Establishing residency. Buying a rig. Or opposite?

[mikEXpat]

I will move back to the states after being gone for almost 20 years. I was a California resident, probably still am. I'd like to establish residency in another state, maybe Nevada. I won't have a vehicle when I arrive but I will have a place to stay in Southern California. I can probably borrow a family car. I wanna find a rig and get on the road as soon as possible.

Here's my question: How can I buy a vehicle and register it in Nevada if I buy it,say, in Arizona? For example, if I find the perfect van for me in Idaho, fly there from overseas, buy it, drive it to Nevada, can I register it there in Nevada? What would I have to do to get me registered and a resident as quickly as possible?

I know I could buy a cheap van and live in it at an RV park in Nevada for 30 days, Then, I would get my driver's license and new plates. Then sell the car and buy a new one. Is that my only option?

Thanks in advance!

 

[WriterMs]

Your post seems to be ready to slip off the "View Today's Posts" pages with no reply.

I don't know that I can be much help because this is a complicated question. I believe if you buy from a dealer and explain you need to register in another state, they can give you temporary plate, etc.

Surely a few folks on the forum have done what you plan, so maybe my reply will kick the question back up for more to see.

 

[mikEXpat]

Yes. I can see this as a problem for anyone without a car and wants to move far away from where they are now.


Let's say John lost his job. The wife left him and he had to pay for this and that leaving him carless. He wants to move to Nevada to get a job. He doesn't have a car. The only money he has is for a plane ticket, a few meals, a room for a few nights and enough to buy a super cheap car. How should he go about getting an address so that he can get the car registered so he can get a job?

 

[akrvbob]

You can get a mailing address right now by contacting http://jbmailroom.com/ and signing up with her in Pahrump, NV. When you get there you'll have a mailing address already. You can't get a drivers license there until you are physically present.

I don't know the answer about registration. When I bought a van when I was in CA, I just let the dealer register it in CA because I was going to be in the state for another 6-9 months and then when I got back to NV, I relicensed it. Here are my suggestions based on very little knowledge

1) Fly into Las Vegas, buy the van there, problem solved.
2) Take the bus to Vegas from wherever you land, problem solved.
3) Buy from a private party who just gives you a title and registration. Get temporary insurance and drive to NV to register it. I assume that's possible? You'll have to do the research. Otherwise you'll have to register it in that state and then reregister it in NV.
4) If you buy from a dealer i have no idea. Maybe they can register it in a different state. I have no idea. It's just legwork you will have to do to find out. When I lived in Alaska many people would fly to Seattle to buy a vehicle and register it in AK from there, I don't how.

All the nearby big cities you can fly into have emissions inspections. You would be better off to buy it in NV and register it at Pahrump in Nye county which does not have emission inspections.
Bob

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

4) If you buy from a dealer i have no idea. Maybe they can register it in a different state. I have no idea.

I live in NY.  About a year ago, I bought a truck from a Ford dealer in CT.  They registered it in NY, paid the NY sales tax, and got me NY plates.  They were near the CT - NY border and considered it to be routine.  There was an actual CT form I had to sign explaining why I wasn't paying CT sales tax.

 I suspect that any dealer near a state border would be used to doing that.  A dealer nowhere near a state border might have no idea about how to do it.

 

[MrNoodly]

You will need some address to register a vehicle, regardless of where you buy it, regardless of the state you want to register it in. Because without an address you're sort of a non-person. The address can be just a mail drop.

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

You've been living abroad for 20 years?  So you must have a passport.  The address on the passport should be accepted without question, I would think.  Unless there's some sales tax reason you'd prefer not to use that?

 

[Vagabound]

I've been researching similar things.  At the moment, focused on AZ, not NV.  Still, the policies are probably similar.  

In AZ, if you buy a car from a private person, you have to hot-foot it over to DMV and get a 3-day use permit from them.  To do what?  Not sure ... to return to the same desk 3 days later to get the permanent maybe.  ;-)  Or 3 days to get out of Dodge to wherever you're headed in AZ or nearby.  That said, there is another category:  AZ will issue a 90-day non-resident registration permit for $15.  

This same website should give you the rules in NV.  It's a pretty useful website.

http://www.dmv.org/az-arizona/buy-sell/buying-selling-faqs.php

Vagabound

 

[highdesertranger]

Vagabound thanks for posting that link it's very informative that should be made a sticky or something where it's easy for everyone to find. highdesertranger

 

[Vacilador]

Most dealers I've ever bought from seem to have a paperwork person that can take care of it.
But if it's a private owner and you will be titling it in the same state that you bought, can you meet them at a tag and title office with cash in hand?  That saves the "temporary tag" hassle.  It's how I did the last one.

 

[mikEXpat]

You can get a mailing address right now by contacting http://jbmailroom.com/ and signing up with her in Pahrump, NV. When you get there you'll have a mailing address already.  You can't get a drivers license there until you are physically present.


1) Fly into Las Vegas, buy the van there, problem solved.
2) Take the bus to Vegas from wherever you land, problem solved.
.
Bob

Hi Bob,

Thanks always. Just a question or two. 

So if I understand correctly, I set up a forwarding address in Nevada, arrive in Nevada, use that address to change from my California driver's license, go buy a van, then go register it or better yet buy from a dealer and have them register it. Is this your thinking? Of course I would need other things you clearly explained in your post here https://vanlivingforum.com/Thread-Becoming-a-Nevada-Resident?highlight=Nevada+resident

http://jbmailroom.com/ shows 502 Bad Gateway

 

[mikEXpat]

You've been living abroad for 20 years?  So you must have a passport.  The address on the passport should be accepted without question, I would think.  Unless there's some sales tax reason you'd prefer not to use that?

Thanks for the thought.

The address on my passport is in California. I'm trying skip as many steps as possible in order to get me on the road as soon as possible with mail forwarding set up and the car properly registered and insured in my state of residence.

 

[drysailor]

Thanks for the thought.

The address on my passport is in California. I'm trying skip as many steps as possible in order to get me on the road as soon as possible with mail forwarding set up and the car properly registered and insured in my state of residence.

Hey Mike... Rambling reply here - Bob's suggestion is really the simplest way to do it. You need to establish a residence in your chosen state, then buy and register the vehicle.
You earlier mentioned 8K as a budget - that would cost you between 800 and 1K to register in Calif, if there are no smog issues. There is currently no $$ limit on how much you might have to pay to fix an older vehicle to pass smog. Ca's current (2015) program requires a physical inspection to determine that all required devices/equipment are present in the system, and that NO aftermarket devices are present that do not have CARB (Ca Air Res Board) certs present. This is done before they are allowed to actually check the emissions. Have a KNF air filter? Fancy gas cap? Non-OEM exhaust system? If you don't have the paper cert for it, Rotsa ruck. Legally, the seller is required to pay for repairs, but DMV does not enforce that. Small claims is your only recourse, and getting the $$ out of a deadbeat seller is easier said than done.
With 8K, you could get the Pahrump address, look for an older, pre-computer, small class C for $5K-ish, have it checked well and refurb all the expendable parts. ie brakes, shocks, tires, hoses, belts, seats, etc etc. Modify this to keep at least $1K in reserve. Many of these are originally bought by small families or retirees, and not abused or used much for their age. They can be readily repaired by most repair shops. Spend your first year or two feeling it out, then change to a smaller, van-based DIY van if that's what you want. The right vehicle won't change much in resale over a year or two, especially if you've updated the wear items above.

 

[akrvbob]

Just type jbmailroom.com into a search bar
http://jbmailroom.com/

I'm sorry, I just don't know the answers to your questions. Get your mailing address now. Do you have the budget to fly into Vegas and rent a car to search fora van? That would be the easiest thing. Then drive it over to Pahrump and register it in Nye county so there will be no emission inspections. Then jump through their hoops and get your drivers license. I doubt very seriously if they ask for your drivers license to register a vehcile. I know for a fact they don't in Arizona.

If you fly into CA you just have to do the research to find out if you can register it in NV, I don't know.
Bob

 

[mikEXpat]

Drysailor and Bob,

Thanks. I think if I combine your advice I will be on the road in no time. Drysailor has a good idea about buying a class C and using it for a year to travel around and decide on a long term choice. I think it will all depend on what's available when I actually start looking. I have a few rigs in mind. Any one of them would work.

Mike

 

[mikEXpat]

Bob,

The site works now. Not sure why I couldn't reach it before.

Mike