Posted on 12/30/2025 5:47:17 AM PST by dennisw
A pair of Empire State snowbirds just learned it’s not easy to fly the coop.
An upstate couple who relocated to Florida is still on the hook for a $60,000 New York tax bill because they didn’t prove their Sunshine State pad was their main residence, a state tax panel ruled in a recent bombshell decision.
John Hoff and his wife, Kathleen Ocorr-Hoff, kept cashing paychecks here and didn’t give up their local country club memberships, the tax panel found in the decision — which could give pause to snowbirds splitting time between the Empire State and Florida.
The couple decided to retire to the warmer climes of Naples, Florida, and plunked down money for a ritzy $1 million, three-bedroom, three-bath condo in the Sunshine State — but kept too many ties to Canandaigua, the Oct. 9 decision determined.
John Jay Hoff holding a glass of red wine, and Kathleen Ocorr Hoff posing together.
Hoff and Ocorr-Hoff contended the proof of their move was they had registered vehicles in Florida and had bank accounts there, the 24-page ruling by the State of New York Tax Appeals Tribunal said.
(Excerpt) Read more at nypost.com ...
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You know your state is in trouble when they spend extra effort to track down people who left the state for tax money.
I feel bad for them but....Busted by NYState that will not let their wallets move to Florida
It won't happen again, they will document their time spent in Florida this time.
I feel as bad for them as I would a Code Pinker getting thrown of a roof by a Palestinian they were supporting. Florida should double tap them on the way in.
“In 2018, they said, they spent 186 days in New York, 131 in Florida and 48 days elsewhere, with the numbers going up to 164 days’ in New York, 153.5 in Naples and 47.5 somewhere else in 2019.
I suspect these numbers are the biggest problem. And that New York Commies don’t like people leaving the gulag.
New Dorkers have been doing this forever. They went after Rush Limbaugh hard too.
My father in law used to keep his sailboat in the winter at Constitution Marina in Charlestown, MA(the Town). Right on Boston harbor. Right next to the USS Constitution navy yard.
He would use it as a winter condo in Boston. He would take it down in October and leave it there until May.
That was until he received a tax bill from the Commonwealth. They said that his 32’ sloop constituted a second home in MA.
After that the boat went up river and stayed in NH in the winter on the hard.
“It won’t happen again, they will document their time spent in Florida this time.”
Be sure to spend at least 185 days in FL. Can NYS taxation ding him for days he spends in his Fl home office, running his business in NY?
It sounds like they could have afforded a tax accountant or attorney to advise them—and help them track relevant data.
Fools and their money are soon parted.
If they spent more than six months in NYS they made a costly mistake.
Folk who move south are emancipated, are they not? New York city is an ulcer.
Neither did Letitia. Can we PLEASE move on from this...
There's a reason the states and the government have thousands of pages of tax law, they want to squeeze out every possible penny.
“You know your state is in trouble when they spend extra effort to track down people who left the state for tax money.”
Yes and no...
Rush Limbaugh moved to Palm Beach, Florida in 1996 and the state, county and city of New York hounded him for NY taxes for at least 20 years. He had to prove, daily, where he was working “17 different ways.”
Eventually there was an agreed upon ‘tax agreement’ for when he went to NY and broadcast a show from there (I believe it was five figures).
California is similar: if you move your residence they still want YOUR money if you cannot PROVE you are not in CA...
As an aside, ALL sportsmen who play a game in NY (football, baseball, basketball, hockey, etc) have a portion of their paycheck ‘docked’ to pay NY for applicable taxes...it’s been going on for decades.
Welcome to the Hotel New York City..............You can NEVER LEAVE!..........................
Kept cashing paychecks here?? Yeh right...I’m sure the checks were deposited...not cashed. That makes no sense. IMHO
Not an expert, but I believe he was initially still broadcasting from NYC and then realized he needed to move full time to FL and build a studio there.
New York and California both had tax offices in the downtown ATL office buildings I was in c. 2000. They’re aggressive.
“You know your state is in trouble when they spend extra effort to track down people who left the state for tax money.”
They didn’t have to track them down.
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