What to do about buying a car (car registration, insurance)

[sdepauw8]

Hi, I am moving to Bethesda or Silver Spring in a few weeks and need to buy a car. I am currently in New York State and have a NY driver's license. I don't know how long I'll be in the DC area and if I stay, if I'd move to DC or VA in a year. So question is, should I buy a car in NY and get it insured/registered here? Or should I wait and buy in MD and get a license/insurance/registration there? Or should I buy in NY, get it registered in NY, and then get the registration transferred when I get to MD? I likely won't be in whatever apt I end up in for more than a year, so I hate to get that temporary address on a new driver's license. How do costs figure into all of this?

[McOctopus]

Whatever you do, don't get a MD car registration without a MD license or vice versa--MD will ticket you (it happened to a friend of mine). Here is a list of MD MVA fees ( MVA Fee Listing). Unless your job requires it, consider moving here without a car for awhile--it's not NYC, but METRO will get you most places you want to go, and you can wait to see where you end up before you get a license. You'll also find parking in either downtown Bethesda or Silver Spring can be expensive.

[pcity]

I bought a car and then moved to NOVA. The dealer set me up with a temp. registration in my original state and then after I arrived in Virginia, it was relatively easy to transfer it over at the same time I got my driver's license. That's what I'd recommend.

You're going to have to get a driver's license here anyway. In VA, you are required to get a license within 60 days of moving to the state, or you're in violation of the law. I'm sure MD and DC do something similar.