Location, Residency, Selling, ... and FFL?

[dust_101]

Folks, this is a bit of an odd question, so I'm not sure how to approach it. If it sounds odd or I say something that seems off, bear with me.

Last year I was a part year resident of NY and WV. This coming year I 'might' be a full year resident of WV but as of now I still own a home in NY.

If my home which has been on the market for a year does not sell, and I'm unable to still find work in WV I may need to move back to NY without my wife and do some work for a relative in order to bring in cash.

The backstory there is needed as I'm not 100% sure I should fully establish residency in WV. Getting the DL isn't hard but getting cars registered can be expensive as I understand it I'll need to pay state tax on the cars to WV.

My issue is this: I may need to liquidate my firearms... handguns, shotguns, rifles (all semi-auto or bolt action, no class 3). I will be in WV for the next few months at least, and I am not sure about selling the firearms there. I'm not a resident of the state, so would a face to face sale be trouble for myself and/or the buyer?

If I am selling all my firearms in say one month (10-15 or so), would that be something I would need to setup a FFL for? I would hope not as it would be a one-time thing, but our government is so odd... reading the BATF regs makes my head spin.

Or would I be better off, for safety's sake, just selling online at an auction site and shipping from an FFL in either NY or WV? or would WV FFLs not touch me since I'm not a resident?

For the sake of needing as much cash as possible in liquidating i'd rather go face to face, but I'm looking for some option that won't end up with any obvious legal trouble.

Any advice from y'all would be appreciated. ...and yes I know it's all advice.

 

[gearchecker]

To sell as many guns as you intend to in a month, I'd get a gunbroker account opened. Post them all one at a time. Set a reasonable starting $$ amount and sell them with no reserve. Make sure you describe them very accurately as to the condtion. Get help from a friend that's familiar with guns if necessary.
Before you start your listings on GB, look around your area for an FFL that will ship for you without breaking the bank. Add the FFL fee into the shipping/FFL charges so the buyer is on the hook. List Gunpal as an option, and no local personal checks!
Be honest and let the chips fall where they may. You'll do well on most of them and get close on 1 or 2. It all balances in the end.
I've sold over 30 guns in the past 6 months and never had an issue. As long as you're honest you can't go wrong.

Good luck.

 

[TexasRifleman]

As far as needing an FFL because of the number of sales, it does not appear that would be the case.

The Federal Law regarding selling guns specifically says that liquidating part or all of a personal collection is NOT "engaged in the business"

The term “engaged in the business” means— as applied to a dealer in firearms, as defined in section 921 (a)(11)(A), a person who devotes time, attention, and labor to dealing in firearms as a regular course of trade or business with the principal objective of livelihood and profit through the repetitive purchase and resale of firearms, but such term shall not include a person who makes occasional sales, exchanges, or purchases of firearms for the enhancement of a personal collection or for a hobby, or who sells all or part of his personal collection of firearms;

Mentioned again in the definition of "livelihood and profit""

The term “with the principal objective of livelihood and profit” means that the intent underlying the sale or disposition of firearms is predominantly one of obtaining livelihood and pecuniary gain, as opposed to other intents, such as improving or liquidating a personal firearms collection

 

[CoRoMo]

What do you need for WV residency? It sounds like you have a place in WV, and your wife is planning to remain there permanently. You could probably float the car registration to the point that the NY registration is expired, rather than registering them first thing.

 

[Art Eatman]

Per BATFE, residency isn't the same as being a registered voter. For instance, my wife and I, second marriage each, have two homes in two states. I spend a substantial amount of time in her state--and BATFE says that if I pass the NICS I'm okay to buy a gun or sell from my collection.

Rent or utility receipts are proof of residency.

 

[mgkdrgn]

So long as the FFL on the other end of the transaction will accept a shipment from an individual, you need not go through an FFL to ship your guns TO an FFL. You can if you want to (and in the case of handguns it will likely be cheaper, as the FFL can use the USPS and you can not), but there is no legal requirement that you do.

Just make sure you ARE shipping to an FFL! Get a signed copy of their license prior to shipment, and shop ONLY to the premises address shown.

Your "residency" doesn't really enter into it (unless WV or NY STATE law says you can not ship firearms ... and even then it only counts if you are shipping from there, not if you are a resident of there)

Best of luck to you.

 

[NavyLCDR]

For the purpose of buying and selling firearms, residency is defined in 27 CFR 478.11 as presence in a state with the intention of making a home there. While you are working and sleeping in WV, your state of residency, for firearms, is WV. No problem at all doing Face to Face sales with another WV resident.

As others have stated, you can legally ship or otherwise deliver firearms directly to an FFL in any state without having to have an FFL on the shipping end, if the receiving FFL agrees to receive the shipment, your residency has nothing to do with that.

 

[dust_101]

Thanks folks, that helped tremendously. I'm going to keep this as a last resort, hopefully I won't need to sell any of my firearms, but if I do it is good to know that I have those options for face to face or auction sites.