Posted on: 05th Nov, 2010 03:54 pm
My wife and I upsized in August 2010 to support our recently large family of 6. Our previous residence, as well as our new residence, are both over 100 miles from my job. Due to the outrageous cost of living near my job, I hold an apartment near work and work a compressed schedule to spend long weekends with my family.
We signed on that this new residence would be our principal residence, however, it is in a different state (Pennsylvania) than my job (Maryland).
By Maryland law, I am required to file taxes, etc. as a full time resident since I end up meeting their time requirements and have an apartment there. To facilitate this in a manageable way, I simply use my apartment address for my pay stubs (tax withholding), bank accounts and most bills. My wife does not work outside our home. PA also considers me a full time resident, which might end up being to my benefit
.
To maximize my time with family on the weekends, and collect health benefits from my employer, I use my apartment address for bills and my health plan. I maintain a Maryland driver's license and tags for my commute car as all part of the associated trickle-down.
I explained my work situation and listed my apartment's address for our letter of explanation to Wells Fargo back in July, as well as explaining I could not afford a residence much less would be willing to pay absurd rental rates for a large enough home near work to accomodate my family of 6. They quickly approved the loan given my explanation and we went to settlement.
We learned of all the gotcha's with Maryland residency, etc. after settling. Our previous primary residence - also a mega commute - was in Maryland so there was no issue. As part of the settlement, we both signed a statement of occupancy to have the new home as our principal residence.
Question: Despite my letter of explanation being accepted for our primary residence mortgage, would my (not my wife's) Maryland billing address on many bills, my license, and health plan being different from that of the primary residence affect principal residency status in regards to my end of the statement of occupancy? Would Wells Fargo give me heartburn over this?
Note, there is no way my family of six could spend more than a week (if not a day) in my apartment without going crazy.
My gut says I should be okay, but I'd like to hear if anyone has any experience. If this is an issue, do I need to switch to a second home mortgage, thereby have to refile everything again?
Thanks for any advice!
Dan
We signed on that this new residence would be our principal residence, however, it is in a different state (Pennsylvania) than my job (Maryland).
By Maryland law, I am required to file taxes, etc. as a full time resident since I end up meeting their time requirements and have an apartment there. To facilitate this in a manageable way, I simply use my apartment address for my pay stubs (tax withholding), bank accounts and most bills. My wife does not work outside our home. PA also considers me a full time resident, which might end up being to my benefit
.
To maximize my time with family on the weekends, and collect health benefits from my employer, I use my apartment address for bills and my health plan. I maintain a Maryland driver's license and tags for my commute car as all part of the associated trickle-down.
I explained my work situation and listed my apartment's address for our letter of explanation to Wells Fargo back in July, as well as explaining I could not afford a residence much less would be willing to pay absurd rental rates for a large enough home near work to accomodate my family of 6. They quickly approved the loan given my explanation and we went to settlement.
We learned of all the gotcha's with Maryland residency, etc. after settling. Our previous primary residence - also a mega commute - was in Maryland so there was no issue. As part of the settlement, we both signed a statement of occupancy to have the new home as our principal residence.
Question: Despite my letter of explanation being accepted for our primary residence mortgage, would my (not my wife's) Maryland billing address on many bills, my license, and health plan being different from that of the primary residence affect principal residency status in regards to my end of the statement of occupancy? Would Wells Fargo give me heartburn over this?
Note, there is no way my family of six could spend more than a week (if not a day) in my apartment without going crazy.
My gut says I should be okay, but I'd like to hear if anyone has any experience. If this is an issue, do I need to switch to a second home mortgage, thereby have to refile everything again?
Thanks for any advice!
Dan
Hi danielkosack,
As far as I can understand the situation, you cannot claim principal residence in both the states. As most of your bills, your license, and health plan has the address of your Maryland home, there are high chances that it will be considered as your principal residence. Nevertheless, you should contact a real estate attorney and take his opinion in this matter.
Thanks
As far as I can understand the situation, you cannot claim principal residence in both the states. As most of your bills, your license, and health plan has the address of your Maryland home, there are high chances that it will be considered as your principal residence. Nevertheless, you should contact a real estate attorney and take his opinion in this matter.
Thanks