Notes on getting your A declared property tax exempt in NC

alexiskai

Well-known member
I just went through this so I'm putting notes here in case anyone doesn't know the procedure.

  1. The A has to be properly titled and registered.
  2. The license plate must be an antique plate, which means you either request that at time of registration or go back later and request it and pay the fee.
  3. Download and fill out form AV-66.
  4. Take this form to your county tax office; someone there should be able to review it and confirm that you are in compliance.
  5. Once you've filed the form, the taxable value of the car will be capped at $500, so your property tax each year will be just a few bucks.

Further details:
  • You can file the form any time between when you get the property tax bill for the car and 30 days after that bill is due. So for a new registration, you would pay the fee at the DMV, take your registration and receipt and form to the tax office, and then they'd refund the difference. If you're filing the form for an upcoming tax year, you'll get an amended bill in the mail.
  • At this time (Sept. '22), the state of NC is not supplying antique tags because they have run out and can't get more. If this happens to you, take your form and registration with the regular license plate number to the county tax office and explain the situation. My tax office accepted the form and put some notes on the account once they confirmed the shortage.

Note on YOM plates: This doesn't make a difference for YOM plates at all; NC considers YOM plates ornamental and not the car's "real" tag.
 
Yes you can put antique plates and only pay $500.00 tax value. But, you are severely limited in driving the car. I don't have the five points they make you initial under penalty of law...one is you can only drive it occasionally for personal use and use it for parades. If I had the form in front of me I could list all of them. I've gone around with them on this and then they send you a note every three years and you log your mileage so they can track you. We shouldn't have to pay personal property tax on a 90 something year old vehicle and now if your not running antique plates they have kicked the value up, I was paying more property tax on a 91 year old vehicle than my 2015 Honda that I drive over 15,000 miles a year. Car clubs need to ban together and stop this. Just my thoughts
 
There's no mileage limit in the law, what are they telling you as far as maximum mileage? The law expressly permits "club activities," and a tour is clearly a club activity, so if you're using it for tours that would be legal.
 
Here are the five stipulations:
(1) It is registered with the Division of Motor Vehicles and has an historic
vehicle special license plate under G.S. 20-79.4.
(2) It is maintained primarily for use in exhibitions, club activities, parades, and
other public interest functions.
(3) It is used only occasionally for other purposes.
(4) It is owned by an individual, or owned directly or indirectly through one or
more pass-through entities, by an individual.
(5) It is used by the owner for a purpose other than the production of income
and is not used in connection with a business.
 
There isn't any mileage limits, it's the personal use they are saying "Occasional personal use" as that is what the form states. All the points have an added law if you don't adhere to them. They are just asking for your mileage to see how much you are driving it. My truck is my daily driver, so I'm putting more miles than probably most Model A's are driven.
 
Yes, those are the rules and I drive mine which violates rule number 3. I drive it more than occasionally! So if I initial that area I'm in violation of the tag
 
A lot of states have similar exemptions but each handles it differently. For example, in Virginia, which had the highest property tax rate in the table above, the tax exemption is handled at the county level, so only some counties offer it.
 
So if my club activity is a tour across the United States, is that legal?

My North Carolina DMV said that I could run with the year of manufacture tags (license plates) but had to keep the one they issued in the car.
 
So if my club activity is a tour across the United States, is that legal?

If you had good documentation, I think you could win on the merits for a long tour or even something like the Great Race (which is basically a mobile exhibition).
 
Glad I don't live in NC! Out here, I get to drive my car as I please, with the license plate of my choosing. It doesn't have to be a "club function" which is good, since my club is 100 miles away.

The wallet hub site you posted is also wrong for some states, including the state I live in, so I'd take that with a grain of salt. I realize you started this as a NC based thread, but the discussion wandered into other states.

I'd also be cautious of how you describe this. In my state, property taxes are land based. A car is taxed under the terms "vehicle license tax", which is basically the registration. Which is about $25 per year here too!
 
Well I can't lock the thread down to just NC residents, so we'll all have to live with the chaos and misinformation.
 
That wallethub site has nothing to do with taxing antique cars in N.H.That is to set the price for first time registrations on new cars,and drops down every year for a few years.The state portion of the registration on my antique cars is $6,per year.50 cents per month.The town portion varies from town to town,usually runs between $6.-$9.per year.I keep all my antique stuff registered,it makes it easier to sell one out of state when they are registered.I have a few things I haven't driven in over 10 years,but they are plated.We have no sales tax.Insurance is not required here either,I don't need it to get plates.
 
a few of the insurance companies will ask, do you drive less then 2500 miles a yr?

The answer is yes, in that most dont care to check. In the case of my 12 Buick, there is no speed/odometer. I am supposed to keep a log book of sorts.......

could work that way with a "broken" speedo in an A as well.
 
TO NC residents: What kind of money are you saving with a property tax exemption on an A? Is it really worth it to scam the tax collector?
 
As an NC resident, I have had my several Model A's licensed and registered for over 20 years...never been asked to verify mileage. $500 tax value.
 
TO NC residents: What kind of money are you saving with a property tax exemption on an A? Is it really worth it to scam the tax collector?

Can't speak for others, but for me, $90 per year per car. And it's not a scam, I do drive only occasionally or for events. One of them isn't even running at the moment.
 
Back
Top