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working in NJ


wheast

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I work a regular job, and rent an apartment, in central NJ. I want to live in the travel-trailer I just bought. There is an RV park in Lodi NJ I can stay at, but it is a long drive from where I work, and I would rather stay at campgrounds. If I stay at campgrounds, I need a legal address. Since NJ seems to want everyone to own or rent a brick house, I have assumed I need to change my residency to FL/TX/SD. In preperation for this, I am in the process of getting a FL mailing address. The plan is to get a FL residency/license/domicile. I'm not trying to avoid taxes or hide from anybody, and I am certainly not rich. I want to legally live in an RV at campgrounds. I have expected that I might need to stay at campgrounds in adjacent states (PA/NJ/NY) so that no single state can demand I adhere to their rules (which I could not without renting/buying a house). My NJ driver's license is good for several years, but I'm not supposed to use it if the address is incorrect.

 

I don't know if I should try to keep my NJ licence, get one in FL (unless they require 6 months residence), or get one in SD, or if I am somehow breaking a law.

 

Any suggestions?

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Welcome to the Escapees Forum!!

 

I am not sure what you mean by RV Park and campground. By RV park, do you mean a Mobile Home Park? Many RV Parks and campgrounds in NJ (especially in the shore communities) are not open all year. But there are some like this one in Jackson that are and will accept long term residents.

 

I am thinking that you are hung up on the requirement for proof of address/residency for a driver's license and the fact that a PO Box is not sufficient in NJ. For a long term site, I would think there would be a lease which is listed as acceptable proof of residency. Most monthly and longer term site rentals require payment of the electric charges. An electric bill is also considered proof of residency. Even if sent to a PO box, an electric bill or phone bill for a land line will show a "service address". The long term RV Park residents have driver's licenses, register their vehicles and likely register to vote. Some parks/campgrounds accept mail for the long term residents. Some even have individual boxes just like an apartment complex. Talk to the park/campground staff or stop by and talk to some of the residents and see how they do it.

 

If you stay more than 6 months in NJ, you are required to register your vehicles in NJ. Insurance companies generally want to know where a vehicle is garaged and the fact that you work in NJ may make it difficult to convince them that the vehicle is garaged in FL or SD.

 

If you are not elligible for Medicare, research the health insurance options available in South Dakota carefully as there has been a lot of discussion about this as related to fulltime RVers receiving non-emergency services out of state.

 

Hope this helps. I am sure some of the resident experts on domicile will wade in soon.

 

Again, Welcome to the Escapees Forum!!

The one that dies with the most toys is still dead!

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If you are working full time, I would check on getting a UPS post box and using the store address in NJ and keeping my Id. You may find that if you pull in using out of state plates and drivers license you may have a problem. Working full time year round puts a different slant on things. Work camping for a few months no one appears to care.

2nd problem is the campground does it stay open year round. We moved into our 5Wh 1 Aug. and had to live in Pa. until Jan. We found that the only place we could find a site open all year was a mobile home park.

 

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I too would like to welcome you to the Escapee forums. For RV related issues this is as good as it gets and helping each other is what the forums are all about.

 

Let me first suggest that you do not have the option to "move" to TX or FL or any other state legally, while you maintain a permanent job and home in NJ. Under New Jersey law, you must have registered a motor vehicle in NJ withing 60 days of permanently locating there. Depending upon how aggressive the enforcement folks are, you are probably going to get ticketed if you try to live there with vehicles registered in any other state. That same 60 day requirement also applies to your driving license as you are required to be licensed in the state of residence. While there are no requirements that you get your mail at an address in NJ, you will not be able to do either of these functions unless you provide them with a valid address in the state. I suggest that you contact your local NJ Motor Vehicle Commission to be sure of exactly what they require. Moving your driver's license to any other state will require that you go there at least for the first time as all states require that you appear in person for their written test and for a photograph. While you might get by with use of some other state for registration and driving licensing for a time, should you ever have an accident or moving violation, you are pretty sure to be caught. In addition, you have to get vehicle insurance at the same address as your vehicle registration and if you insure in a state that you are not legally a resident of, you may have that insurance voided and not paid in an accident.

Good travelin !...............Kirk

Full-time 11+ years...... Now seasonal travelers.
Kirk & Pam's Great RV Adventure

            images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQqFswi_bvvojaMvanTWAI

 

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I'm a bit confused about exactly why you are considering a campground in Lodi if you work in central NJ. There are other year round campgrounds in the area. I'm familiar with this one since we used to store our RV there. I know this one is a common location for people in construction who are in the region for an extended period.

 

http://www.pineconenj.com

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On 7/6/2015 at 10:21 PM, NJTroy said:

I'm a bit confused about exactly why you are considering a campground in Lodi if you work in central NJ. There are other year round campgrounds in the area. I'm familiar with this one since we used to store our RV there. I know this one is a common location for people in construction who are in the region for an extended period.

 

http://www.pineconenj.com

I thought I was.

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On 7/6/2015 at 9:01 AM, The Rambling Roses said:

If you are working full time, I would check on getting a UPS post box and using the store address in NJ and keeping my Id. You may find that if you pull in using out of state plates and drivers license you may have a problem. Working full time year round puts a different slant on things. Work camping for a few months no one appears to care.

2nd problem is the campground does it stay open year round. We moved into our 5Wh 1 Aug. and had to live in Pa. until Jan. We found that the only place we could find a site open all year was a mobile home park.

 

 

I may do this.

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If the difference between RV parks and camp grounds is that the camp ground is like a

state camp ground, then they will not let you stay long term. You would have to move around

a lot. That could have changed but I am not aware of any change. It has been my experience

that NJ does have some very high taxes, particularly real estate taxes. Additional, unless you have a winter

RV, I wouldn't want to live in an RV in NJ during the winter. Good Luck

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. So far, I haven't heard anything about using a UPS/PMB as being illegal in NJ, as long as you have the enough identification for the NJ "6 Point ID Sysytem".

The question is not if it is legal as the law does not specify where you get your mail, but where the rub comes is that most states will not register a vehicle or issue a driver's license to anything but a physical address. That is what you need to check with the state about.

 

 

 

Good travelin !...............Kirk

Full-time 11+ years...... Now seasonal travelers.
Kirk & Pam's Great RV Adventure

            images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQqFswi_bvvojaMvanTWAI

 

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  • 8 months later...

If I use a mail forwarding service in Florida as my "domicile", while staying in my RV and working full-time in NJ, I believe NJ will consider me a "New Jersey nonresident" for tax-purposes. Based on this:

 

http://www.state.nj.us/treasury/taxation/njit24.shtml

 

"Also, you are a nonresident if:

  • New Jersey was not your domicile, and you spent 183 days or less here; or
  • New Jersey was not your domicile, and you spent more than 183 days here, but you did not maintain a "permanent" home here."

 

If I am a NJ non-resident, with my truck registered in Florida, then I would not think NJ would expect me to register my vehicle as a "new resident", described in this link:

 

http://www.state.nj.us/mvc/Vehicle/NewResidentRegistration.htm

 

My "permanent home" would be in Florida, I would be a Florida resident, and my truck and RV would be registered in Florida. I would happen to work full-time in New Jersey. As long as I paid all my taxes to Florida and NJ, it would seem they would both be happy.

 

Does this seem right?

It is a judgment issue whether or not it is right, but it is correct as I read the laws and it is also typical of the laws of most states that I am familiar with. State laws vary since the legislature of each state chooses what laws to have and how written. In issues of motor vehicle registration and licensing, the term domicile is not a factor but rather the location where the vehicle is garaged is the determining factor and most states will define garaged as being the location where it is most often parked when not traveling down the roads. In addition, residency also comes to play and most states will also require that if you live & work in their state you must then get the driving license of their state. But in each state you will be dealing with their set of laws and it may be different from the previous one.

 

Florida, nor any other other state that you choose to pay taxes to is not going to defend you against the laws of some other state. Physical location is key to what law applies. Florida is happy to accept your registration fees and taxes as a donation, and does not care if you are actually there or not.

Good travelin !...............Kirk

Full-time 11+ years...... Now seasonal travelers.
Kirk & Pam's Great RV Adventure

            images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQqFswi_bvvojaMvanTWAI

 

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  • 1 year later...
9 hours ago, wheast said:

I have read that once I know I am going to do this "for real", I should have all my mail forwarded to SBI in FL, so I have documentation that is my address.  Ironically, I had been collecting documentation to show my NJ license was valid. I also don't know if I have a passport. I have a Birth Certificate and DL good until 2019.

Any suggestions?

 

Yes, I have. You need to get advice from a competent attorney, preferably licensed in NJ.

Good travelin !...............Kirk

Full-time 11+ years...... Now seasonal travelers.
Kirk & Pam's Great RV Adventure

            images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQqFswi_bvvojaMvanTWAI

 

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