INFO ON FULLTIMING

[bsoshea]

My husband and I are going to start fulltiming in January. We live in Michigan. A little background on us, we moved to Michigan in 2012 from California. We own a home in both states and will be renting them out. Our permanent residence is now in Michigan. When we start full time RVing how do we figure out which state is our permanent state and can anyone tell us if Michigan allows a mail forwarding service address to be our address for vehicle registration?

We may not be asking the right questions, because although we have done a lot of RVing we haven't been full time. I guess there are lots of questions that need to be addressed like taxes, etc., etc. but we are hoping that this forum will be a place for us to go to get some answers to all of our questions.

Thanks in advance for you help

[Roads_Less_Trav]

Definitely join Escapees and check out their forum info on full-timing. I also compiled a lot of info on full-timing here:

Full-time RVing tips & tricks

[Clay_L]

beetle1 wrote:
I would like to hear more strategy for claiming a state as residency that is legal for IRS, etc. Where should your drivers lic. be claimed, do you need a P.O. box or other evidence for claiming a state???

You might want to take look at the first link in my post right above. That info is explained in it.

[beetle1]

I would like to hear more strategy for claiming a state as residency that is legal for IRS, etc. Where should your drivers lic. be claimed, do you need a P.O. box or other evidence for claiming a state???

[Clay_L]

You might want to read the info HERE on what constitutes a legal domicile as opposed to a residence.

We chose SD and use Alternative Resources as our mail forwarding service and address. They have some good info on SD as a domicile on their web site.

[soos]

And as for using a mailforwarding service as your address, when we went full time we were MI residents. We used a UPS forwarding service. 6 months after we left we got a letter from the SOS canceling our drivers licenses until we gave them a RESIDENTIAL address. No wiggle room. However, you still technically own a home so u can use that address but use the forwarding service as your mailing address.
Sue

[doxiemom11]

We are also still residents of Michigan. We will be establishing our residency in S Dakota. We own a house in MI that we rent out. MI is one of the costliest states for insurance because of the No-fault medical & wage loss benefits provided, and in FL the first time registration fee for newly registered vehicles would cost us almost $1,000 to get started. Florida, Texas and S Dakota are the most popular choices of states for residency. Texas does have some regulations for vehicle inspections and non-commercial CDL licenses for some of the larger rv's. S Dakota does not have that. Research these 3 states to find what is best for you. Don't forget about health insurance costs also when making your choice.

[bsoshea]

Thanks to everyone for your advise and input regarding this post. We've been given some great information and now can make a better informed decision.

[2gypsies1]

If you're renting out both houses then typically you're free to claim a more tax-friendly state as your permanent residence. But first, check on your two states to see if there are any loopholes in doing this. Each situation is different and you definitely shouldn't go by heresay.

Also, we've been Escapees members for 16 years using their mail service. It's a great organization for full-timers.

There are a lot of perks but the best advice is to get involved with the club - go to one of their Escapades complete with Bootcamp for beginners. You'll learn so much and you'll make wonderful friends. Go to individual state rallies. Michigan has a fantastic one. Stay in one of their own parks - a few we really like are in Summerdale, Alabama, Benson, Arizona or Chimacum, Washington, but there are others. Especially being at one of their parks during the holidays is a great family atmosphere with a wonderful holiday meal. Good luck and much happiness in your new lifestyle!

[BarbaraOK]

We're one of the those who use Escapees as our mail forwarding service. Have had it for over 7 years, really a great job. Also have a physical street address that is recognized as such for everything in the state. Downside, you do need to get safety inspections ($14.50/year) when you are in the state. If not in the state, then you don't worry about it until you enter again. We know people that only go back once every 12 years to get their DL renewed. Also, if you rig (or combination) is over 26,000# then you needed an upgraded license . It is a one time written/driving test that isn't difficult.

Barb

[hitchup]

We started fulltiming in FL because DH was working there. Because we didn't know if we'd like living in a 40' 5er in a CG, we got a box at a UPS Store. 8 years later, we still have the same box # and haven't found a reason to change. We get mail sent once a month via UPS, so it's trackable and find it's more than adequate.

We've also bought and sold houses in another state and only changed address for 3 yrs to the other state to get $8000 homebuyers tax credit.

[invstr55]

sremsing wrote:
I have heard good things about Escapees mail service, but no personal experience of using them yet.

We use Escapees Mail and have been very satisfied, that will give you Texas which has a few pluses and a few minuses as far as home state. Like everyone recommends do your homework because what is best for us may not be best for your situation.

Happy Camping

[1492]

Moved from Forum Technical Support

[joeprinter]

We use Americas-mailbox.com,in SD for our mail forwarding and titling of vehicles, as mentioned you can save lots of $ by being a resident of SD.

[Valkyriebush]

sremsing wrote:
I have heard good things about Escapees mail service, but no personal experience of using them yet.

It is an excellent service and club.