Mail

[Harriet]

Here''s the dilemma - my son has offered to handle our mail while we are out cruising, but he lives in Virginia. If I change my mailing address to his address, will I necessarily lose my current Florida residency? My guess is yes, and if that is correct, I would probably use a commercial mail service. Anybody out there have any thoughts on this?

[ABullard]

That is not necessarily true. If you maintain your voting registration in Florida you should be OK. Keeping your vehicles registered in Florida also helps maintain your Florida residence. In Florida you are required to registered documented vessels so even if you sell your car you can still use your vessel registration to maintain Florida residency. I also believe, but am not sure, that maintaining your vessel''s documented port in Florida should help maintain Florida residence.

[MaryBeth]

Harriet,

Keeping your boat registered in FL would not necessarily guarantee keeping your FLorida residency, (seems like they are always looking for people who try to do that to avoid taxes). But keeping everything else the same (voter''s reg., driver''s license) may. Why don''t you obtain a P.O. Box, a cruising address, at a place near where he lives instead of his home address? Maybe not at a U.S. Post Office, but at one of those mailbox rental places? People cruise all over all the time using these and still keep their residency in their home states.

Fair Winds,
And, have fun,
MaryBeth

[WHOOSH]

Harriet, this BB is probably not the best place to get legal residency info. <g> I don''t think you''ll have a problem, even without a shoreside residence or vehicle, but I''d suggest you call the voter''s registrar and tax collector in your county, write down the names of the folks with whom you talk, and describe to them what you have in mind. Be sure to ask confirm how you retain currency of those things that, for you, will maintain Florida residency - e.g. keeping a FL driver''s license current. In both cases, mention that your son will be handling your mail from VA and ask if they see a problem with that re: FL residency.

Often the problem isn''t continuing residency where you have been residing; it''s finding that another state is claiming you (and your net worth) as a resident because they have ID some basis for doing so.

Jack