I’m still celebrating that I have been a blogger for more than five years now. As someone adverse to both change and risk, somedays I’m truly astonished I successfully changed my life. Today’s post is about another change.
What? You say. Another change? On the heels of the last big announcement? Yep. This summer is proving to be that kind of season.
This time I need to share that I gave up QU1LL.
First, a Confession
Okay, I admit, the title and the announcement are a bit of a tease. But it cracked me up. When the idea came to me, I just couldn’t resist. So, apologies if you thought I was giving up Quill (the trailer) and my RV life.
But, in my defense, what I said is, literally, true. I gave up QU1LL.
Notice the spelling? Q-U-the number 1-L-L. Have you seen that before? Yes, you have.
Dramatic reveal….It’s my Alaska license plate for the trailer.
Domicile Conversation Nearly Complete
Almost four years after leaving Alaska, moving my domicile from Alaska to Wyoming is nearly complete. Right off the bat I changed my health insurance, trailer and van insurance and my address to Wyoming. But I had two lingering items that needed switched: my driver’s license and the plates to my rig and van.
Since I’d purchased both just a few weeks before departing Alaska and because Anchorage doesn’t have a sales tax, it was easiest and most economical to register the vehicles there. And, to my way of thinking, since that gave me license plates for two years, there was no reason to switch them over to Wyoming until I got the full use out of them.
Two years flew by and Alaska sent me a notice for an online renewal without having to go in person. Because of how easy that option was I jumped on it. And the next two years flew by.
So, here we are. Alaska doesn’t allow a second online renewal, making it time to give up QU1LL. Now, I’ll say that if I’d known how significantly higher the cost was to register the vehicles in Wyoming, I might well have purchased a plane ticket to Alaska to re-register them. That would’ve gotten me another four years.
I could’ve purchased a first-class ticket and still been ahead financially. No kidding. It was 10 times more expensive (yes 10!) to register the two vehicles in Wyoming than in Alaska. Not to mention, Alaska renews tags for two years and Wyoming for one. That means every other year I’m going to have to physically go to Wyoming instead of every four like Alaska. Wyoming, like Alaska, allows for one online renewal.
I do tend to swing through Wyoming regularly to see my dad but, still, I hate the idea that now I have to plan around that annual renewal date.
Giving Up QU1LL
Money and convenience aside, there is another reason I am sad to give up my Alaska license plates. Being from Alaska is a HUGE conversation starter.
In campgrounds, I’d say people stop and talk to me in equal measure about Alaska and about the Oliver Travel Trailer. What I hear most often about Alaska is some version of “Alaska is on my bucket list.” Or, about the trip they took to Alaska that they loved.
The Very Last Step to Complete Wyoming Domicile
Next summer on my birthday, my driver’s license will expire. It means I have to make a trip back through Wyoming (actually, I’m currently looking for a workamping gig or a job for the summer there so hopefully it won’t be inconvenient) to get a new one. That, will then be the last item to make the transition complete.
Hey, it only took five years!
What About Your Domicile?
There are so many factors for a full-time RVer to weigh when deciding where to domicile in RV life. Insurances, taxes, convenience, number of times you’d need to make trips to the state, an address, and licenses. I’d be curious where other RVers domicile and why you chose the state you did. Please share in the comments.
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You scared me. Really! So glad you’re continuing on. And I cannot believe it’s been five years. Congratulations!!!
Yeah, five years on the blog and almost four of RV life. It seems I scared a lot of people. I got lots of emails and social media comments but it was just too good to resist. Thanks, Karen.
I’m curious about how you were able to insure your van and rig in Wyoming while they continued to be registered to Alaska? And with an Alaska driver’s license as well? I would also imagine that purchasing health insurance in Wyoming could have been a bit thorny if you had to use it for anything with a significant cost if you still were holding an Alaska driver’s license and plates?
I can only conclude that you were using 2 addresses simultaneously in Wyoming and Alaska to be able to pull this off. I am especially interested on the car and rig insurance end.
Hey Peter. You know, I also wondered if somewhere along the line one entity would check with another. But it never happened. Even when I had to show my Alaska DL as identity to get the license plates, the person said nothing. So it’s possible I simply got lucky or that, since each department is their own silo, no one cared enough to tell me about something that concerned another department. Thanks, Peter. Hope you are well.