Snowbird question

Newbiesaukee · 11-13-2015, 02:56 PM

I am not an attorney, but you cannot just choose which state is your legal residence unless you can comply with the state requirements for legal residency. This does vary from state to state. On the surface, the idea that one spouse can be a NH resident and the other choose to be a FL resident makes no legal sense,assuming the couple lives together.

As with many things, you can do it, but you would not be able to defend it if push came to shove.

I have been a legal resident of FL for,many years, I worked there , I vote there, my cars are registered there. It is my home. Yet, I have personal knowledge of individuals having to prove where they lived the most days of the year to establish residency. Usually, this is the case in which a resident of a highly taxed state purchases property in FL and claims FL residency. FL does not care but the state losing th revenue does.

As with the IRS your chances of getting caught are slim, but it is not pleasant if you are.

There are gray areas in all this, but to claim legal residency in a state, you do need to be a resident.

trfour · 11-13-2015, 05:33 PM

And, I always thought snowbirds were exempt...

Kamper · 11-13-2015, 05:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Newbiesaukee

... you cannot just choose which state is your legal residence unless you can comply with the state requirements for legal residency. ... the idea that one spouse can be a NH resident and the other choose to be a FL resident makes no legal sense,assuming the couple lives together. ...

The last time I had any legal involvement with legal residence I was told L/R is a place where you have clothing and sleep there once a month. Compared with a domicile which is where you normally intend to be. For practical purposes I'm sure no one cares unless some kind of fraud is being committed.

As for the split residency, NH law used to be that a married woman's legal residence was the same as her husband's. Doesn't that sound a bit archaic? It was challenged about 15-20 year's ago under the NH equality law/amendment and over-turned. Given that our Supreme Court Justices can be quite creative with terms, they may have just rephrased it to 'married couples have the same legal residence.' I don't remember.

11-13-2015, 02:56 PM	#1
Newbiesaukee Senior Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: Coral Gables, winter; Long Island, summer Posts: 1,363 Thanks: 962 Thanked 575 Times in 300 Posts	I am not an attorney, but you cannot just choose which state is your legal residence unless you can comply with the state requirements for legal residency. This does vary from state to state. On the surface, the idea that one spouse can be a NH resident and the other choose to be a FL resident makes no legal sense,assuming the couple lives together. As with many things, you can do it, but you would not be able to defend it if push came to shove. I have been a legal resident of FL for,many years, I worked there , I vote there, my cars are registered there. It is my home. Yet, I have personal knowledge of individuals having to prove where they lived the most days of the year to establish residency. Usually, this is the case in which a resident of a highly taxed state purchases property in FL and claims FL residency. FL does not care but the state losing th revenue does. As with the IRS your chances of getting caught are slim, but it is not pleasant if you are. There are gray areas in all this, but to claim legal residency in a state, you do need to be a resident. __________________ "You're only young once, but you can be immature forever."

11-13-2015, 05:33 PM	#2
trfour Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: The Lakes, Central NH. and Dallas/Fort Worth TX. Posts: 3,694 Blog Entries: 3 Thanks: 3,069 Thanked 472 Times in 236 Posts	And, I always thought snowbirds were exempt... Attached Images __________________ *trfour* Always Remember, The Best Safety Device In The Boat, or on a PWC Snowmobile etc., Is YOU! Safe sledding tips and much more; http://www.snowmobile.org/snowmobiling-safety.html