Tired of paying Michigan registration

[walte1fr]

So is an RV dealership allowed to put a dealer plate on their company owned RVs?

[AtomicRT]

It appears so.

https://www.michigan.gov/sos/0,4670,...2752--,00.html

I think the snag here is going to be the cost of insurance.

[walte1fr]

I’ve already quoted our dealer insurance. It’ll be alright. I can buy vehicles around here and sell them on eBay to make money anyways. Just wondering if plates are a bonus

[walte1fr]

Originally Posted by AtomicRT

It appears so.



https://www.michigan.gov/sos/0,4670,...2752--,00.html



I think the snag here is going to be the cost of insurance.

That is actually the website that I was directed to also. For $50 I can start whatever LLC I want. As long as it makes a profit and the government gets their money they will be happy.

[Civdiv99]

Virtually every taxing jurisdiction operates under substance over form giving them the authority to disregard sham structures. A structure with no business purpose other than avoidance of tax, even if a legal form, can be disregarded by that government.

This being America, you would then have the opportunity to spend way more than the original registration fees arguing your position.

Out west here there is a similar set of structures to use Montana LLCs to buy and own out of state purchased RVs, planes, etc. to avoid 9% plus sales taxes in WA.
When the state catches people, and they do, the state prevails with almost zero effort on the foundation of case law from numerous cases, making the result a forgone conclusion.

If I was contemplating what you suggest, I’d spend some time reviewing case law. You won’t be the first to try to avoid taxes based on structure. It might be interesting to see what the track record shows.

I also think if you do some investigating you will find certain minimum thresholds of volume required to be a valid dealer under the motor vehicle code. In fact, I’m positive you will. You already anticipated that; hopefully it not be a pia to keep it up.

What does the state use the registration fees for? Most use registration fees and fuel taxes to a great extent to build, maintain, and police the infrastructure you probably plan to use.

[theroc]

Are you able to get around the requirement of having an established place of business? It sounds as if you've already checked into that but the way they word it, it sounds as if you have to have an actual business premises.

Licensing of Vehicle Dealers in Michigan

And have you checked on how much bonding insurance would cost?

[walte1fr]

All great points guys. I will be operating a profitable business for the state with employees. The plates would just be a bonus

[theroc]

Also, the state may interpret your vehicles as "service vehicles" and thus can't have actual dealer plates. It sounds as if they'd have to have normal registrations but in the name of the LLC. Thus, you may not be saving as much as you'd have originally thought.

And even if you have a "for sale" sign on the coach and toad and were using dealer plates, you might have to justify and prove that each time you took an out-of-state pleasure trip, that you were going to visit somebody who was interested in purchasing one of the vehicles. I'm not a lawyer, but that's the way I interpret what the state might be saying inside that link I posted in the previous post.

Keep us posted on what your lawyer says.

[walte1fr]

Perfect thank you for the input I’m not sure if it would or how it would work but if it’s a profitable business I don’t see the downfall on it. I’ll report back via PM from my lawyer. There are a lot of non lawyers with lawyer inputs lol. I’m more of a how can I instead of why can’t I kind of person. I’ll let you know thanks. I do see that in the dealer website which may be the catch.
Thanks again

[walte1fr]

Well I think I found the snag. The fleet insurance is more than what we are paying per vehicle. Fleet insurance is based off total assets. And a $300,000 coverage policy is anywhere from 4,000-8,000 per year. We are only paying $1,000/vehicle right now.

Thanks for some of the constructive input but I think I’ve found the catch :(

I have heard about the registering of an LLC in Montana. I’m glad we didn’t do that if they are starting to crack down on that.

[Steve N Sal]

Originally Posted by walte1fr

I’m not sure if this is a genius idea or if I’m completely nuts but please hear me out and let me know if anyone has done anything like this lol.
Michigan registration is based of MSRP on the vehicle for a motorhome. I got an amazing deal on a class A and paid less than half for a barely used coach. I only buy 30 day temp licenses because a full year is $1200. So I’m wondering if this idea would work. Lol
Pay the $50 fee to establish an LLC as a dealership.
Pay the $75 class B fee to be a used vehicle dealership license.
Each plate under the dealership is $10.
The insurance would be a fleet insurance based off of total assets of our 3 vehicles.
I could then buy and sell a few vehicles a year for a little cash and my yearly registration for the coach and 2 vehicles would be $155.

I do own a few other businesses so it doesn’t seem too terrible lol.
Anyone have a dealership or try this?

I like your idea but I believe in MI you need a business location, meaning lot, building, restrooms etc to get a dealership license. If that isn't true please keep me informed as I too would try this. I was not aware you could get a temp license. How much are those???? I'll be following.

[walte1fr]

My yearly is $1200? I think. My 30 day temps are $98. If you buy them on a Friday they are good for 4 Sunday’s. We are just weekend campers so I opt for this rather than a 60 day temp since you get 4 weekends for each. If you buy the 60 day it would be good for 7 weekends instead of 2-30 day which would be good for 8

[Sweetbriar]

Originally Posted by Steve N Sal

I like your idea but I believe in MI you need a business location, meaning lot, building, restrooms etc to get a dealership license. If that isn't true please keep me informed as I too would try this. I was not aware you could get a temp license. How much are those???? I'll be following.

I was thinking the same. Plus the location needs to be zoned for the commercial activity which means you probably can't use your home as the business location. There were some car owners here in Virginia that tried to establish a used car business to get out of the various taxes. Didn't work out well in the end if I recall since they forgot that they needed to actually sell so many vehicles per year to qualify as a dealer.

[walte1fr]

Hmm interesting. I already have one LLC business as automotive accessories and window tinting based at my house but the only asset at the house is the inventory. I travel to the customer for install and sales. What if it is an internet based dealership? Lol. I love the positive discussion about this. Just trying to brainstorm.
Thanks for all of the input