Domiciling: Decisions, Decisions

Saturday, 18 November

The Phaeton is winterized and tucked away for the next several months.  We’ll go out every couple of weeks to check for mice and other critters, and run the generator.  Maybe even take her out for a spin so I can practice driving it, but it’s doubtful that we’ll be going on any motorhome trips until next spring.

So, we’ve turned our attention to retirement planning and preparing to fulltime — if not permanently, at least for a considerable number of years.  The planning calendar is up on the wall; colorful stickies with notes to follow.

We’re just 12 DAYS FROM THE ONE YEAR MARK TO RETIREMENT!  Mui’s date is tentatively set for 30 November 2012.  I’m planning to go part-time sometime during the year and will retire the same day as Mui.

We’ll likely sneak in a longer-than-our-usual-two-weeks trip to Turkey to visit family post-retirement.  A trip to Camp Freightliner in Gaffney, South Carolina and a complete physical at “Tiffin Hospital” in Red Bay, Alabama are part of our plans as well.  When it’s all said and done, I imagine it will be close to spring 2013 before we really find ourselves on the road in our condo on wheels.  Where will we head first?  What will we do?  Well, all of that’s up in the air at the moment.  But that’s OK.  After all, isn’t retirement all about being flexible with jello plans?

In the meantime, in addition to the daily grind at work, there will be plenty to keep us occupied.  We downsized a bit when we sold the house this spring, but we have a long ways to go before we’re right-sized for life in a motorhome.

Add to that the need to select a domicile.  There’s AltResLogoMaroonnothing to keep us in Virginia after we retire, so we might as well find a retiree- and RV-friendly state to call home.  Mui’s been doing his research and at the moment we’re leaning towards South Dakota and using Alternative Resources in Sioux Falls while we’re on the road.  But we still have time before we need to make a final decision, and who knows what might come up to change our minds.

Did you have to choose a domicile state?  If so, we’d love to hear where and why … leave us a comment or drop us a note at the email address published in our profile.

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8 comments:

  1. Paul and Marti DahlNovember 19, 2011 at 12:14 PM

    Sitting here in BRRP CG site 109 while the estate sale is going on. Hoping that we see some profit from the sale, we were shocked at how low they set the prices. But at least we're not having to move 99% of the stuff.

    We just set up with Alternative Resources in Sioux Falls as our address and we're making SD our domicile state.

    We like the no state tax, cheaper insurance, no vehicle inspections or drivers license tests for a large RV (like in TX).

    It seems to work for us, plus it was recommended by Nick Russel (Gypsy Journal) who recently changed to them himself. He's one of the most in touch with RV issues out there so his "blessing" counted heavily in our choice.

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  2. Travels with EmmaNovember 19, 2011 at 1:42 PM

    I've been with Alternative Resources for five and a half years. No complaints what so ever. :)

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  3. Chuck and Anneke's RV travelsNovember 19, 2011 at 5:42 PM

    Lots to think about and do. We have finished up five years on the road with no regrets.

    We went with Fl for a residency. It has a good tax structure and very easy registration issues. After all they have a lot of old folks here for a reason.

    I have to add the other thing was we have a daughter living here, so that made a difference for us, as well. As for a resource manager-we do not have one and never found a need for one. We get almost no mail as everything is set up online. If there is an odd bit of mail, we have it scanned and e-mailed to us.

    As for planning, we only make very general plans for a year and then end up mostly doing something else as we move along.

    we set no end date when we started and remain uncertain, but we are thinking about buying a house again-we will see.

    enjoy the excitement and fun planning.

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  4. Sue and DougNovember 19, 2011 at 7:08 PM

    good luck with the planning!..crossing off each month will sure make the time go by even quicker!!!

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  5. Donna KNovember 19, 2011 at 9:51 PM

    Only a year - that'll go fast. You already have a leg up with having sold your home already. Don't know about domiciles, just wanted to wish you a happy year of planning the final details of your retirement.

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  6. Sue MaloneNovember 20, 2011 at 10:52 AM

    seems as though many of the "old timers full timers" have used South Dakota as their domicile, must be a good reason. Just a year...wow...I remember that last year before retirement. It lasted forever, crawled along, and suddenly flew by and it was gone.

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  7. DianaNovember 21, 2011 at 11:13 PM

    Ditto what Paul and Marti said. Just do NOT use America's Mailbox in Rapid City. They are terrible.

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  8. Roadrunner ChroniclesNovember 24, 2011 at 1:23 PM

    We have been with Alternative Resources since we retired from Virginia in 2009. We chose Sioux Falls as our new 'home town'.

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