tax credits
{ Wednesday, August 17th, 2011 }
A Housing Market Solution?
HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan, shown during happier times voguing. If the Federal government is cooking up more housing stimulus. chances are it's coming out of his office.
Previous attempts at government intervention/stimulus in the housing market did not achieve their intended goals. Sure, more folks bought homes, but your last name needn’t be Case or Shiller to know that we’re still in a national housing slump. What to do, what to do.
There are many that say, quite adamantly I might add, that the government should do nothing further to stimulate the residential real estate market. They argue that only time and collective pain will heal housing wounds. There’s an equally fervent crowd that believes steadfastly that the overall economy is inextricably linked to housing, and that something needs to be done. Regardless of which camp you call your own, it’s always refreshing to hear good ideas. The one below, courtesy of Don Hays, quoting investment strategist Ed Yardeni:
If we are right, the good feelings will not be reflected in the stock market for several weeks as the Super Committee and the Administration start getting a viable plan in place for Tax and Entitlement Reform. This reform has to please both sides—Republicans and Democrats. I’m sure it will not perfectly please the extremes of both parties, but the best plan for America has to find that middle ground. We like the trends that are evolving, but admittedly with all the media jabberwocky, it is hard to see the trends. I do expect a major housing priority to be established. I really like Ed Yardeni’s idea, and suspect something along those lines will occur. Ed included this plan in a report from two weeks ago, and let me repeat it here for those of you that haven’t seen it.
(1) The federal government should provide a $20,000 matching subsidy toward a down payment on a house to any homebuyer who puts up at least the same amount and is approved for a mortgage loan. The program would be capped at two million existing single-family homes. So the cost of the program would be $40 billion. The purchased property would have to be the primary residence of the buyer.
(2) This program could be paid for by slashing the corporate tax rate on repatriated foreign earnings from 35% to 10%. We estimate that doing so could easily raise the $40 billion necessary to finance the program. Moody’s research recently estimated that at least half of US companies’ record $1,240 billion in cash balances is held overseas. It’s over there and not here because of the large repatriation tax. In recent conversations with top executives of several major US technology companies with cash overseas, Carl was assured that lowering that tax to 10% would bring most of the money to the US.
(3) Rental income would be tax free for 10 years for homebuyers who purchase existing single-family houses as rental properties. They would not be eligible for the down payment subsidy. The 10-year tax-free status of the rental income would be transferable to new owners during that period. The number of rental units under the program would be capped at one million.
{ Friday, April 1st, 2011 }
Homestead Tax Exemption: Due Today
Homestead Tax Exemption filing is due today. If you purchased a home in 2010, you need to do this now. If you purchased a home prior to 2010 but have never filed for this exemption, you need to do this now. This is not an April Fools Day joke, it’s an opportunity to save some serious cheddar on your property tax bill.
How do you file for the exemption? Find out, by County:
{ Monday, April 13th, 2009 }
Historic Rates and A Government Boost Are Helping First-Time Homebuyers
I know, I know. You’ve had the conversation- ad nauseum- at this point. Low rates, tax credits, depressed prices, blah blah blah blah… after a while, it just begins to sound like the sad trombone-like voice of Charlie Brown’s teacher.
Unlike the teacher, current market conditions warrant a much closer look for first time buyers (as well as those who haven’t owned their principal residence for three years). And while many of the articles that you’ll find on the subject are long, dry and boring… I’ve found one that does a nice job of not only spelling out the opportunity, but also bringing some real-life perspective to the situation.
{ Thursday, April 2nd, 2009 }
First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit
Heard about the first time home buyer tax credit but not really sure how it works? The National Association of Home Builders has created an excellent site that highlights the ins and outs of the the program.
Click here for more information. It really is a fantastic site.
