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I have a slight conundrum as I'm in transition. My CA apt lease ended, I'm temporarily living with a PA relative & I'm interviewing all over the US. So, I don't know in which state I'll be living as soon as I'm employed.
Here are my issues:
1. My car is insured in PA. My insurer transferred the policy from CA to PA, when I forwarded my mail. It expires April 15.
2. My car is registered in CA. That expires Jan 28.
3. I was searching online to find info on PA emissions/inspection, in the event I'd need to register here, but... oddly, I have no inspection sticker on my windshield. Don't know why I never noticed it before. Is that because I bought my car new 4-yrs ago?
I know the registration & insurance should be in the same state, but since I don't know where I'll be in Feb, I was thinking I'd just renew my registration online in CA & leave the PA insurance alone... I have 'til mid-April before it expires. It will save me the hassle & $$ of getting new PA plates & I'm unsure if I need to do an inspection & emissions here, as well.
I don't expect anyone to do all the digging for me & I know each state differs slightly with DMV rules, but, can anyone give me some general guidelines? Which state do I pay attention to, because although I'm temporarily residing in PA, I don't have a lease, so technically, I don't live here, right? I'm leaning towards just leaving it all as is & then switching everything over when & wherever I relocate for work. Any ideas?
As long as you don't need the emissions test to renew your CA registration, I would just go ahead and renew. Once you've established a permanent residence, you can turn in you CA plates and get a prorated refund on the remaining registration fees.
Which state is less expensive? If PA is significantly less, you may want to take a bill or something to show address there and use it to get PA registration. Even a generic lease copied off of internet with signature of people you are living with to prove where you are could save you some money? Then registration and insurance also match.
Probably not a big deal as you are in a period of transition, just hate to see you get in a trick bag if you did have an accident and registration not accurate to where you are living.
Which state is less expensive? If PA is significantly less, you may want to take a bill or something to show address there and use it to get PA registration. Even a generic lease copied off of internet with signature of people you are living with to prove where you are could save you some money? Then registration and insurance also match.
Probably not a big deal as you are in a period of transition, just hate to see you get in a trick bag if you did have an accident and registration not accurate to where you are living.
Usually, registering a car in a different state has fees for title transfer and sometimes, taxes, that one wouldn't have when just renewing an existing registration. I remember my CA registration renewals being a little over $ 100 while my initial fees to register my cars in Fla. were over $400 each.
Plate, registration and inspection should be around $150 in PA assuming your car passes. The emission test is a joke in most places so it depends on where you live. In most areas they visually check that all the standard equipment is present and do a gas cap check. Failure requires you buy a new gas cap.
You register in the state you're currently living in, then re-new again after you take up residence in your new state. Most states pro-rate the differences if done within a certain amount of allowable time. In CA you may have to pay more if their rate is higher.
Regardless of which state you are registered in, you need to make sure that you insure it in the same state. If you get into a situation where you need to file a claim, you might find it denied if you have your car insured in a different state than where it's registered.
I've done even more digging & it seems the major issue at hand is, that if temporarily residing in a state, the insurance minimums must bet met in the event of accident. Fortunately, I'm licensed in PA, but as an aside, the minimums in CA & PA are the same, so I'd have been fine even if my insurance company didn't opt to transfer my policy from CA to PA. I can't really find the info I'm looking for online, in regard to registration, but I do know that one may retain a registration in another state, if the intent is to return to that state (such as for students or those working out of state for a few months). Since I'd return to CA today, if offered a job (although, I'm keeping my options open & will move to the job, wherever that is), I'll just renew my registration in CA for the time being & wait until relocating to change everything over the just 1 state.
My real confusion is, I'm unsure if I'm considered a PA resident, because I have no lease here, am only temporarily residing with a relative (therefore, have no utilities/rental contract in my name... it's basically a long vacation), don't work or own property in PA & have no intention staying here.
So, thank you all. I know some posters disagree, but my head's going to explode as I've got too many things going on & doing my best to interview at breakneck speed. The other good news is, I'm in a small town & rarely drive the car.
Other than possibly the cost variation . . . why would anyone not want to register and insure their vehicle where they, and the vehicle, lives?
I can only imagine the "legal ramifications" in the event of an accident or theft and then it is too late.
Just another NOT WORTH THE RISK scenario.
Re-read the OP.
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