The home of your dreams may come with a bonus: a tax credit. Image: DreamPictures/Photodisc/Getty Images
There’s happy news for current homeowners: If you intend to sell your home and buy another in 2009 or 2010, you may be eligible for a federal tax credit of up to $6,500. The Extended Homebuyer Tax Credit legislation, passed in November 2009, also shares the wealth with first-time homebuyers—up to $8,000.
Are you eligible?
You’re considered a current homeowner under IRS rules if you’ve used the home being sold or vacated as a principal residence for five consecutive years within the last eight. You’re a first-time homebuyer if you or your spouse haven’t owned a home for the three years before your purchase.
In both cases, keep in mind that the credit amount you’re eligible for begins to decrease for joint filers if your modified adjusted gross income is $225,000 ($125,000 for individuals); it disappears at $245,000 ($145,000 for individuals).
The ultimate amount of your credit depends on the price of the home and your income.
To claim your benefit:
Close on a new principal residence between Nov. 7, 2009, and April 30, 2010. You can settle as late as June 30, 2010, as long as you have a binding contract by April 30.
Don’t spend more than $800,000 on your new home.
When you submit your tax return, attach a copy of the settlement statement you received at closing. Check with the IRS or your tax adviser to confirm what additional documentation may be needed.
Decide whether to:
- Apply the credit to your 2009 tax return, filed on or before April 15, 2010,
- File an amended 2009 return; or
- Apply the credit on your 2010 return, filed on or before April 15, 2011.
First-timers who purchased a home between Jan. 1, 2009, and Nov. 6, 2009, may also be eligible for the $8,000. Keep in mind that the income limits in this case are tighter than for those who purchased after Nov. 6.
Apply the credit to your 2009 taxes
To claim the credit on your 2009 tax return:
- Complete IRS Form 5405 to determine the amount of your available credit.
- Apply the credit when you file your 2009 tax return or file an amended return.
- Attach documentation of purchase to your return or amended return.
Which properties are eligible?
You can apply the credit to primary residences, including single-family homes, condos, townhomes, and co-ops.
Do I need to repay the tax credit?
No, not if you occupy the purchased home for three years or more. However, if the property is sold during this three-year period, the full amount of the credit will be recouped on the sale.
This article provides general information about tax laws and consequences, but is not intended to be relied upon by readers as tax or legal advice applicable to particular transactions or circumstances. Readers should consult a tax professional for such advice, and are reminded that tax laws may vary by jurisdiction.
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Homebuyer Tax Credit: What You Need To Know | HouseLogic
Monday, December 28, 2009
Realty Times - Military Personnel Receive Federal Help on Short Sales
Members of the military who find themselves in a short-sale situation now have a new tool via the Homeowners Assistance Program (HAP) through the Department of Defense (DoD).
Congress expanded HAP when they passed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009; and now nearly every military personnel involved in a short sale can get financial help through HAP if they find themselves upside down when they must sell because of a mandatory permanent transfer.
The HAP website (http://hap.usace.army.mil) contains several brochures for military personnel and for real estate professionals to help understand the expanded guidelines for those using the program.
Authorized under Section 1013 of the Demonstration Cities and Metropolitan Development Act of 1966, HAP is a law that is managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers "to assist eligible homeowners who face financial loss when selling their primary residence homes in areas where real estate values have declined because of a base closure or realignment announcement." The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act expands the legislation temporarily for DoD employees caught up in the mortgage crisis. Those who can apply for assistance include:
service members and DOD employees who are wounded, injured or become ill when deployed; surviving spouses of service members or DOD employees killed or died of wounds while deployed; service members and civilian employees assigned to BRAC 05 organizations; and service members required to permanently relocate during the home mortgage crisis. The assistance is limited to employees who were reassigned within about a 5-and-a-half year period between 2006 and 2012 and the house being considered must have been the applicant's primary residence. Some of the criteria for eligibility include:
Permanent reassignment requires move of more than 50 miles. Reassignment ordered between 1 February 2006 and 30 September 2012. Property purchased (or contract to purchase signed) before 1 July 2006. Property was the primary residence of the owner Owner has not previously received these benefit payments. An online brochure, which can be printed via a PDF file, is available here.
This next paragraph is very important for purchasers of houses where the HAP program is being used.
The execution of this program requires the assignment of the contract to the Department of Defense, via the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. In essence, the seller conveys the house over to the USACE and then the purchaser buys the house from the USACE all at the same time at the same settlement or escrow table. Your state laws may require a few differences, but this is how it's executed on the ground level.
Many Realtor contracts contain paragraphs that will not allow the assignment of a contract, so military sellers using HAP may need to strike this paragraph to allow the contract to go through without any hiccups.
An "assigned" contract is one where one party in a sales contract can assign their interests over to a third party before settlement. It would say something like: "this contract is between 'Mr. and Mrs. Seller' and 'Mr. and Mrs. Buyer and/or assigns.'"
With this language, it allows Mr. and Mrs. Buyer to slip in Mr. and Mrs. Buyer-2 at some point in the performance of the contract. It's legal, and is usually used via a pre-foreclosure contract where one party is finding houses for sale and selling them to a secondary buyer once they get the terms of the contract in place.
Thus, in the use of the DoD's HAP program, the purchaser needs to understand that at the end of their contract, before they go to settlement, the seller will no longer be Mr. and Mrs. Seller, but the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
For details on how the HAP program works, visit here.
Published: December 28, 2009
Use of this article without permission is a violation of federal copyright laws.
Mr. Carr is an award-winning real estate broker in Northern Virginia and authored "Real Estate Investing Made Simple: a commonsense approach to building wealth." He also contributed to Donald Trump�s book, "The Best Real Estate Advice I Ever Received," and is an active trainer and coach of top producers in the Washington DC market. As a sought-after expert on real estate, Mr. Carr has been featured on CNN, various broadcast outlets and was the former real estate editor for The Washington Times. He accepts questions at his blog www.RealEstateOlogy.org.
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Helpful winter tips for homeowners
-
(New!)
Start a Christmas Tree Recycling Program
A Christmas tree recycling program is good for the environment as well as your peace of mind. Read
-
(New!)
Buying and Storing Fireplace Fuel
Knowing how to evaluate, buy, and store firewood is key to the safe, efficient operation of your fireplace, wood stove, or fireplace insert. Read
-
(New!)
What You Need to Know about Ventless Fireplaces
Ventless fireplaces provide a convenient, low-cost alternative to traditional fireplace options, but they aren’t trouble-free. Read
Visit houselogic.com for more articles like this.
© Copyright 2009 NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Friday, December 11, 2009
November local housing stats are in
November local housing stats are in
December 11, 2009 by Jim Evans
Home sales in Northern Virginia have remained on pretty much a flat line the past few months. With inventory dwindling and prices returning, the spring market should bring much more robust activity. From November 2008 – November 2009, in Prince William County the average sold price increased $30,000 or 14.4%. Fairfax County had no measurable change. Of course, prices are 56% less in Prince William as a result of soaring foreclosures the past few years. This current trend of price improvements should help be aided by the tax credits that are due to expire in April 2010. Affordabilty is at an all time high. That is, if you can find a home that does not have multiple offers immediately after being listed.
Graphs are courtesy of MRIS.
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Treasury sets guidance to simplify "short sales" - keeping my fingers crossed!
NEW YORK (Reuters) – The U.S. Treasury on Monday set long-awaited guidance on a plan for mortgage companies to speed "short sales" of homes and other loan modification alternatives to stem a rising tide of foreclosures.
The Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives Program provides financial incentives and simplifies the procedures for completing short sales, a growing practice in which a lender agrees to accept the sale price of a home to pay off a mortgage even if the price falls short of the amount owed, according to an announcement on the Treasury's website.
Guidelines address barriers that have often sidelined short sales by setting limits on the time it takes a bank to approve an offer, freeing borrowers from debt and capping claims of subordinate lenders.
The incentives, first announced in May, expand on the government's Home Affordable Modification Program, known as HAMP, that has seen limited success in lowering payments for distressed homeowners. The Treasury earlier on Monday stepped up pressure on mortgage companies to make permanent the 650,000 trial modifications they have started.
"While HAMP program guidelines are intended to reach a broad range of at-risk borrowers, it is expected that servicers will encounter situations where they are unable to approve" or offer a modification, the Treasury said in its announcement.
Financial incentives for completing short sales or similar deed-in-lieu transactions -- in which the deed is simply transferred to the lender -- include a $1,000 payment to servicers, and a maximum of $1,000 to go to investors who sign off on payments to subordinate lien holders, the Treasury said. Borrowers would receive $1,500 in relocation expenses.
Short sales are favored by real estate agents and community groups over foreclosure because they can preserve the borrower's credit rating and leave the property in better condition than when a homeowner is evicted. While primary lenders typically realize steep losses, their recovery is typically far better than under foreclosure.
But short sales have been frustrating for borrowers and real estate agents, often hung up by negotiations with multiple lien holders and mortgage insurance companies. Real estate agents have complained that sales fall through as lenders bicker over the sales price, what they should receive from the proceeds, and whether the borrower will be held accountable for the debt in the future.
Among requirements, mortgage servicers have 10 days to approve or disapprove a request for short sale, and when done the transaction must fully release the borrower from the debt.
It also prohibits mortgage servicing companies from reducing real estate commissions on the sale, a practice that has dissuaded many agents from taking short sale listings.
In one of the most contentious issues gumming up negotiations between lenders, the guidance caps the aggregate proceeds to subordinate lien holders at $3,000.
Second lien holders in recent months have begun demanding more money from the first lender, seller, buyer or agent in exchange for releasing their claim, agents have said. Because primary lenders would face larger losses in a foreclosure, some subordinate lenders have felt empowered, the agents said.
The largest second-lien holders are Bank of America Corp, Wells Fargo & Co, JPMorgan Chase & Co and Citigroup Inc.
Second lien holders may proceed with a short sale outside of the Treasury program, if they felt the cap was too low, a Treasury official said in October.
"If there was a short sale program that didn't recognize the second lien holder position, it could have pretty damaging consequences for the industry," Sanjiv Das, chief executive officer of CitiMortgage, said in an interview last week.
(Editing by Leslie Adler)
It certainly can't hurt. Let's see if the banks go along!
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Eminent Domain wins out again
By SUZANNE SATALINE, MATTHEW FUTTERMAN and CHRISTINA S.N. LEWIS
New York's highest court ruled that it is lawful for the state to seize private land for use by private developers, clearing a hurdle for a new basketball arena and marking a victory for local governments hoping to spur development.
Associated Press
A New York Court ruled Tuesday that the state can seize property for the proposed Atlantic Yards development in Brooklyn, shown above in 2008.
Tuesday's 6-1 ruling by the New York State Court of Appeals allows the contentious $4.9 billion, 22-acre Atlantic Yards project in Brooklyn to proceed. The project, being developed by Forest City Ratner Cos., could eventually include office towers and apartments as well as an arena for the NBA's New Jersey Nets.
The decision is a blow to private-property owners who have argued that they are defenseless in protecting their ownership rights once a government deems their land necessary for eminent domain, or the "public good." But it boosts developers and government entities in New York that have sought to boost local economies by offering incentives for private developers.
The court's decision echoes one handed down by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2005, when the justices found it was constitutional for a New London, Conn., economic-development corporation to seize private homes and businesses to build a research campus for Pfizer Inc. That decision, Kelo v. City of New London, Conn., set off a firestorm of protest, prompting many lawmakers around the country to amend laws to prevent governments from seizing private land in some cases. New York, however, didn't change its constitution.
In Tuesday's decision, the New York appeals-court judges ruled that the constitution allows the state entity to seize the downtown Brooklyn land to improve blighted conditions. The land owners had argued that the area was a stable neighborhood, and wasn't blighted.
Stephen Moore discusses why he is opposed to the state of New York seizing private land for a basketball arena.
But the court ruled that if the definition of blight is to be changed in New York, it would be a matter for the legislature, not the courts.
The lone dissenter in the case, Judge Robert S. Smith, wrote: "It might be possible to debate whether a sports stadium open to the public is a 'public use' in the traditional sense, but the renting of commercial and residential space by a private developer clearly is not."
The ruling ends the constitutional challenges to the project. All have failed, including a case brought in federal court. Three legal challenges remain in state court, including one that contests the state's finding of blight and its environmental review of the land, said Matthew Brinckerhoff, the lawyer for a client who continues to live in a condominium on the site. "We lost and we're disappointed, but they don't have these properties and until they do the fight isn't over," he said.
The New York State Urban Development Corp. said in a statement: "With this major hurdle overcome, we can now move forward with development."
MaryAnne Gilmartin, executive vice president of Forest City Ratner, said, "We're pleased and excited to be heading toward the closing."
Still, the project's future remains in question. At $900 million, the arena, to be called the Barclays Center, would be among the most expensive ever built. Already, the scope of the entire Atlantic Yards project has narrowed for the near term in the face of the poor economy. Over the next five years, Forest City Ratner is planning to go forward with construction of the arena and as many as three rental-apartment buildings, the developer says. The rest of the project, including "Miss Brooklyn," the signature tower designed by Frank Gehry, is on hold due to market conditions.
Associated PressMatthew Brinckerhoff, left, the plaintiff's lead attorney, speaks Tuesday in front of Freddie's Bar in Brooklyn, one of the businesses affected by a New York court decision on eminent domain.
The Ratner companies have tentatively secured an investment-grade rating for the roughly $600 million of bonds needed to finance the arena's construction, according to a statement released Tuesday by the state development corporation.
The Atlantic Yards project must issue its bonds and start construction by Dec. 31 to comply with a previous court ruling that limited the ability of privately owned sports teams to qualify for tax-exempt bonds to pay for arenas from which they will derive the bulk of the financial benefits.
Without the tax-exempt status, bankers working on the project say it won't move forward because the bond debt would be too expensive. The state corporation says it will issue the bonds by mid-December.
In addition, the developer still will need to issue $150 million of taxable bonds, which are less likely to prove attractive for investors in this market.
Bruce Ratner, chairman and chief executive of Forest City Ratner, also must close his deal to sell a stake in the team to Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov. Mr. Prokhorov offered to buy an 80% stake in the Nets for $200 million, and a 45% stake in the arena. The ownership deal awaits approval from at least 75% of National Basketball Association franchise owners.
Write to Suzanne Sataline at suzanne.sataline@wsj.com, Matthew Futterman at matthew.futterman@wsj.com and Christina S.N. Lewis at christina.lewis@wsj.com
Printed in The Wall Street Journal, page A3
Looks like the nets will get their stadium over private property owners objections.
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Hiring Boom in Mortgage Restructuring
By KYLE STOCK
Mortgage restructuring for strapped homeowners has emerged as a rare growth area in the economy as companies in the field keep hiring.
Four of the largest mortgages servicers -- Bank of America Corp., Citigroup Inc., J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. and Wells Fargo & Co. -- have collectively hired almost 17,000 people this year, mostly to work with financially ailing homeowners. With the number of defaults rising, many are planning to keep adding staff.
"We've hired folks, we've transferred folks within the company and everyone is working overtime. All hands on deck is really the right analogy," said J.P. Morgan Chase spokesman Thomas Kelly.
In October, about 12.4% of the 56 million U.S. households with mortgages -- or about 6.9 million households -- were 30 days or more overdue, or in the foreclosure process, according to LPS Applied Analytics, a research firm in Denver.
More on Fins
Wells Fargo, which services one in six U.S. mortgages, has almost doubled its staff working on restructurings, adding close to 7,000 employees this year. Citigroup has boosted its staff by about 54%, adding 1,400 positions. In Arizona, one of the states hit hardest by the subprime disaster, Citigroup opened a new service center staffed by 800 mortgage negotiators.
Loan-servicing companies report that people with a wide variety of backgrounds are applying for the jobs, from rental-car service representatives to former chief executives of small mortgage brokerages that went under.
One of J.P. Morgan Chase's best loan modifiers is a former police officer from Jacksonville, Fla., said Mr. Kelly, the spokesman. "She's terrific on the phone with customers because she knows how to calm people down," Mr. Kelly said.
New companies formed in response to the home-mortgage crisis also have been hiring. For example, Private National Mortgage Acceptance Co., dubbed PennyMac, was founded in 2008 by former executives of Countrywide Financial Corp. and now employs about 120 people.
Nate Cadena, who used to sell loans for AmeriCash Mortgage Bankers, is one of PennyMac's loan modifiers. He said his job today isn't all that different: He gets on the phone with customers and tries to figure out how much they can afford to pay each month.
Mr. Cadena, 32 years old, said he used to earn "very lucrative pay" as a loan salesman. But he said that since the economy tanked, he was forced to take a job as a door-to-door salesman, an experience that readjusted his goals and perspective. "It used to be that I wanted to make as much money as I could," he said. "Now it's about a career path and stability."
Executives at mortgage servicers say most workers dealing with borrowers earn between $30,000 and $60,000 a year plus bonuses, and spend their days talking to delinquent or financially strapped mortgage borrowers. The modifiers present a number of options, with the aim of lowering the monthly payment to roughly one-third of household income.
Printed in The Wall Street Journal, page A4
Here's where all the jobs are.
