| |
Friday, April 23. 2010
Here is some great information courtesy of the Washington Realtors- Is The Rumor Fact or Fiction? 4/23/2010 A couple rumors are circulating that are causing unnecessary concern among our members (and here is a hint, both of these rumors are false) Rumor Number One FICTION!
There is no requirement in the law to license a home before your clients are allowed to sell their home. In addition, there is not a requirement to make a home more energy efficient before it can be sold.
Want Proof? Here you go... Rumor Number Two FICTION!
An article has been circulating that mischaracterizes and overstates what is actually in the legislation. Here are the facts. There is a new 3.8% Medicare tax for "High Income Filers" that goes into effect January 1, 2013 The tax is on unearned income and will apply ONLY to single filers with more than $200,000 of Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) and joint filers with more than AGI of $250,000. Unearned income includes interest, dividends, capital gains and net rents. Keeping in mind the income limitations above, real estate income that will be affected for high-income filers include: - Sale of a primary residence: If the gain from the sale of the property is below $250,000 (individual)/ $500,000 (couple) NO tax will have to be paid on the gain. The new Medicare tax would only apply to any gain realized over the $250K/$500K existing primary home exclusion that will bring the filers AGI over the $200K/$250K limits.
- Second Home/Investment property: The additional 3.8% tax will apply to the portion of the gain realized on the sale of a second home or investment property that will bring the filers AGI over the $200K/$250K limit.
- Rental Income: The portion of net rental income that exceeds the $200K/$250K AGI limits will be subject to the new 3.8% tax.
Want more info? Download NAR's Q&A Rumor Number Three Actually, we don't know for sure on this one, but we do know the top two are false rumors! Do your friends and co-workers a favor and pass this email along to them if you think they have received bad information. If you send $1,000 to this Nigerian banker, he will transfer $21 million dollars into your account. The recently-passed health care legislation imposes a 3.8% tax on homes sales. The new "Cap and Trade" Climate change bill in Congress requires a homeowner to license their home prior to selling it.
Thursday, April 22. 2010
 Great Opportunity awaits you in this quality home! Your home consist of over 2300 square feet including- dining room, family room with a gas fireplace, living room, open bright kitchen with eating area, den/office, utility room with large sink, 2.5 baths, large rec-room, and 3 large bedrooms. Master bedroom is on the main floor that features a 5 piece bath and large walk-in closet. Gas heat/water, tile and laminate flooring, trim package, and appliances are only some of the upgraded features. Priced just reduced to $284,950- Wow, that is a great value for this short sale!!
Thursday, April 1. 2010
 1440 sqft remodeled 3 bedroom rambler that features den/office, master bath, living room with fireplace, utility room, and 2 car garage. Included in the remodel is new- tile flooring, tile showers, door/trim package, carpet, granite countertops, kitchen and bath cabinets, double pane windows, paint interior/exterior, garage doors, forced air heat, and more. Your lot includes a fully fenced backyard, large deck, RV/ boat parking, and large private back yard. Great home with a Quality remodel!
| Residential Status | March | February | January | December | | Sold | 572 | 396 | 319 | 522 | | Pending | 1,100* | 927 | 812 | 769 | | Active | 4,220 | 4,057 | 3,916 | 3,459 |
This information is courtesy of the NWMLS. This does not include condos.*562 went pending in the month of March Even in this market, historical trends continue! As I predicted in the last update, in spite of the current market conditions, the stats are showing an increase in real estate activity over the past month. Unfortunately, when it comes to change in "distressed properties", we haven't seen any movement. As of the time these stats where pulled, 26% of the active homes, 28% of the homes pending, and a full 35% of homes sold are either bank owned or short sales. Breaking the sold number down even further: according to the NWMLS stats, last year in March only 398 homes sold. We are doing much better in 2010 with 572 homes sold in March! Of those homes, 521 were below $500K, 417 were below $350K and 223 were below $250K. Continue to watch the job market in the next few months. My opinion is that this is a key indicator for the recovery of the housing market. Without jobs or job security, we will not see "first time home buyers" enter the real estate market, and "first time home buyers" are the heartbeat of the market. Another key element is the anouncement that our government will not longer be buying mortgage back securities, let's see how this play's out in the next few months. On a final note - the $8,000 tax credit will end April 30th. Current interest rates are hovering around 5.05% with all indications leading to a rate increase in the near future.
|
|
|
