Mobile IP is a network layer solution to the wide-area mobility problem in the Internet. Mobility agents? hierarchies and regional registrations have been introduced in the foreign domain as a local-area mobility solution. In this paper, we critique the current regional registration proposal identifying some drawbacks with its registration mechanisms signaling design. In addition, we introduce novel registration frameworks for regional and home registrations associated with intra-hierarchy handoffs. We attempt to emphasize the local handoff aspect and benefit from the presence of a mobility support overlay network in the form of an agents? hierarchy. Performance evaluation results through network simulation demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed techniques in reducing UDP packet loss, and maintaining better TCP throughput versus base Mobile IP, in the case of a distant home agent.