car registration (sales, real estate, foreclosure)

[lj1983]

blech. my car registration came up again. and again I'm surprised by how freakin expensive it is to register a car here. more than double what I paid around DC.

ah well.

[jody_wy]

Originally Posted by lj1983

blech. my car registration came up again. and again I'm surprised by how freakin expensive it is to register a car here. more than double what I paid around DC.

ah well.

but what was your Property tax, income tax and sales tax in DC?

[WyoNewk]

Yeah, it is a shocker the first time. My wife moved here from Oregon a decade ago. At that time registration there had cost her $40 for two years, plus the mandatory $8 emissions test made it $48. That's $24/year on a one-year-old car! (Car age and value doesn't matter; it's the same for all cars.)

But if you can think ahead a little, what Jody mentioned makes it hurt a bit less. No state income tax usually gets back the registration fees plus a little extra. It bites a little hard for those who like to drive fancy new cars. For most of my life in Wyoming I never owned a car more than a couple years old, and most were fairly expensive models (had six in the family for awhile), so I was paying dearly for tags, but I was also making a hefty income at that time, and not one penny of it went to state income tax. Our property tax was also cheap. I lived in a fairly big home and owned investment and other taxable property, and my property taxes here didn't even compare to what they were in another state where I also owned some real estate. Not close! (Think 25%)

I'm now living a more austere life, so I'm down to two old vehicles and a camper. Registration still isn't cheap compared to Oregon, but it's cheap compared to what I'd be paying on fancy new toys. Drive a 5-year-old compact if you want to save on the cost of new plates.

Or maybe you already are and still think tags are expensive. *nods* I agree.

[Ann the Artist]

Ah, the property tax in Texas - one of many reasons we can't wait to get to Wyoming! Since we'll leave for our new digs the first week of June, we had our truck and 5th wheel trailer registered and licensed in Wyoming. Yes, it is significantly higher there, but we certainly made up for that by paying less than half the sales tax that we would have here!

[wyolady]

I renewed yesterday and it was $470!!! Down from $543 a year ago. I wish I could pay it in 1/2's like I do my property.

[sunsprit]

Two big advantages to driving "older" vehicles ...

1) they are "seasoned" to the roads and driving conditions here, so you don't get too excited over the first rock chips and hail dings and such ...

2) none of my fleet, with the newest a 2001 Subie, costs much over $100 to register each year. My older MB's and BMW's and AlfaRomeo are all at $100 or less, and my pick-up trucks are just over $100.

[georgiainwyo]

We just got a new toy hauler. It's a darn good thing that we got a good deal on it because I called yesterday to see how much sales tax & plates will be....a little over $1100 for a $14K trailer! I expected to pay a lot, though, but it still hurts. But as has been said, when you add everything up, our property taxes, no states income tax, utilities, higher pay, are all well worth living in Wyoming. I would venture to say that our financial situation has improved by at least 1/3 or more (maybe closer to 1/2) over living in Montana.

[gaduchman]

Comparing costs:

My pickup in Georgia $275 for tags
Insurance $1350
Income tax $3,300 on 55k
Property tax $1,555 = $6480 annually
Sales tax 7%
Fuel tax 14 cents/gal + Fed tax 24 cents/gal

Same pickup in Wyoming $450 to tag
Insurance $1500
Income tax 0
Property tax $1150 = $3100 annually
Sales tax 5%
Had been Fuel tax 14 cents/gal + Fed tax 24 cents/gal

Same pickup in Montana $295
Insurance $950
Income tax $3,000
Property tax $950 = $5195 annually
Sales tax 0
Fuel tax 29 cents/gal + Fed tax 24 cents/gal

Same pickup in Guatemala $20 (150 quetzals)
Insurance $315
Income tax 0 (up to $70k)
Property tax $90 = $425 annually - guess I'm not coming back
Sales tax 0
Fuel tax 0

[prairierose]

Gaduchman, This is very interesting information, but what do the two figures in property tax represent? Would that be on properties of a similar value?

[gaduchman]

The house in GA, which we thought we'd lost to foreclosure process was finally sold this week - 4/4 on one acre - I bought it for $654k, I sold it $318,900.

The property in WY - 4/3 on 6.5 ac paid $165,800 for it. Sold it for $199,500.

The property in MT - which belonged to my Dad 4/3 on 80 ac. He paid $115,000 for the land, built the house himself and it was last assessed at $314k

The finca in GT - which also belonged to my Dad 3/2 on 72 ha (180 ac). He paid $65,900 for the land, built the house, and it was assessed at his death for $112,000 for the land improvements, not the house.