number if the purchaser is not a CPL holder, or the CPL number if they do have a CPL. There's no buy in or enrollment procedure as far as I can tell.

Thanks for all the feedback -