Setting up our domicile

[jlhogs]

I know, I know, another question about domicile location.

 

When we get our mailing address set up with Escapees, in Texas, do we have to get our drivers licenses and registrations in Polk County, or can we just go to any county in Texas and get our licences and registrations?

 

We were all planned to set it up in South Dakota, until I found out about the medical insurance (pre-medicare).

So now planning a trip to Texas around October/November.

 

Thanks in advance

 

 

[sandsys]

You can get them anywhere in Texas but some places have extra fees and requirements. (Can you parallel park your rig?) Polk county is safer.

 

Linda Sand

[jlhogs]

Ok, so it sounds like, if I want to have Livingston as my residence address, I will have to get my drivers license and registration in Polk county. We were thinking of taking a trip out to Kansas and on our way back, I thought we could just stop in Amarillo to get our licenses and registrations, without have to go out of the way to Polk county to take care of that.

[Kirk W]

Welcome to the Escapee forums! Glad that you have joined us.

 

The driving license is state issued an therefore can be gotten at any state license issuing office in any county and the fee is exactly the same in all of them. Vehicle registration is by county and you will have to register in Polk County. I suggest that for exact information on registration requirements you should call the Polk County Tax office. You could get your driver's licenses in Amarillo, but not vehicle registration with a Polk County Address.

 

For Auto Registration Information
Tax Assessor's Office
416 N. Washington
Livingston, TX. 77351
936-327-6801

For Driver's License Information:
Livingston Driver License Office
1735 N. Washington
Livingston, TX. 77351
936-327-6806

[soos]

You do not actually have to BE in Polk county to register your vehicle. I just registered a Jeep by mail from here in AZ.

I called Polk County and they told me what forms and how much to write the check for

[jlhogs]

Thank you for the links Kirk!

 

SOOS, wow that is great, then that is what we will do, Thanks!

 

Cant wait to "get out" of Cali

[jlhogs]

Just found 'How to be a Texan' and it answered alot of questions. Thanks to all

[livelaughlovejs]

SOOS - How did you register your vehicle in Texas without being in Polk County? Do I need to hand in my vehicle plates??

[Kirk W]

SOOS - How did you register your vehicle in Texas without being in Polk County? Do I need to hand in my vehicle plates??

 

For Tax Billing Information and Auto Registration:

Tax Assessor's Office

416 N. Washington

Livingston, TX. 77351

936-327-6801

Just call them and they will be happy to answer any and all questions.

[2gypsies]

Some of the counties around Houston or Dallas and others require emission testing. Polk County does not.

[whj469]

I am under the impression that unless you have a large MH, over 26,000 lbs, or a large fiver, you should not need a driving test?

If I recall correctly, all that is required is the written test if your drivers license is from another state?

[troutman]

We are chosing S Dakota as our domicle. Any recommendation on a Rapid city lawyer for trusts and wills or a credit union / bank? Anyone have a good recommendation for mail forwarding service other than Escapees, since Escapees service leads to 1 year temporary license?

[Roothoss1282]

We are chosing S Dakota as our domicle. Any recommendation on a Rapid city lawyer for trusts and wills or a credit union / bank? Anyone have a good recommendation for mail forwarding service other than Escapees, since Escapees service leads to 1 year temporary license?

LOL probably a little late on this but Jeff Maks is good and First Interstate Bank. Coming off I-90 take Mount Rushmore road exit and go down to the first stop light and it is right on the corner on the right. Or they have another location east of town by Menards.

[Twotoes]

I have been told that the problem with the Escapees South Dakota address has been resolved and you can get a 5 year license now. If you still want to go with another mail forwarding service you can try using Americas Mailbox in Box Elder a suburb of Rapid City.

[Kirk W]

I have been told that the problem with the Escapees South Dakota address has been resolved and you can get a 5 year license now. If you still want to go with another mail forwarding service you can try using Americas Mailbox in Box Elder a suburb of Rapid City.

You were told correctly.

[Flashman]

So the Kiplinger Report does not even have Texas on their list of tax-friendly retiree states. Why is that? It has Florida in there at #10, and some you'd never think of, but no Texas. Just curious if anyone knows the 'counter-argument' of why Texas is NOT as favorable as I had thought?

[Second Chance]

So the Kiplinger Report does not even have Texas on their list of tax-friendly retiree states. Why is that? It has Florida in there at #10, and some you'd never think of, but no Texas. Just curious if anyone knows the 'counter-argument' of why Texas is NOT as favorable as I had thought?

 

Real estate and sales taxes can be pretty high in many Texas counties. Kiplinger looks at things from the perspective of someone actually living in the state (and probably owning a home). As full-timers, we spend most of our time (and buy food, etc.) elsewhere and don't own real estate. That makes Texas very attractive for us since we don't pay state income tax on our retirement income and the fees for re-registering vehicles each year are very low.

 

Rob

[Kirk W]

Search long enough and you can probably find any state on most any list. The problem is that some studies look at things that others ignore and they each have different values for different issues. Market Watch has a list from July 2015 that rates Texas as #3. Perhaps the article you are looking at explains how they did their ratings.

 

3. Texas

State and local tax burden as a share of state income: 7.5%

Low taxes (a 7.5% overall tax burden; the fifth lowest in the U.S.), mostly mild weather and very little snow are among the reasons you might consider the Lone Star State. Plus, Texas had the 13th lowest cost of living in the U.S. for the first quarter of 2015, according to MERIC. That makes it the cheapest places to live among all the states that don’t tax personal income. Other reasons to retire to here: Texas has friendly people and a slower pace of life that is easy to get used to, according to TopRetirements.com.

[bigjim]

Taxes are a factor but not just taxes. Just last night I looked up the basic information on living in Texarkana on either the Texas side or the Arkansas side. I did this because I was trying to verify if they still had an exemption from Ark. state income tax if you live in the city limits of TX-Ark. In my recollection from living in the area it was generally cheaper to live on the Ark. side and it drew some retirees for that reason. In general the taxes on home ownership and property in Texas is higher.

 

Excluding just certain types of taxes I have noticed that prices in Walmart for groceries in particular is easily noticably higher here in the area of Tn. I just came to last week from the Albquerque area. I bought some of the refill water that you get using your own containers and it was 1/3 higher. 37C vs 27C. That is one of the significant ones but almost every item Ibought here to restock was higher than New Mexico in general or Walmarts I have shopped in Texas, Arkansas and Oklahoma.

[sandsys]

It also helps to look at sales tax and what things are exempt. In Minnesota clothing is exempt which thrills visitors to the Mall of America. We also exempt groceries (but not snack or restaurant food), text books, and medicine. In a grocery store if you buy the big bags of chips they are exempt but if you buy a single serving bag at checkout it will be taxed as a snack food.

 

Linda Sand