Vehicle Registration Question (August: sales, 2013, apartment)

[jjohnson33]

I will be moving to California in June, and I have a car which was purchased in August of last year. My understanding is that if I register the new car within a year of purchase I will have to pay the difference in sales tax, which will work out to close to $1000. If I were to make arrangements to keep the car in my current state until September and then move it to California and register it, would I be able to avoid paying the sales tax, or would I technically be required to register it as soon as I move even if the car is physically in another state?

[MisfitBanana]

I'd just take it to CA and wait the two months before registering (as long as it's up to date in the state it's from). So basically, as long as it's registered in your current state through August 2013 (so the sticker is on the license plate that says 08 13) then I don't think it would be a big problem. When you're moving to CA, you need to register once you're employed, enrolled in an institution of higher learning, rent or lease a property, etc. - but I don't know how a cop on the street would know that you were living in CA and not visiting for those two months.

If you don't want to chance it, another way to deal with it, would be if you have private property it could be parked on. When I lived in CA, I had a car that wasn't registered for awhile - I was told to make sure it was parked on private property, and I wouldn't get a fine for having it be unregistered (I didn't drive it until I did register it). So you could also keep it parked on private property for two months until the year is up.

[BuickGS]

I have been in Ca on jobs before for 3-7 months and never once got bothered about out of state plates.....

[jjohnson33]

Thanks for the help - I was a little confused because somewhere the DMV website says you need to register vehicles you own as soon as you move into the state, but the registration fee calculator says first day the vehicle is operated in California. They would know I moved there in June since that's when I'll be registering my other car, so I'm just trying to figure out if they'll give me trouble when I go try to register the other car after the 1 year deadline.

[sponger42]

Originally Posted by jjohnson33

Thanks for the help - I was a little confused because somewhere the DMV website says you need to register vehicles you own as soon as you move into the state, but the registration fee calculator says first day the vehicle is operated in California. They would know I moved there in June since that's when I'll be registering my other car, so I'm just trying to figure out if they'll give me trouble when I go try to register the other car after the 1 year deadline.

You might have a problem if your registration in the previous state has lapsed. Otherwise, just drive it with out-of-state plates until it's more than a year past purchase date.

I doubt they're going to cross-reference the vehicle with your other vehicle. That would take brains and detective skill that the DMV probably doesn't have. Not to mention that they can't prove you didn't just buy the car out-of-state then leave it sitting at your friend's house (or whatever) until the year went by.

Traffic stops are another matter, however. When the cop runs your license, he's got a LOT of info on you, your car, etc. Especially if you've got a CA driver's license. You could get a citation for driving with out-of-state plates. However, I'd be willing to bet most won't bother with that sort of nit-picking.

If I were you, I'd keep the out-of-state plates (as long as the out-of-state registration is up-to-date) until 13 months after the purchase date. Minimize how much you drive the car and obey traffic laws to try avoid getting pulled over. Then register the car in CA.

The law is really there to keep people from going to Nevada or somewhere with lower sales taxes just to buy a car. In that case, you get a short-term temporary registration that you couldn't drive on for a whole year. Since you've got a car legally plated for 12 months from another state, you're in a gray area.

You could also think of it this way; you paid registration fees in whatever state your car is plated in. That's basically a fee to operate your vehicle for the whole year. If you re-register in CA before that year is up, you forfeit the balance of your registration. So I'd wait until 1 month before your old registration expires to save a little money.

[nightlysparrow]

Originally Posted by sponger42

Traffic stops are another matter, however. When the cop runs your license, he's got a LOT of info on you, your car, etc. Especially if you've got a CA driver's license. You could get a citation for driving with out-of-state plates. However, I'd be willing to bet most won't bother with that sort of nit-picking.

Oh, the police WILL bother! Especially with the heightened security happening now. Addresses should match.

So you have a choice to make, because not having a CA Drivers License affects the ability to rent an apartment, cash checks, bank accounts, etc.

[cb73]

Although the car is technically supposed to be titled in California within 20 days of arrival/establishing residency, the DMV doesn't get all knit-picky about it, or check other records, etc., so don't worry about it.

The one-year tax law was written specifically for those fine Californians who would drive to another state and buy a brand-new vehicle (mostly motorhomes) just to evade Use Tax. The law used to be 90 days and dealers would provide covered storage for 91 days to help them evade the tax. Unfortunately, regular people moving to California sometimes fall under it also.

CHP has a "Cheaters" program, where if you're driving your car with out of state plates and somebody is irritated at you they can turn in your license plate number and any hope of saying the car "just got here" is gone.

Do what you think is best. But when all is said and done, California is a nanny state and runs through a ton of taxes to administer all the various programs and help it gives to nearly everyone. If you don't pay the tax on the car, rest assured you'll be paying it somewhere else.

[steel7]

I know a guy who moved here from oaklahoma months ago & he hasnt been stopped once. I also knew a woman who moved here from colorado & she got stopped by a few creep beaumont cops & she had to get ca plates. I drove a car with co plates for over 3 yrs & never got stopped once.

[russlancea]

If you need to go to a local DMV office, make sure you make an appointment beforehand online or by phone. The lines outside the offices are usually very long, depending on the city

[nightlysparrow]

Considering the recent wildfires this week, you should also be aware that in an emergency such as wildfire, earthquake, landslide, etc., the police will not allow you to get to your residence unless your driver's license address says you live there, no matter how hard you try to convince them. They are very strict, to keep out looters and looky-loos.