[Corey]

Boy, you just opened a can o’worms! 😉

There are many threads on here about this including one recently about whether or not you then require a CDL, but here is my personal opinion.

Tax laws are out there. We are only obligated to follow the law and where it can be interpreted in our favor we are stupid not to do so. The attorney in MT that set up our LLC, Bennett law offices, helped us to understand how to register in MT while complying with FL law. For us this included moving the bus out of state within a set time period and leaving it out of state for 6 months, all of which we did. They advise that you contact them for your specific state laws, though I doubt that using DE, TX or any other would change the way CO laws affect you.

There are other advantages to LLC ownership, i.e. asset protection, which is big for us. YMMV.

So, short answer, I did it, would do it again, but would follow the letter of the law to make sure that I am as legal as possible. Others here will say that you are a tax evader (law breaker) or cheat, but they also won’t volunteer to pay the taxes for you.

Let it begin…

[Bill]

I do not doubt that what Karl is saying is 100% correct, however the flip side of that discussion is some states have gotten very active in going after owners who evade taxes. Karl pointed out he had some hoops to jump through to fully comply with the law. Not all who use MT are so careful or serious about following the law to the letter and they set themselves up for trouble.

I spent some time recently talking to TN highway patrol officers and they brought up the issue of MT registrations. My concern was to get accurate information about their enforcement of the need for roof hatches in commercial vehicles, and what they defined as commercial based on a post by another member who was stopped just because he had a horse trailer and the cop assumed he was a commercial operation. The officer I spoke to made it clear it is his opinion people who do not live in MT, but register their coach in MT are tax evaders. But his posture was that if the coach is used solely for personal use, with not evidence it is used for any commercial purpose he defined the coach as “off his radar”. It was not his focus because he was not collecting taxes.

But that was a TN officer. Other people in other states have posted about people with MT registrations being stopped and subject to sales taxes and penalties. I have no knowledge of every state’s laws or their situation with respect to chasing people for sales taxes.

It was clear from the conversation with the TN officer that he viewed MT registrations as a means of avoiding the payment of sales taxes which suggests to me he may not look the other way if he suspects the coach is being used for commercial purposes. His current focus was to insure all commercial coaches have roof hatches, and if they are determined to be operated for commercial purposes to verify they comply with all applicable regulations, including a CDL.

If I were to get a MT registration for the coach I would make sure I had a toad registered in MT and that I had an MT driver license and address, if for no other reason than to not appear to be anything more than a true MT resident and coach.

I use the word tax evasion on purpose, because that is my opinion. Using LLCs for asset protection may be secondary benefit, but as a driver of the coach and all LLCs listed as having an ownership interest may still be exposed in the event of an accident. The lawyers on this site should jump in make sure we are not blowing smoke. BTW, I am not aware of any lawyers on this site using MT registrations.

[Archived]

Bite the bullet, register where you reside. And ALL is good. I did Florida.

Bill S.

[Peter]

Never broken any tax law and don’t plan to start now. We are considering full timing or nearly. Have done a lot of research just wanted some of your opinions.

One of the only reasons to maintain CO DL is for resident hunting license.

we have considered buying a lot at a resort , we have spent time at Polson and love Flathead Lake and the area.

Oh, I suppose I am just looking at all options, as we approach retirement.

[Per]

I’m with Karl on this one. As long as you are legal in the states concerned, then why not? If FL says you are OK if the bus or whatever is, is out of the state for six months or whatever, then as long as you abide by the rule so what? You always hear Google and Facebook et al saying ‘we always abide by the tax rules in the countries we operate in’ so why shouldn’t that apply to individuals’ tax planning as well. Reducing your tax liability always requires jumping through a few hoops. I do agree though that those who just say buy a bus thru a MT LLC and just drive home to their own state and park it in the garage are asking for trouble.

Facebook does hundreds of millions of dollars business in the UK every year but because they are ‘based’ in Ireland, they pay virtually no tax to the UK government. Same with Apple who have $100B+ outside of the US that they don’t want to bring back because they will be taxed on it.

Reducing your tax liability (or sales tax in this instance) by exploiting the rules in each state is everyones’ right just as it is for the corporates. You could bet your last dollar that if Facebook were to buy a bus, they would work out as way of not paying any sales tax as well as depreciating it through their books.

[Bill]

Moderated by Wesley Snipes.

Free Total Gym with every paid tuition.

[Kenneth]

Andy,

I respectfuly understand the discussion of consistently legally reducing tax liabilities and I assume that our auditors are efficient in that regard. That is how the system functions. Whenever there is a dispute, we negotiate or end up in court. If we lose, we write a check for the initial obligations plus a healthy “penalty.” If we win, we get to walk away. I have been on both sides of the event.

To this discussion…. in Texas, the Office of the Comptroller of the State is responsible for the collection of what is referred to as the “sales tax.” It is collected at the time of the initial purchase if the transaction occurs within the State of Texas. It is referred to as the Texas Motor Vehicle Sales Tax and I belive that approximately 75% of that is determined to be the “road use fee” as determined by legislative statute. This fee is retained and reported to the State for the funds to be used for earmarked projects that assist in the maintenance and development of our highway systems. At least, that is how it is designed on paper.

If a Texas resident owns a motor coach and the coach resides in the State of Texas for a period of 30 days or longer, the road use fee is due. It’s that simple.There are no exceptions. If the Texas resident owns the vehicle under an LLC of another State (for whatever reason) and keeps it outside of the State given the 30 day domicile requirement, he is free to do as he pleases…keep the coach anywhere except Texas…If the Texas resident wants to keep the coach under an LLC for asset protection as ably described within some of these threads, they are free to do so and keep the coach in Texas if the taxes have been previously paid on the vehicle as required by law. The asset protection potentially allowed by the LLC cannot negate or evade the prior responsibility for the taxes to be paid.

The Texas Recreational Vehicle Association headed by the Executive Director, Phil Elam, in 2015, published a paper of explanation and recommendations to all recreational vehicle dealers within the State of Texas regarding the potential closing of transactions into certain entities…..prominemt among them being the center of these discussions. The Association is absolutely passionate about the issue…because the illegal use of them reduces the taxes available for appropriate uses.

I have commented on this more than needed but this is my view based on the 10 years of experiences with the Comptroller and the RV Association.

Respectfully,

Pres

[Larry & Diane]

Pres,

No problem, my point precisely. If its legal in your state, via jumping thru hoops or otherwise, then do it, otherwise, don’t.

[Per]

This is one Lawyer in Texas who paid his taxes and sleeps well at night !!

Happy and safe travels to all !!

Cheers, Larry the Lawyer !!

[Archived]

Contact Bennett Law Office in Missoula. They started the Montana LLC craze. They have the reasearch for the individual states and can tell you what is and is not legal for your choice of residence. A Montana LLC probably won’t work with a Colorado residence even if you’re a full-timer. South Dakota can be a good state of residence for a full timer if you are of Medicare age or don’t really need health insurance. SD health insurers don’t want to cover out-of-state treatment for non-Medicare recipients. SD sales tax and annual license fees are low and you can become a resident with just a one night stay although it will take a 30-day stay to qualify for a SD Concealed Carry License.