liveaboard law?

October 30, 2017 Michael Yates

Legal Disclaimer- I am an idiot. I am not a lawyer. Nothing written in this article is worthy of consideration. Taking any of the advice or statements written in this article as legal fact without consulting an attorney would be using poor judgement on your part. I make no claims of legitimacy or legal correctness. Consider the following fictitious and all statements require vetting by a legal professional to apply to your situation.

Using a boat as a primary residence

You should avoid doing using your boat as your primary residence if you can. Using a family member or friend's address will make life much easier on you and your wallet. "Rent" the address from them by paying one of the utilities or doing up a "rental lease" for some small amount. However, if you don't have a choice this is what you can do.

Look for a marina with "live-aboard rights". At some marinas you'll pay an extra fee for the pleasure of living there. Basically a liveaboard fee. What you get for this can vary. In our marina Herrington Harbour North the liveaboard fee is applied to the "above average" use of the facilities. Understandable, it sucks, but I get it. It doesn't provide an address, is non refundable or transferable. It's just a fee. Marinas like the Gangplank Marina in Washington,DC the liveaboard fee comes as a contract that's more or less a commodity. The owner has the ability to sell the rights off or transfer ownership of them. It's a great tool to sell a boat. It includes a physical mailing address that can be used as your primary residency. One of the problems I see with the contractual liveaboard agreement is that the boats never leave the marina. In the case of Gangplank, the location is so desirable buyers are typically more after the slip and liveaboard rights than the boat. This inflates the asking prices of the boats up 50-75%. Thing is a bank won't touch that. Which means most buyers are coming out of pocket 75-100% to purchase. They'll spend all of their money on this old boat just trying to get the slip thinking "oh, I'll just live in it until I can buy a new boat or fix it up" but, that day never comes because they purchased into a quagmire of repair nightmares. They then sell the boat and the slip rights off because they're overwhelmed, rinse and repeat. Before you know it the marina is full of half repaired derelicts. Then management is forced to take action. Or doesn't -like Gangplank- and the city steps in and threatens to put an end to the whole thing. It's a financial game of musical chairs. A true hole in the water to throw money in.
You can use your slip address as a primary while not receiving mail at it. By using the address of the marina just add your slip number like it's an apartment number. Example: 110 Water St. C34, Anytown, USA. You'll need to get a PO Box to receive mail at to do this. A potential downside is that changing slips means change of address forms. No fun and mistakes can mess up things like taxes and banking info. Also, the marina will start getting junk mail address to you. They won't like that.
The PO Box trick. The PO Box has it's pluses and minuses. With one you can move all over the place and still keep your mailing address and not have to fill out change forms or suffer higher fees at the new location (wink, wink). The downside is most online retailers won't ship to a PO Box. Which makes it hard to get the things you need to do this liveaboard thing at a reasonable price. To use this PO Box as a primary you need to use the address of the PO Box facility and replace PO Box with "Suite". Example, 427 Elm St, "Suite 104", Anytown, USA. It's advisable to not do this at a USPS Post Office PO Box but at a mail store like the UPS store or a Mailboxes etc. Some of these stores have forwarding services which can come in handy if you're traveling in your boat and most will accept delivery of large packages.
There are online companies that provide the all-in-one service of a PO Box and residency. These cater to travelers of all types; boaters, hikers, backpackers, RVers, etc. They're usually pretty pricey compared to doing the above as they're specialized. The competition between these companies is pretty slim. Starting one might be a great side business idea if you own a home and have some web skills.

Government Paperwork

Filing paperwork with the local government can be tricky. If you live on a boat, in an rv, or wander the wilderness what state would you say you live in? It comes to you to submit this information and thereby be bound to any associated laws or taxes. The government doesn’t want you to have a choice in the matter.

Let me take a moment to push you down a rabbit hole. If you like raging against the machine you’ll love this. I’m paraphrasing here but here’s the gist. When you’re born and are issued a birth certificate the state takes a bond out that makes a corporate version of you. The corporate you is sited on government paperwork by the use of all capital letters in your name. ie JOHN DOE. The corporate you is bound by all corporate laws of the state it resides in, has no personal rights and is required to pay taxes. The corporate you is not really you it’s an entity that you’re the president of. But what about you? the personal you, the you that the bill of rights applies to, the you that is allowed the pursuit of happiness. The state has little to no jurisdiction over this you. This you is noted in the use of your name with a capital letter in front of each name. ie John Doe. The line between these two separate entities is purposely blurred by the state, police, DNR, DMV, etc. The ploy is to get you to act as your corporate self. This binds you into the state's legal system and its laws. A system you will not win against. Here’s a boating example, when a DNR officer asks you if you are the Captain of this Vessel. If you respond yes, you have just acted as your corporate self. Since Captain and Vessel are commercial legal terms. By validating those terms apply to you, you are now operating under a commercial capacity, you have now consented to searching, boarding, ticketing, etc under the commercial laws of that state. If you say No, I am a traveler on my private conveyance, your personal and property rights are still intact and you can refuse consent. This will not be the end of their attempts mind you. And as bullies do, they’ll push harder. If you’re someone that doesn’t want trouble you might want to hold your tongue. As you're starting a battle of technicality that if you slip up and lose, you can be sure that they will take revenge on your corporate self to the fullest extent that they can "manipulate". Researching this subject can shed light on things that will make your American red blood boil. Its not for the faint of heart, you’ll run across blowhards, zealots, conspiracies and lots of misleading information. You’ll learn why courtrooms look like the bridge of a ship, what the difference between a regular American flag is and one with gold fringe, and how you should sign your name. Regardless of whether you pursue this, I want you to recognize that there are two you(s). And that to operate in this world you need to learn to command both while keeping them separate as much as possible. See your corporate self as different and command it to work in the corporate system of the state. Set it up where it’s beneficial. Run it like a business and understand it doesn’t have personal rights. Know when you’re acting as your personal self vs corporate. Being a live aboard requires understanding in this arena to keep you enjoying it.

...We are of the opinion that there is a clear distinction in this particular between an individual and a corporation, and that the latter has no right to refuse to submit its books and papers for examination on the suit of the State. The individual may stand upon his Constitutional Rights as a Citizen. He is entitled to carry on his private business in his own way. His power to contract is unlimited. He owes no duty to the State or to his neighbors to divulge his business, or to open his doors to investigation, so far as it may tend to incriminate him. He owes no such duty to the State, since he receives nothing therefrom, beyond the protection of his life, liberty, and property. His Rights are such as the law of the land long antecedent to the organization of the state, and can only be taken from him by due process of law, and in accordance with the Constitution. Among his Rights are the refusal to incriminate himself, and the immunity of himself and his property from arrest or seizure except under warrant of law. He owes nothing to the public so long as he does not trespass upon their rights." "Upon the other hand, the corporation is a creature of the state. It is presumed to be incorporated for the benefit of the public. It receives certain special privileges and franchises, and holds them subject to the laws of the state and the limitations of its charter. Its rights to act as a corporation are only preserved to it so long as it obeys the laws of its creation. There is a reserved right in the legislature to investigate its contracts and find out whether it has exceeded its powers. It would be a strange anomaly to hold that the State, having chartered a corporation to make use of certain franchises, could not in exercise of its sovereignty inquire how those franchises had been employed, and whether they had been abused, and demand the production of corporate books and papers for that purpose.

Hale vs. Hinkel, 201 US 43, 74-75

Federal law and the Coast Guard is a whole other animal. Since forever the Coast Guard under federal law has been allowed to board, tax and assess all traffic in US waters. You have no right to refuse them access to your boat. So, don't bother. Stateies are different but will act as though they're under the same umbrella. Don't fall for that. The bonus is you don't have to deal with the Fed all that much. Pay your taxes or file for benefits, that's about it. Otherwise with the Coast Guard you can preemptively work with them by requesting a safety inspection on your terms. Get the inspection sticker and display it. It won't stay off the stateies but it can help in refusing boarding under the guise of a safety inspection.

Is a boat considered a house

Yes and no. You can claim the interest of your boat loan as a deduction, just like a home loan, provided your boat is equipped with these three things: A place to sleep, a way to cook, & a functioning toilet. Most likely a tax break set up for the rich. There's no reason not to take advantage of this if you itemize your tax deductions.

Definition of a live aboard

This varies from state to state and unfortunately it'll be unclear in most. As I've mentioned in several articles asking questions about being a liveaboard will lead to an unqualified "no" answer but if you just do it and don't flaunt it you'll usually be okay.

I would describe a live aboard as one that has no primary residence other than their boat. Time spent on the boat is irrelevant in my eyes. Who's to say if you just rather be on your boat than at your house. Thus, you spend most of your free time aboard. States like Florida qualify it based on if your boat is equipped with a motor. Go figure that one.

Firearms

I have no problem with owning firearms on board (safely). The state you're in at the moment will decide if having one on board is okay. In my research, I've found that as long as you meet the state's requirements of transporting a firearm in your car you'll be clear on the boat following the same rules. If you're traveling into "pirate waters" you may want to stock up. Reference the movie Captain Ron for guidance here.

Well, I hope this article didn't muddy the water too much for you. There's some great tricks here if you read between the lines. I wish I had all the answers about this stuff but most of it's situational. So, if you have any questions, contact me via the email page or leave a comment.

Cheers, Your legal Idiot

Mike

Life's a Port