I live in Florida *wink wink*

I was laughing a bit at the lawsuit that the District of Columbia filed against Michael Saylor from Microstrategy. Apparently Michael has been a legal resident of Washington D.C. for the last 5 years, but has not paid any district taxes in that period. Like a lot of the wealthy, Michael had a very typical set-up:

• Michael claims to have lived in Florida

• As a resident of Florida, he would be subject to no state or local income tax

• He also owns a home in D.C. (and elsewhere) but would aim to spend more time in Florida to abide by rules to be a legal resident of Florida, not D.C.

All this sounds great of course. Many people do it legally. I know many people who legally live in Nevada, Washington, Texas, or Florida and count their days to ensure they are in compliance with all the laws.

The problem is that these rules are not black and white. While many guidelines say you need to spend more than half the year in that state to be a resident, there are other factors that go into the decision as well. Even if you spend 183 or more days in Florida, another state may still deem you to be a resident of their state.

So where did Michael Saylor go wrong? Well I don’t have all the facts, but for one he posted on Facebook calling D.C. home multiple times (he owns a home in D.C.) and he’s been recorded talking about D.C. being his “home.” That’s a pretty telltale sign to begin with. I’m sure the district has a lot more evidence tying him to D.C. as well.