Living in Austin 9 months of the year, possible?

[RowdysMom]

My mom and I are permanent residents of Texas (for 30 years) and we have property in Oklahoma from which we receive rent and oil/gas income. We have to pay Oklahoma state income tax on the money earned from our property in OK.

That aside, I think you plan is a GREAT one! What is the opposite of snow birds??? We mostly have people from MN coming to spend the winter down here, and you will be spending the summer in MN. If I could do that and get out of the Texas summer heat, I sure would! We try to get out for a month each summer and it really helps.

Sounds like the best of both worlds! Go for it.

[OpenD]

Originally Posted by Golden GopHorn

One thing that I did find is that our current governer has proposed changing the resident standards(huge amount of snow birds) from anything over183 days to 60 days.

Frankly, that may not fly legally, since it is counter to IRS principles. But I understand his intention... everyone is grasping for revenues these days.

Just be sure that you change your employment records once you've moved, to reflect your Texas residency address.

[Aquitaine]

I run a web company that is entirely remote employees and clients, and we (I, since it's a pass-through) pay tax where I am a resident. We have clients in California, New York, and Michigan, and I certainly do not pay non-resident taxes to any of those states as the work is not performed there.

If I had TX clients then I would have to pay TX sales tax for some of what we do but that varies by business. But my understanding is that it matters where you do the work and not where the client is located.

I'm not a tax attorney either, though.

EDIT: I do know that rental property is different from regular taxable income (W2 or 1099) in this respect as it is quite clearly located in the state that wants to tax it.

[10scoachrick]

It sounds like an interesting plan. There are tennis pros who work in warm weather areas(mainly FLA) who travel 'up north' for the summer season, partly for their comfort, partly because of the downturn in business at their home clubs(when it's really hot). The ones I've known were single and quite a bit more mobile than a family would be.

We have taken between three and four weeks to visit our mountain house in North Carolina where the summer temps are ~20 degrees cooler than Austin and it sure would be tempting IF we knew HOW HOT the weather would be here. I'm sure as soon as we planned to travel the 1100 miles and set up in the mountains for the summer, Austin would have its mildest summer on record. My big concern would be the care and upkeep of the Austin home during a possibly record-setting dry/hot period. At your income level, it might be feasible to hire someone to take care of the house and landscape; but only someone truly (in)vested in your property could likely give it the attention it needs when it's 100+ degrees and extremely dry for weeks on end.

Had I known JUST how HOT it was going to be ALL of last summer, I think I would have found a way to get to the mountain house for a few weeks, at least! Three months??? Not so much. While we can arrange our schedules to allow for that amount of travel, I'm not sure I could 'pick up and leave' for 1/4 of the year on a regular basis. I may change my tune if we have another record-setting summer THIS year.

[CptnRn]

Maine Revenue Services: Income/Estate Tax - Guidance Document - Schedule NR

If you are a part-year resident of Maine and received income during that part of the year you were a resident of Maine, or, during any period of nonresidency, had income from Maine sources resulting in a Maine income tax liability, you must file a Maine long form (1040ME).

Maine-source income includes the following:
1) All income received while a resident of Maine;
5) Income (loss) attributed to the ownership or disposition of real or tangible personal property in Maine;

[Golden GopHorn]

Minnesota not Maine. Thanks for looking though.

[cBach]

Keep this in mind. If you are gone June thru August, you will still need to run the sprinklers, or when you return all your bushes will be dead and possibly your trees and then you'll have plenty of landscaping costs come fall.

There were several homes that were being foreclosed, and while the bank was seizing the assets all the sprinklers, etc... were off so all the vegetation died because it was the summer.

You'll also have to "summer-ize" your house. Remove contents of your refrigerator and take anything out of the house that can't take the heat. Then, the last day before you leave you turn off the A/C and the water heater to have minimal costs while you were gone. Thus you would just have a water bill while you were gone (no way to avoid this). Your water bill could be $100/month depending on how green you want to keep things. Then, you'll need a lawn maintenance crew to come in at least every two weeks to mow and edge and you'll also need a crew to come in monthly to trim shrubs and bushes.

[CptnRn]

Originally Posted by Golden GopHorn

Minnesota not Maine. Thanks for looking though.

#1: Residency

Nonresidents earn income in Minnesota but have their permanent residence elsewhere. If you are a nonresident, you must pay Minnesota tax on income earned here. this includes wages, deferred wages, gambling winnings and income or capital gains derived from a business or property, a partnership, S corporation, estate or trust operating in Minnesota. You do not have to pay Minnesota tax on interest, dividends, tax refunds, alimony, pensions or unemployment compensation.

[chuck_steak]

To the OP. Not at all out of your mind. I know several people who do just that, live here in fall, winter, and spring and go elsewhere for the summer. Can't blame you when it's regularly over 100 degrees during the summer here. If you have the means to, then do it.