Buying a car

[kpol]

We've bought three cars in states which we were not residents of and have paid sales tax to the states that we bought them in. I'm not sure how you go about paying the tax to your home state unless there is something to fill out when you file your taxes.* We've registered one of those cars in our home state while we were home once and didn't have any issues or other fees.

*I am not a tax expert and really know nothing about taxes

[verycontrary247]

I'm pretty sure you have to pay sales tax in the state you buy it in. If you choose to register it in GA though you will pay them personal property tax instead of CA.

[nsl]

You pay sales tax where you buy a good/service, not where you live.

[beans]

Jul 4, 2012 8:50:59 GMT -5 nsl said:

You pay sales tax where you buy a good/service, not where you live.

this is what I was thinking. We just bought my car, and it didn't occur to me try and pay sales tax where I am a resident. I guess I figure I wouldn't pay sales tax in NM for a book or computer I buy here, its the same for a car (although much more expensive). Don't know about registering out of state though.

Why do you want to pay GA sales tax? Just to see the money go to his state? Is it less expensive?

[brandienee]

Jul 4, 2012 5:55:45 GMT -5 kpol said:

We've bought three cars in states which we were not residents of and have paid sales tax to the states that we bought them in. I'm not sure how you go about paying the tax to your home state unless there is something to fill out when you file your taxes.* We've registered one of those cars in our home state while we were home once and didn't have any issues or other fees.

*I am not a tax expert and really know nothing about taxes

This is us.

[beans]

Jul 4, 2012 11:17:00 GMT -5 Stan said:

Jul 4, 2012 9:03:02 GMT -5 beans said:

this is what I was thinking. We just bought my car, and it didn't occur to me try and pay sales tax where I am a resident. I guess I figure I wouldn't pay sales tax in NM for a book or computer I buy here, its the same for a car (although much more expensive). Don't know about registering out of state though.

Why do you want to pay GA sales tax? Just to see the money go to his state? Is it less expensive?

It is less expensive, but that's not why. It's really important to me to pay taxes in CA because I was educated here, raised here, etc. and I want to keep my residency here as long as possible. He feels similarly about GA, and since this will be his car, we looked into it. I've got no problem with our car purchase subsidizing my alma mater and my state parks. And I just realized there's no smiley with devil horns.

And this is where I got the impression he could pay GA sales tax. State sales tax

"If you’re buying a vehicle in the state in which you live, you’ll have to pay the sales tax. If you’re buying a car out of state, you’ll pay sales tax when you register the car in your home state. Most dealers can handle registrations in other states, too.

But if you intend to relocate soon after your purchase or lease, or if you’re buying the vehicle for somebody else who lives in another state, you’ll probably have to register it temporarily where you bought it, then reregister it in the new state of residence before the temporary title expires, usually within 30 days. You can claim a refund for the first state’s sales tax by submitting proof that you’ve reregistered the vehicle, and paid tax, in the state where permanent tags are issued."

www.consumerreports.org/cro/cars/car-buying-advice/guide-to-new-car-buying/closing-the-deal/check-the-numbers/index.htm

So, it looks like there's a chance of reregistering the vehicle in GA, and H getting a refund from CA later.

ah very interesting! Good luck!

[audette]

We have bought one when we lived away from our home state.


It was a while ago (over 5 years), but I remember having to send a check for the taxes when we sent the registration paperwork to our home state. The dealership gave us a 30-day temp tag for the car so we could drive it while waiting on plates and registration from our home state.

I remember thinking it might be complicated, but was pleasantly surprised how simple it was. Our home state charges higher taxes on cars than the state we were in, so we ended up paying more in taxes by doing it this way, but it worked for us. We didn't want to register the car locally because we had zero interest in becoming local residents and didn't want anything documentable that might indicate we wanted to.

[basilosaurus]

I haven't bought from a dealer, but I bought from a seller in AZ while I was living in CO, and I'm a resident of OR. I just sent my paperwork to OR, which has no sales tax, and they sent me plates. Basically easy, despite a few snafus that my FIL thankfully took care of (he knew everyone at the DMV)

For H's car, my sister bought it from a friend in TX, resold it to me before she had to pay taxes, and I actually have it registered in HI as an out of state resident ($25/yr! compared to probably 500 for a true resident). I don't think any other state has that option, though.

That said, the state your residing in theoretically could say that military aren't exempt from licensing in state laws. It's just that everywhere I've lived has had that exemption.