Making Florida Home: Our Domicile Change Journey in Green Cove Springs
December 2024 | Green Cove Springs, Florida
Hello friends! Today I'm sharing our adventure of becoming Florida residents - a big change after 65 years in North Carolina!
We set up at the County Fairgrounds, just minutes from Green Cove Springs. The location was perfect since our mail forwarding service is right there. Let me tell you, this was quite the experience!
The main task was visiting the county tax office to handle all our paperwork - vehicle registration, driver's licenses, you name it. Here's a tip: don't just rely on what your mail service tells you to bring! Call the tax office directly. Trust me, it saved us some headache.
Everything went pretty smooth, except for one little hiccup with our camper registration. Since we still have a lien on it, the tag will take 10-30 days to process. Not a big deal, but something to keep in mind if you're planning the same move.
I have to say, Florida is really rolling out the welcome mat for RVers! No annual inspections (praise the Lord!), lower taxes than North Carolina, and they just make everything easier for folks like us who live on the road full-time.
While we were in town, we explored Spring Park - such a peaceful spot! Did you know this town used to be a naval base? The timing of our visit was perfect because the town was celebrating its 150th anniversary. They had Christmas trees decorated by local families in the park, and child, let me tell you about this Wizard of Oz tree! Complete with a mini tornado, striped witch legs, and Toto's basket - it was something else!
Duane and I were excited to learn about some perks that come with being Florida residents, like possible Disney and state park discounts. You know we love finding ways to save money while traveling!
For those of you interested in the technical side, we managed our solar power while boondocking and tested our DC-to-DC charging setup. Even with overcast skies, we stayed fully charged. And here's another tip - the local library was perfect for printing documents we needed. Always good to know these little tricks when you're handling paperwork on the road!
This is a big change for us after all those years in North Carolina, but we're excited! We're thinking about spending our first full winter exploring Florida before heading out west in 2025!
Remember to enjoy the journey on the way to your destination. God bless, and we'll see you down the road!
