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RV taxes and annual fees


Les&Elaine

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18 minutes ago, Nancy D said:

Can anyone say what about SD is better than WY?

Welcome to the Escapee forums and to the RV lifestyle! We are always happy to help so join in or start new threads at any time.

First I will answer the question above. As a Wyoming resident for 18 years, I am very familiar with it and there is much to be said for residing there but the key reason that very few if any fulltime RV people choose to domicile there is the fact that WY does not allow you to use a mail forwarding service as your legal address to register a vehicle, to register to vote, to get a driving license, or any other legal purpose, while SD does. 

There are actually 3 states that have very high ratings with the full-time RV community and they are Texas, Florida, and South Dakota because they share several things. None of them require you to be physically present in the state for a period of time to claim residency there, all 3 will accept the use of a mail service for all legal purposes, none have any state income tax, and all have reasonable cost to register vehicles. There are many things which vary between the there and there are some of those things which favor other states, but those three are the leaders for the listed reasons. They are not the only 3 that will allow the use of a mail service but they are the only 3 states with all of those factors. 

There is far more involved to choosing a state for domicile. If not family with the legal ramifications of you choice and what makes that choice supportable, I suggest that you read this article which was written by the Escapees RV Club attorney.

                   The Issue of Domicile

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

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

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Where are you moving from? We still tend to think of WY as home since our children grew up in Cheyenne and we still have many ties there. We had planned to spend some time there this spring, before the covid-19 got out of control and canceled everything. 

One question, do you need to buy a healthcare insurance policy? If you do SD will not be a good choice as they have very little by way of insurance available to those who travel full-time. I am a TX resident, but if you need to buy health insurance your best bet will be Florida. 

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 am also a Veteran and I get most of my healthcare with the VA, so I will be making SD VA hospital my main source of healthcare. But having Federal BCBS nationwide makes it so that my husband can get healthcare anywhere... we are thankful for that!

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On 6/3/2020 at 6:47 AM, Les&Elaine said:

Thanks for all the helpful replies. Sounds like SD might be best. If we register it there do we have to store it there or can we store it in any state? Sales tax is not a problem as the dealer we're buying from has already said if we buy from him (in NV) and register it in another state then he won't charge us tax.

Nevada has a tax loophole if you buy a vehicle or trailer from a private individual (as opposed to a licensed dealer) there is no sales tax on the purchase even if you register in-state.  As others have pointed out, if you buy in one state but register in another you can avoid paying sales tax to the selling state but you will be charged sales tax at the prevailing rate by the state you register in.

To further cloud the issue, most states that charge sales tax on the initial purchase will give you credit for any tax you've paid to another state, so you aren't charged twice.

Las Vegas is convenient to fly into and out of since there are flights available to there from all over the world and there's easy and plentiful transport to and from the airport.  If you book mid-week (Sunday -Thursday) you can usually find favorable air fares and very good room rates at many of the major hotel/casinos to let you get over jetlag, ready the RV for use or storage, etc.

Las Vegas has a consignment lot (Las Vegas Park and Sell) where transactions are handled directly between you and the vehicle's owner which qualifies for the sales tax waiver.

If you're buying a trailer, Nevada will let you register it for two years at a time - motorized vehicles will have to renew their registration renewed every year,  but annual smog inspections are only required in Clark County (Las Vegas) or Washoe County (Reno).

I'm registered in Pahrump which is 45 minutes outside Las Vegas but is in Nye County so I don't have to get my vehicles smogged at purchase or registration renewal time. 

Edited by Lou Schneider
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On 7/10/2020 at 10:40 AM, Lou Schneider said:

To further cloud the issue, most states that charge sales tax on the initial purchase will give you credit for any tax you've paid to another state, so you aren't charged twice.

I am sure you are mostly right but I believe there is a little more to it. Going way back to 1999 or the first part of 2000. I bought a used TT from individuals in Florida and tagged it there. I believe the sales tax was 3%.  When I changed it to Texas just months later they credited it that part but charge me the difference of 3.25% to meet Tx. vehicle tax of 6.25%.

Of course if I knew then what  I know now I would never have registered it Florida.  I was new back then and didn't know how easy it would have been to register it in Tx in the first place while volunteering in Florida.

 

Darn I should have read Lou's post better or I wouldn't have basically repeated what was said. I could edit it out but I will just leave it to back it up.

 

I read Lou's post for years and never knew if Lou was a Louise or a Louis until I finally asked, 😀   Now if I could just remember.🤑    Psst. its the medicine.

Edited by bigjim
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On 7/10/2020 at 7:39 AM, Nancy D said:

I am also a Veteran and I get most of my healthcare with the VA, so I will be making SD VA hospital my main source of healthcare. But having Federal BCBS nationwide makes it so that my husband can get healthcare anywhere... we are thankful for that!

If you are not going to spend much time in SD you might not want to reconsider your VA health care based there. If you are going to have a winter base camp for instance that  might be a better choice. I am "from" Livingston, Tx. but my prime VA is Albuquerque and Memphis. The VA systems don't always play well together. I am retired DOD civilian and haveGEHA as my insurance and Medicare. I have co-pays at the VA but Medicare is not allowed to pick up any of that and GEHA  pays some based on what Medicare would have paid if they were allowed to.  There are times I wish I had not even started with the VA although I have had some good care there.  A lot of these issues are not caused by the VA but by congress and the VA has no choice but to follow laws that mandate the way it works-from congress.

Edited by bigjim
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12 hours ago, bigjim said:

I read Lou's post for years and never knew if Lou was a Louise or a Louis until I finally asked

Lou is a male. If you have been to an Escapade, Lou is the sound team leader. 

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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2 hours ago, Kirk W said:

If you have been to an Escapade

To my knowledge I have never been.   I did stumble into an event at the fairgrounds in Albuquerque years ago that was pretty big.  I did not even know it was happening and went to the fairgrounds for some other reason and discovered it going on.

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On 6/6/2020 at 12:35 AM, sandsys said:

Yes, you can do it yourself if you go there. Some people prefer to register a vehicle before making the trip to get a driver's license. Or buy a different vehicle later as we did. Just be sure where you stay is in the same county where you domicile if you want to vote and that, if there are two of you, both names are on the receipt.

Linda

You do not have to stay the night in the same county that you domicile in anymore I was told that on the phone and in person when we got our drivers license last month in Sioux Falls South Dakota our domicile is Pennington county. Sioux Falls wall a lot closer drive than rapid city for us. Had to make an appt. to do it but we both were in and out in 30-40 minutes with new license, nicest dmv workers we actually had fun getting the license. This might save someone from driving across the state to their domicile county. It used to be you had to have the receipt in the same county but not anymore 

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4 hours ago, Danandfreda said:

You do not have to stay the night in the same county that you domicile in anymore I was told that on the phone and in person when we got our drivers license last month in Sioux Falls South Dakota our domicile is Pennington county. Sioux Falls wall a lot closer drive than rapid city for us. Had to make an appt. to do it but we both were in and out in 30-40 minutes with new license, nicest dmv workers we actually had fun getting the license. This might save someone from driving across the state to their domicile county. It used to be you had to have the receipt in the same county but not anymore 

Good to know. We got our driving licenses in Sioux Falls. Only time a clerk said she didn't like my purse strap being in the picture so we should retake it.

Linda

Blog: http://sandcastle.sandsys.org/

Former Rigs: Liesure Travel van, Winnebago View 24H, Winnebago Journey 34Y, Sportsmobile Sprinter conversion van

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RE: Sales Tax....

Bought and paid AZ sales tax in March...

If I move to Texas will I have to pay a one time sales tax registration fee or simply registration?

I understand Texas has reasonable registration fees. Right?

 

Thanks!

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1 hour ago, aztex said:

If I move to Texas will I have to pay a one time sales tax registration fee or simply registration?

Let me suggest that you call the office in Polk Co. and get the the information that way. You will find these folks very helpful. Just let them know that you are a member of Escapees and what you wish to do. I am sure that you will find them helpful.  (936) 327-6801

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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Great information here - Just to reiterate  ..

If I buy a Class C RV here in Phoenix ( where I have a home ) and through Escapees RV Club I have a mail forwarding address in South Dakota which I will give to the sales agent as my address,  I will pay NO sales tax on this RV in AZ??

Second, if that is the case how do I receive my registration and plates from South Dakota??

If that is possible to receive this registration and plates in AZ, then I will be driving around with SD plates in AZ - which I'm ok with this - BUT how and where should i insure this RV??

 

Thanks - appreciate your help with this matter .. Paul

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1 hour ago, Paul H said:

Great information here - Just to reiterate  ..

If I buy a Class C RV here in Phoenix ( where I have a home ) and through Escapees RV Club I have a mail forwarding address in South Dakota which I will give to the sales agent as my address,  I will pay NO sales tax on this RV in AZ??

Second, if that is the case how do I receive my registration and plates from South Dakota??

If that is possible to receive this registration and plates in AZ, then I will be driving around with SD plates in AZ - which I'm ok with this - BUT how and where should i insure this RV??

 

Thanks - appreciate your help with this matter .. Paul

Nope, as long as your domicile is in Arizona you're subject to Arizona rules, including registering vehicles there and paying their taxes.  You'd have to sever your ties with Arizona and establish your domicile in South Dakota or another state to avoid paying Arizona sales tax.  

Fulltimers that don't have a permanent address (like owning a home) can choose which state they  want to establish as their domicle and take the steps necessary to make this happen.

Edited by Lou Schneider
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4 hours ago, Paul H said:

If I buy a Class C RV here in Phoenix ( where I have a home ) and through Escapees RV Club I have a mail forwarding address in South Dakota which I will give to the sales agent as my address,  I will pay NO sales tax on this RV in AZ??

In addition to what Lou already told you, if you live in AZ and keep the RV there, more than likely the AZ authorities will discover what you have done and enforce the AZ laws about registration. If you are still employed fulltime in AZ, the law there is quite clear. 

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 bought a pickup truck in Yuma a couple of months ago.  The dealer was happy to do the registration in Texas, sending the required state tax and registration fees to Polk County.  They gave me a temporary 45 day Arizona registration to cover the truck while the Texas registration was in the works.

In order to make that happen, I had to sign a form with certain qualifications - one of which was that I had not been in the state for 7 months, which is their residency rule.  There were other criteria that would make you subject to Arizona taxes and licensing, but I don’t remember them.  Since I had only been in state 4 months at that point, I could honestly answer no.

When I arrived in Texas last fall, I had a 5 year old trailer and a 2 year old truck, both purchased in California.  I had to pay either $90 or the difference in the amount of sales tax I paid if I paid lower tax than what Texas would charge.  In my case, California has higher sales tax so I owed the $90 on top of the registration fees.

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