Georgia Airstreamers? Ad Valorem Tax? Important!

[GAStreamin]

Does anyone know if in Georgia you pay a yearly Ad Valorem Tax? We recently bought a 2012 AS from a dealer in Florida. My husband went today to pay the sales tax for our state and the tax office said we would have to pay an annual Ad Valorem tax of $600! For vehicles and motorhomes, there is a one time tax, but they are telling us we have to pay this tax amount every year for our travel trailer! This sounds astronomical and cost preventative! Does anyone have any information they can give me.

[Lothlorian]

It should be a one time payment only if it is a new purchase

Brian

[Al and Missy]

Don't know about trailers, but for vehicles there is an ad valorem tax paid every year to get your license plate renewed.

Al

[perryg114]

I have heard that GA has some very expensive taxes on wheeled things. In AL tax is based on assesed value. So if it is old you don't pay much tax. Most of my vehicles are $25 per year since the are old. There is also sales tax that is usually a few % of what you paid. This is part of what pays for free college in GA I expect.

Perry

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[Aviator]

I pay as valorum on both my 1097 and my 1970. If your trailer is new (never titled) then you may pay a one time sales tax.

[Al and Missy]

Oops, my mistake. Law changed last year and is as Lothlorian said..

Georgia Department of Revenue

[Al and Missy]

From the referenced web site FAQ:
The TAVT applies to any motor vehicle purchased on or after March 1, 2013 for which a Georgia title is issued unless a specific exemption applies. If it is a motor vehicle for which no title is required then the TAVT does not apply. Likewise, if there is a vehicle that has a title but it is not a motor vehicle, then TAVT does not apply. For those vehicles not subject to TAVT, normal sales and use tax rules and annual ad valorem tax may still apply.
For example, the following are not subject to TAVT:
Pull-behind trailers
More....

[GAStreamin]

Yes, I read travel trailers are exempt from the one time tax, but $600 every year? That sounds excessive. Could that be right?

[perryg114]

I bet the $600 yr is correct but I still think it is based on the value of the trailer so it should go down in about 40 yrs.

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[GAStreamin]

Originally Posted by perryg114

I bet the $600 yr is correct but I still think it is based on the value of the trailer so it should go down in about 40 yrs.

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That is encouraging.😜

[GAStreamin]

Originally Posted by perryg114

I bet the $600 yr is correct but I still think it is based on the value of the trailer so it should go down in about 40 yrs.

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I knew I should have kept my Sovereign! Boy, do I miss that camper!

[Jim & Susan]

Hey GAS

Ya know how they say "write yer Congressman?" Sometimes that actually works. Contact you local member of the legislature/state senator and ask them what's up with the New Sales/Tag law. This took effect last year sometime, IRRC.

We bought a used pick-up truck last year and were introduced to the new tax. We paid about $450 on a $10,000 purchase. Not bad considering the tag fee will only be about $25 per year "forever". The Dealer Guy told me the reason for the change was to capture taxes from private sales. Supposedly, more than half of all car sales in Ga are between individuals, not dealers. No taxes on those sales prior to the new law.

Now, I know this all applies to cars and light trucks. Don't know about RV's/trailers/etc. Wonder why one group of wheeled vehicles and not another. We all use the same roads, after all. Maybe they are just trying to stick it to all us "rich RV'ers," right?

Hey Perry, college is most certainly not free on this side of the Chattahoochee. Having helped to put three thru college in the last ten years, I can write a thesis on this subject, but I don't want to hijack the thread.


Y'all take care.

Jim

[Sitting duck]

Originally Posted by Jim & Susan

Maybe they are just trying to stick it to all us "rich RV'ers," right?

Yes. I'm always amazed that people vote for the same people who tax them to death. Where is it written that government never has to do with less, but I do?
[/rant]

[SeeMore]

Why the surprise? The year started with a fairly robust PR campaign to make the public aware of how their government was doing them a big favor as it related to vehicle taxation.

I remain amazed voters never seem to comprehend the hypocrisy and duplicity of politicians when confronted by their actions rather than the campaign messages. Governor Deal and his party promised lower taxes and certainly crow about preventing new taxes by an over-reaching government while continuing to find methods to increase state collections.

In this case, it is not a "new" tax but a "lower" tax that uses a clever assessment restructure to accelerate tax receipts in the early years of ownership and justifies the 'lower tax' label by comparing lifespan tax collection for the item in question. The logic holds true for items possessed for a decade or more but is voided by resale since the new owner gets taxed anew (an event missed under the old structure) and you get to start over with the replacement asset (if there is one). The beauty of the new law is a significant net increase in collections while proclaiming a tax reduction!

The Good News! The new taxation method applies to motorized vehicles so your trailer is exempt. Be glad you didn't buy a Class A, B, or C because you would have been required to pay for years of use up front (compared to the old method). The Ad Valorem tax, just like your home tax, is based on valuation. Although I don't know the specific valuation methodology and underlying reference data sources, the assessed value generally decreases each year so your $600 number will be lower each subsequent year of ownership since trailers are a depreciating asset. My 11 year old unit is down to just over $100 now.

[Bk Yd Safari]

Originally Posted by GAStreamin

Yes, I read travel trailers are exempt from the one time tax, but $600 every year? That sounds excessive. Could that be right?

We purchased our used 2008 20' Safari in 2011. The ad valorem tax this year was $212.00 (down from $214.00 last year) plus a $12.00 tag fee.
We reside in Whitfield County about 90 miles north of Atlanta along I-75. Tax rates vary by county in Georgia.

[PaulnGina]

Another reason I LOVE living in Arkansas. When I purchased our 1987 Avion just over a year ago, seller and I agreed on $4,000, down from $4,800. I called my local tag office to see what would need to be done to tag the trailer. They told me that if the trailer was less than $4,000 there would be NO sales tax, and there was a one-time tag fee of $50 or so. Seller and I agreed that my bill of sale would be for $3,999.99. I told him he could keep the penny!

[richarus]

We bought an Airstream this year and as others have stated, the Non motorized vehicles are not included in the new law. This meant that I had to pay State and county sales tax on the purchase price of the vehicle when I purchased it. Then when my birthday came around and time to renew my tags I also had to pay ad valorum tax. We are already talking about updating to a larger unit and this excessive taxing will definitely affect the decision.

[joelbert]

Yes, there is a tax/ad valorem/yearly/whatever you want to call it. In 2014, for a 19foot 2005 Bambi, it is now at $146.

Otherwise, you receive no sticker for the plate.

[Jim & Susan]

Speaking of taxes and roads. Did y'all hear the Governor say yesterday that they are thinking of raising GAS TAXES AGAIN to pay for all these road improvement projects on the politician's dream list? Give me a break. 10 years ago, we had some of the lowest gas taxes in the country. Did you also notice that he manipulated the tax lower last (of course, an election) year?

What pains me the most is that I voted for this (fiscal conservative, really?) knucklehead not once, but twice.

In case you missed it, there's one (just one) road project here in the Atlanta area that will eventually cost right at $1 billion. That's the entire state road budget for one year. Ridiculous. All they're doing is reworking the Ga 400/I-85 interchange. Just by way of comparison, the Spaghetti Junction interchange at I-85 and I-285 cost about $90 million back in the late '80's. Folks, I'll say it out loud. This is called corruption.

Ok, off my soapbox now. Taxes just piss me off anymore.

Jim

[ALANSD]

sure now that gas is almost affordable they'll raise the tax. In Fulton County I still pay SCHOOL tax...at 65 years old. What a rip. we are trying to move to Cherokee county where the taxes on more house are $1900 less..