Off grid, but on the radar. What about off the radar too?

[TMG51]

Many of us here are off grid but still on the radar in terms of keeping everything legit on the books. I had a conversation with a guy who said that he got in a bind with credit and bankruptcy etc and just walked away from everything. He said, "You know what happened? Nothing." He buys vehicles old enough not to need a title for the sale, pays in cash, works for cash... no insurance, no driver's license, no income tax, nothing... said he's been living that way for ten years...

Obviously the day that guy finally gets pulled over for speeding or whatever is going to ruin his fun, and I can't say I'd recommend anyone do this, but it was interesting to me because previously I imagined that the only people living totally off the radar would be illegals or criminals. I'd never heard of anyone with an established life and citizenship just walking away from it all and living that way.

Anyone else heard of people like this?

 

[ramblingvanman]

No, but in the early days of my separation/divorce I seriously considered it.

 

[B and C]

If you want to drive your vehicle, it has to be registered.  If no plates or expired registration, you will be pulled over sooner or later unless maybe a small town where you are well known.

Maybe you could get away with printing a temporary tag every month or so and kept moving.

Hard to stay off the radar with assets.

Brian

 

[compassrose]

If you live in a small town, then you are on the radar. Someone's radar. If you try too hard to hide, someone with a badge is going to wonder just why you are hiding and from what.

I do find it funny the amount of people of people who are going "off grid/off radar" yet they own land, vehicles, get mail, etc. Unless you put a lot of effort and money into it, going underground is not as easy as you may think.

But being "found" is not as easy as some may think. Most data is incorrect. I think the credit reporters are 5-7 addresses behind me. And I do have a credit card (don't ask). Toss a mail forwarding address into the mix and it gets even more off.

 

[TMG51]

If you want to drive your vehicle, it has to be registered.  If no plates or expired registration, you will be pulled over sooner or later unless maybe a small town where you are well known.

Maybe you could get away with printing a temporary tag every month or so and kept moving.

Hard to stay off the radar with assets.

Brian

I would have to guess he just stuck some B.S. plate on the vehicle. Not sure about registration, maybe faked it or obscured that part of the plate. Which of course is illegal but no more so than the rest of his life. Every day would be a gamble that you wouldn't draw enough attention for a traffic stop. I'd probably stick to a bicycle.

 

[MikeRuth]

I think he may be a bit more extreme but there are a lot of folks keeping the radar image smaller. I know I have been keeping mine down to a minimum.
I by no means hidden, if the government wants me they will be at my door pronto.

I doubt I could ever really get to the point that I'm off the radar or would be damn hard to find, Although I'd like to imitate Walter White in Breaking bad using a cabin 8 miles from no where LOL.
I have a license, insurance etc. But if these things are in order, kept taken care of then unless you give them a reason, for the most part that radar image is pretty small.

 

[Gary68]

i had a 1968 chevelle with original plates and when i went to put the new tags on i pealed down to the original 1968 tags so i put the new ones in the glove box and drove around for 15 years and never got pulled over for 30-40 year old tags

 

[B and C]

i had a 1968 chevelle with original plates and when i went to put the new tags on i pealed down to the original 1968 tags so i put the new ones in the glove box and drove around for 15 years and never got pulled over for 30-40 year old tags

A vehicle usually becomes an antique at 25 years old.  I see cars from the '50's and '60's all the time with plates from the year the car was made.  This was before the stickers on the plates started.  The year was stamped into the plates back then.  Just had to have the inspection sticker and registration sticker in the windshield I guess.  Antique vehicle's have a different set of laws.

Brian

 

[MikeRuth]

In Los Angeles and surrounding areas a 68 would need current tags, not old enough yet for historical plates.

Motor and traffic division cops will nail you on that out here, it's just a matter of time and frequency that your out on the road.

Have no idea about other states.

 

[akrvbob]

I have a friend who lives on a bicycle at Quartzsite and I believe he could do it. There's plenty of work there under the table which means no IRS. No car means no drivers license or registration or insurance.

He is an extreme minimalist, everything in the world he owns fits in a duffle bag on his back. That means his need for money is very low because there is a good soup kitchen in QZT he could live on almost nothing.

If you're willing to go that far, it would be easy.
Bob

 

[T.he I.nvisible M.an]

I would have to guess he just stuck some B.S. plate on the vehicle. Not sure about registration, maybe faked it or obscured that part of the plate. Which of course is illegal but no more so than the rest of his life. Every day would be a gamble that you wouldn't draw enough attention for a traffic stop. I'd probably stick to a bicycle.

ACTUALLY ... All anyone needs is a corporation. The registration is in the corporate name ... (if you drive through a traffic camera guess who gets mailed the ticket? Not the driver unless the face can be clearly seen or the "corporation" turns them in. The insurance is in the corporate name ... lol. Since the corporation has no drivers license there is no way to verify the driver as the corporate vehicle drives past. Now comes the fun part ... what if YOU are the corporation but the corporation is obscured as to who actually owns it ... lol ... so you get YOUR ticket in the mail (addressed to the corporation of course) and they are wanting you to id the driver. Of course it's you (but are you going to tell on yourself?). So the corporation pays the ticket and one of the corporate officers (YOU) signs the paper "unable to identify driver". No points for you, no ding on your DL. pretty much NOTHING ... (except a small fine).

(Hey I should know lol)

 

[T.he I.nvisible M.an]

If you live in a small town, then you are on the radar. Someone's radar. If you try too hard to hide, someone with a badge is going to wonder just why you are hiding and from what.

I do find it funny the amount of people of people who are going "off grid/off radar" yet they own land, vehicles, get mail, etc. Unless you put a lot of effort and money into it, going underground is not as easy as you may think.

But being "found" is not as easy as some may think. Most data is incorrect. I think the credit reporters are 5-7 addresses behind me. And I do have a credit card (don't ask). Toss a mail forwarding address into the mix and it gets even more off.

Actually ... lol for a small filing fee the first thing you want to do is make yourself into a grain of sand to hide amongst all the other grains of sand. A good example would be to file for a name change (involves a small fee). You go before a Judge who reviews your case. The Judge will ask you if you are doing this to avoid a debt, or commit a fraud or any other nefarious activities to which you reply "no your honor". Then the Judge will ask the next question which is "why are you changing your name?" to which you reply "Your honor, I have decided to become a writer. Just like the writer J.K. Rowling or J.R.R. Tolkien I wish to become John Jacob Smith or J.J. Smith. The Judge will pause for a second and think about it and usually decide hey why not? and then proclaim "petition for name change granted" and then bang his or her gavel. I can guarantee that anyone looking for a "John Smith" who doesn't wish to be found is going to have a very hard time finding this person ...

(I should know) lol

 

[SillyLilly]

If you're off the radar and working under the table, you're screwing yourself out of social security and other benefits if/when you retire. Using a fake SSN to get a legit job is just a way to put your own wages in someone else's pocket instead of your own.

No SSN? forget about having a bank account or credit cards, so what do you do with the cash you earn on an under-the-table job? If you hoard the cash, the first thing that happens when the cops pull you over is asset forfeiture on the pretext of being drug money. Good luck getting any of that back, the cops "need" it for their military equipment.

 

[WriterMs]

I have to say that a whole lot of that "off radar" guy's story makes no sense to me. If he was going through bankruptcy, that should take care of most of the debt, right? I think some people just love making up a "legend" for themselves. And to what end? Living every day knowing you might be caught at one or the other illegal activities?

And what about collecting any SS money he has coming when he does retire?

It takes a lot of paranoia to want to be that "illegal" and I think the guy qualifies to join the tin-foil hat club.

I really enjoyed reading a string of books by Thomas Perry called the Jane Whitefield series. The main character Jane helps good people disappear if they need to do that to save their life. Even though the books are not that old, much of what would really work when they were written is now not possible.

 

[ZoNiE]

It wouldn't surprise me a bit if several of the users on this group considered themselves sovereign citizens...

 

[T.he I.nvisible M.an]

Interesting read about the sovereign citizen movement on wikipedia. I didn't realize they were around (but not surprising)

 

[wagoneer]

Old friend of mine takes a picture of the new tag color and cuts and glue He's been doing that for years all his cars are junk yard dogs so no loss when the game is up.

 

[ramblingvanman]

I have 20 years or more until retirement. Given our national debt and given the fact that congress emptied SS's "lockbox" long ago, I have no expectation of receiving any benefit. Given those things, why continue to pay in to the system? Makes no sense to me.

 

[DannyB1954]

A friend of mine was a roofer. Independent contractor. Things were great for him until he got older and lost his health. He was under the tax radar, and thought he was slick for being there. Working for cash did not give him any Social Security credits or benefits. I retired, he still has to work somewhere. Without a steady assured income, (social security, pension, etc.), people like him will find things harder as they get older. Medical and dental care is limited at community hospitals. Food banks don't give out shopping lists.

 

[GotSmart]

I was a commercial plumber for a few years.  I payed some weeks more than $!,000 in taxes.  Then I was hit by a drunk driver.  He had no insurance, and the company I was with screwed me.  

If not for SSDI, I would be in a real bind.  

Now I fly under the radar because I am one of the invisible people.  I still have everything registered and insured, I have several bank accounts at well known banks.  (Minimal amounts) because having a lot of plastic seems to make me a "good citizen"  I keep my USAA card next to my DL, so when I am asked for identification, it immediately calms the situation.     I use Paypal for quick money transfers (Free if you know how) 

Life is not as bad as it could be without having a presence.