2013 Tax Reprocutions - What every Real Estate Agent needs to know!

Short Sales4U

Short Sales 4U is happy to take the “I don’t know” out of one of the BIGGEST questions for next year… “What is going to happen to homeowner’s tax benefits that we have now, next year when they expire?”

 2013 TAX REPROCUTIONS are important for all agents to know about. 

It’s urgent information NEEDED FOR ALL HOMEOWNERS to understand nationally.

We don’t need to put the fear of God in people’s minds about still doing short sales next year.  We do need to educate ourselves and your clients for next years sales.

When push comes to shove, the fiscal Cliff must be met by relief from the taxpayers of America.

Selling homes and the taxation of them is a major way for Congress to meet a need that has not been met for quite some time.  Recovery needs to happen on both sides of the board.  The taxpayers need relief and so does the Government.

Many homeowners are trying to close before the end of the year to take advantage of some major tax relief programs that are set to expire December 31st 2012 which is important because quite frankly, I don’t believe they will be there next year.

Real estate brokers who deal in high-end properties have been reporting an upsurge in listings. Some sellers are desperate to sell their homes before Jan. 1, 2013, when they could be subject to much higher tax rates on capital gains.

Are these sellers right to be worried?

The short answer is "yes," some sellers should be concerned about higher taxes on capital gains in 2013. If the Bush tax cuts are allowed to expire at the end of 2012, some taxpayers will see an increase of 8.8 percent on their taxes on long-term capital gains, including gains on home sales.

Currently, the maximum tax rate on long-term capital gains is 15 percent. If the Bush tax cuts expire, this will go up to 20 percent on Jan. 1, 2013.

Also on Jan. 1, the new Medicare tax enacted as part of Obamacare will take effect. This will impose a 3.8 percent tax on investment income of individuals earning more than $200,000 and couples earning more than $250,000. Together, these result in a 23.8 percent tax on long-term individual capital gains -- an increase of 8.8 percentage points compared with the current 15 percent rate.

However, while the 20 percent capital gains rate would apply to all long-term capital gains, the 3.8 percent Medicare tax will, at most, apply only to the amount a taxpayer's income exceeds the applicable income threshold ($200,000 or $250,000).

More importantly, homeowners will still be eligible for the $250,000/$500,000 exclusion on capital gains from home sales. This means that the 3.8 percent Medicare tax will affect relatively few homeowners. Nevertheless, it will be a hit on homeowners who have substantial equity and income.

For example, an individual with a $500,000 in income would have to pay the 3.8 percent tax on up to $300,000 of his investment income in 2013. If this individual owned a home with $750,000 in equity and qualified for the $250,000 exclusion, he would be left with $500,000 in investment income, $300,000 of which would be subject to the 3.8 percent tax -- an additional tax of $11,400.

If the Bush tax cuts expired, this person would also have to pay an additional 5 percent in capital gains tax on his home sale profit (20 percent instead of 15 percent), which would result in $25,000 in additional tax.

Altogether, this person would owe an additional $36,400 in taxes if he sold his home in 2013 instead of 2012.

Any person with substantial income and equity should perform this simple calculation to determine how much tax they could have to pay if they wait until 2013 to sell.

We can help investors still purchase homes and distressed homeowners still sell their homes.  This tax change will not force our real estate market to cease to recover in this volatile economy, but it will effect some of our short term investors who were just trying to jump in and get right out of a good deal.

I can tell that this next year will be exciting and still very productive for everyone trying to help homeowners and investors alike understand really what Is happening with the changing real estate market today.  

Its important for every real estate agent working today to understand not only how to sell your listings, but give sound real estate advise that can affect your homeowner directly good or bad.

Thank you and I wish you all the best real estate sales you have had in a long time in 2013!

Your friendly Short Sale expert!!  At Short Seles4U- Stacie MacDonald

Stacie@shortsales4u.com

*some tax information was use from the Tim Inman website*

Should you be concerned if you have a Bank of America Short Sale?

Bank of America Short Sales might not close...

Many agents that have listings in Equator and are dealing with Bank of America short sales have been notified of their listing being "service released" or (SR) in "So many days".  These events have sky rocketed over the past few months for many agents and negotiators.  

Many of Bank of America's loans have been "Service Released"  which in short sale terminology means that this short sale is no longer going to be able to close with your current servicer such as "Bank of America" or any other lender that you may have been given this notice from.  

If you have been one of the chosen loans that have been serviced released then you need to find out who the homeowners new servicer is, and the new applicable information from your homeowner pertaining to that new loan.  You should be asking your homeowner to be looking out for any new Bank of America letters that they have been sent.  Especially recently. 

It can be a real hurdle when one cannot use the systems that they may be used to when working in short sales.  Many of the new servicing company's cant wait to get a hold of your offer and tear it up with their new investors guidelines and timelines.   Do not be afraid of turning that stalling short sale over to an experienced company that knows how to navigate through all of the short sale systems,  and companies guidelines that can stop any good short sale in its tracks.  

This notice is to help agents and homeowners be more prepared in what you may be either experiencing right now or may experience in the near future.  Its not the end of the world if that short sale is put to a halt.  It is a real pain in the rear end!  But many short sales are still salvageable if the homeowner doesn't have an upcoming sale date in the next 7 business days.  Many banks require at least 10 business days before an auction date in order to review and possibly suspend or delay an upcoming sales or auction date.  The most important thing to know is that "time is of the essence".  It is important to get your short sale package ready as soon as possible.  The better you are prepared for your seller, the better your outcome will be.  Its important to inform your seller about timelines that they may have to deal with.  Being honest about getting the same information out to everyone, so that no one is surprised will be invaluable.

Our question is, Why are so many of Bank of America loans being service released lately?  Now it could be a coincidence, but it could also mean something very different.   It could be sign for greater things to come.  Bank of America lead the County in Short Sales over the last three years.  Maybe this fast liquidation of non-performing assets has turned out moving their own assets in the wrong direction for them... Or did it? Remember that many of these banks have made money during this economic downturn.  They were bailed out and then started selling off their assets. Shortly thereafter  they realized that getting very big wasn't such a bad thing if they had possibly mismanaged their own credit or money. They knew and still know that being too big to fail isn't something that our government will stand for.  

Some of these banks may want to merge with another big bank and if they do, it may not necessarily be a good thing.  This Country cannot afford to bail out another bank or major investment company.  There simply is not enough transparency within our Banking institutions no matter what they say about 'Dodd-Frank".

I just hope that no matter what these big banks decide to do which one another, that they do it with integrity and to preserve the institution of banking. Not to continue to manipulate each other or the people that use their systems.  

I trust that we will continue to be very busy in short sales for the next 10 years or more.  There are many homeowners that need your help and assistance in guiding them in the right direction.  I know that it will continue to evolve and agents will continue to help homeowners buy and sell real estate, just as they have for over a hundred years now. 

 Sincerely, your short sale expert and friend, Stacie MacDonald

CASH INCENTIVES FOR SELLERS TO CLOSE!

Cash at Closing? Who can get this? Will you get it?

Only Some Banks across America are offering homeowners CASH at closing.  Anywhere from 2,500- 35,000!  Who gets this incentive?  WHY?

     Now Bank of America has publicly offered homeowners between $3-$30,000.  Chase Bank is also giving sellers incentives up to $35,000 for qualified short sales.

Why do banks give this much money to homeowners?  Because believe it or not it is cheaper for them to give them an incentive to sell quickly, than drawing out a non-performing loan for months or even years.
     So many banks have gone under because they would not work with homeowners soon enough or did not have the assets to lean on for long term losses.   Banks finally got the message that it was far better to work with a distressed homeowner than to just take the non-performing asset back.  Now they are sending homeowners pre-qualification letters to short sale and incentives have reached homeowners at closing. This program seems to be very successful at the moment.   I am looking back seeing how far we have come in the short sale business and banks are catching on to the recovery bug.  Recovery always starts with the homeowner and their needs.  When the American homeowner starts recovering, then AMERICA starts recovering.
     Many homeowners and agents are wondering how much they will receive at closing and the answer is: "it varies from home to homeowner"  It really depends on the amount the home appraises for and compared to the loss from the investor.   The less the investor loses the more the homeowner gets at closing.
     Can you qualify even if you had a bankruptcy in the past.  Yes you can still qualify for a co-operative short sale or Cash incentive short sale from either bank.
     Wells Fargo, First Horizon, Citi Mortgage and other banks still do not participate in these pre-approved short sale programs, but i would guess that Wells Fargo would be the next one on board to start that same type of program in the near future since the hold on bank owned homes will be for some time still.
     My opinion is if your bank is offering it to you, take it and run with it!  It will not be there forever, just like anything else the government has ever offered.  Its here today and gone tomorrow!

     Your Short Sale Specialist- Stacie MacDonald

How much power does the Bank have?

How much power does the bank have?

Recently I ran into a short sale that took me by surprise. I was handling a short sale for a successful real estate agent in California.  This short sale lien was owned by the Lien holder *&^%Man*&$% bank.  There was a bonafide offer presented to the Lien holder in a timely manner .  The bank then reviewed the package and ordered the BPO .  After the values came back we were notified by the bank that the value came in $70,000 higher than the offer amount .  The buyer then chose To purchase a FHA appraisal.  After the appraisal came in, we were notified that The FHA appraisal came in at the same value as the offer amount!  Terrific news for our client! We then contested that value at the bank and were quite confident that the bank would then have to accept our FHA appraisal amount as valid and true market value and of course submit our approval letter to us???  We submitted our appraisal along with the offer and ask to have the value contested .  When that review came back , The value by the bank was determined to be the same as their BPO value which was $70,000.00 higher than our appraisal value.  After their re-review of our documents, including the offer and FHA appraisal, the buyers offer again, was denied- Due to an "Insufficient Offer"

     Now many agents would assume that this deal was done and nothing else would help them in obtaining an approval letter, let alone a closing and paycheck.  After submitting complaints to the Office of Comptroller of the Currency, the FTC and the US attorney Generals office and Federal Housing Authority also known as HUD our bargaining position increases each time we make a legitimate complaint against the mortgagor.   

It certainly is the most beneficial thing to do for your client, yourself and your career.  especially if its a legitimate complaint!   You should know why and when to keep pressure on a bank.  It is important in every transaction.

     In this case the homeowner did not have a auction date pending and we had plenty of time to contest their values and contest their methodology.  Unfortunately in many cases their isn't the time or place to contest values.  In that case you should just try to get the highest and best offer instead of continuing on a fight that may end up in foreclosure instead.

    Having the right package to submit for your offer is important.  You should always try to meet your BPO agent at the property for their valuation.  This is not to influence the BPO agents mind.  This is simply to show the BPO agent why you came up with the listing price that incurred the current offer on the table. It is always important to show the actual sold properties to the BPO agent so they can get an idea of where or why  you have what you have on the table.  Remember, they work for the bank.  Many times I have seen BPO agents send in higher than market value reports.  Some agents think its because they want the listing if it goes to auction.  I think its just because they don't have the correct data and are busy themselves to get to their next task.  The easier you make it for them to do their job, the better your results!

     Take care of yourself and your REAL ESTATE!

Your Short Sale Expert at- Short Sales4u

Stacie MacDonald- CEO of Short Sales4U

Shadow Boxing with Real Estate

Have you ever heard of the term "Shadow Boxing"?  Its what a boxer will do to train to become a quicker, faster and better opponent.  The boxer will stand in front of  a lighted background to see his shadow in front of him which he will use like an opponent to bob and weave through the shadows of strikes he makes himself.
What on earth could this have to do with real estate?  In real estate we have shadow markets to make our real estate market look faster, quicker and better.  Unfortunately the view of real estate is again being built on false foundations.  We have what you would call "Shadow Inventory"  It is inventory the banks have on their books as assets, but are "non performing assets" . They have these homes on their books as inventory, but are frozen out from selling them because of a government moratorium on bank owned properties now.
As of today there are over 7 million homes on that list.  1 million were released to sell across the nation a month ago or so, but NOT MANY have been release to listing agents across America to put up for sale.  Actually you are going to be looking for a while for bank owned properties if you want to buy one now.  They just aren't out there. Just on the west coast alone there are over 650,000 bank owned condominiums.  I have heard rumors we wont see them for up to 18 more months!    Now i am sure that after the election is over we will see some of the bank owned properties being released, but why not release what should be out there for sale right now?
     A new bulletin came across my desk stating that Short Sales have surpassed Bank Owned properties for the first time. Shadow Inventory, what a concept! There is inventory out there, it's just not on the market now.... The election year has had a bigger part to play in it than i had anticipated.  I had anticipated seeing at least some bank owned properties for sale over the year.  But not the extreme void of bank owned homes that we seem to have right now.  Going from one extreme to the other isn't what we need to recover.  We need a balanced market.  We need lenders to loosen  up their guidelines for home owner occupied buyers a LITTLE so that more people could qualify for a new home sooner than later.
     Forcing the market to look good is one thing, but flat out ruining it is another.  I believe that once the banks shadow inventory is released, it will again flood the housing market with too many bank owned listings. Without the needed amount of buyers out there making "owner occupied" offers the housing market is sure to flop again.  Sure there are the investor (wolves) gobbling up the auctioned up houses across America, and offering up anything under 200k, but that will not be what helps Americans recover financially.
     The fact of the matter is that without a future of homeowners buying houses because they feel confident in the housing market and know it will be a good investment, we will not have real recovery across America.
      I am not too sure about trusting the government to protect us against the next Sr. V.P. of "Sally's Bank" to take us for another real estate ride.  I am not sure that they haven't already tried since Chase just lost over 2 billion dollars in another botched investment scheme.  Its this kind of greed and recklessness that has the big guys ignoring all of the red flags out there saying DON'T DO THAT AGAIN,  IT HURT TOO MUCH THE FIRST TIME AROUND FOR TOO MANY AMERICANS!
     I say write to your congressman out there and tell them to get real with real estate.  Let recovery take place now by giving buyers the chance to buy with not so perfect credit, but with a 10 year commitment to live and take care of their new home.  Give the home BUYER a CASH incentive to REHAB the home instead of giving the seller ALL of the incentive money.  Release the bank owned homes in a steady stream throughout the year and replace every closed home with a new bank owned home on the market..  There could be so many more ideas for recovery and if you have one, i would love to hear your ideas of what you think the government should do better to help Americans across the board.  Take care, your helpful Short Sale expert in real estate,
Stacie MacDonald
     

Havard University sends out wrong message to homeowners

Monday, June 18, 2012

http://www.shortsales4u.com

Harvard University- Posts real estate news that is misleading!

Did you ever hear the saying "Don't believe everything you hear"
Well, I just heard on news radio that Harvard University posted a statement stating that the housing market is recovering or looking stronger for the past 10 months. What angers me about this study or statement is that it is built on false foundations. the reason why I say that is that the government has a moratorium put on over 7,000,000 bank owned homes across united states! This was done to protect the current homeowners from losing all of their equity and flatening out the market. About a month ago the government released 1,000,000 bank owned homes to be listed backup on the market . but for some strange reason I have not seen these homes listed as bank owned properties ?? Anywhere in the U.S., Not on the East Coast or West Coast??.
When we have a pull back on the amount of inventory that is available for people , we also have a supply and demand issue which causes a false sense of inflation. The truth of the matter is that there are millions more homes to be sold that the government or asset managers for the bank s are not releasing. . why? you ask, because it's an election year, the president must have a housing market that looks strong before his election . quite honestly this happens every election year ,but the difference is that we are in a horrible resession that is depending on our housing market recovery. this time holding 1,000,000 homes back from the people is making a huge difference in our perception of recovery . Bank owned homes are an epidemic , and a dirty little secret that the government doesn't want you to know about . so the next time you hear about what even harvard university says on how are economy is looking or the strength or weakness of our economy is truly a wolf in sheep's clothing . thank you, Your short sale and real estate expert- Stacie MacDonald
ShortSales4U

Short Sales 4 Success: Short Sales 4 Success: Mortgage Relief Deal has been struck as Hold out S...

Short Sales 4 Success: Short Sales 4 Success: Mortgage Relief Deal has been struck as Hold out S...
http://www.shortsales4u.com

Harvard University- Posts real estate news that is WRONG!

Did you ever hear the saying "Don't believe everything you hear"
Well, I just heard on news radio that Harvard University posted a statement  stating that the housing market is recovering or looking stronger for the past 10 months.  What angers me about this study or statement is that it is built on false foundations.  the reason why I say that is that the government has a moratorium put on over 7,000,000 bank owned  homes across united states!  This was done to protect the current homeowners from losing  all of their equity and  flatening out the market. About a month ago the government released 1,000,000  bank owned homes to be listed backup on the market .  but for some strange reason I have not seen these homes listed as bank owned properties ?? Anywhere in the U.S., Not on the East Coast or West Coast??.  
        When we have a pull back on the amount of inventory that is available for people , we also have a supply and demand issue which causes a false sense of inflation. The truth of the matter is that there are millions  more homes to be sold that the government or asset managers for the bank s are not releasing.  .  why?   you ask, because it's an election year, the president must have a housing market that looks strong before his election .  quite honestly this happens every election year ,but the difference is that we are in a horrible resession  that is depending on our housing market recovery.  this time holding   1,000,000 homes back from the people is making a huge difference in our perception of  recovery .  Bank owned homes are an epidemic , and a dirty little secret that the government doesn't want you to know about .  so the next time you hear about what even harvard university   says on how are economy is looking or the strength or weakness of our economy is truly a wolf in sheep's clothing .  thank you,  Your short sale and real estate expert- Stacie MacDonald
ShortSales4U  

Short Sales 4 Success: Mortgage Relief Deal has been struck as Hold out S...

Short Sales 4 Success: Mortgage Relief Deal has been struck as Hold out S...: Well it is good news in recovery for homeowners across the nation. The President gave a speech today stating how congress has negotiated a ...

Mortgage Relief Deal has been struck as Hold out States Join in

Well it is good news in recovery for homeowners across the nation.  The President gave a speech today stating how congress has negotiated a 25 Billion dollar deal to help homeowners affected by the housing crash and illegal foreclosure practices that took place.
Now some homeowners will receive a monthly stimulus that can help reduce their debt and increase thier equity in their home again.  It is a start to the housing market crises, BUT it does not fix much for everyone that has a home across America.  The reason why is that first, not all states participated.  Oklahoma did not sign this agreement and none of the Government backed loans like FHA, Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac are included in the program, which  means that it could be less than 1/3 of all home loans that would qualify for the program.
  Here is a money break down on how it would be allocated:

Money breakdown Under the terms of the agreement, the servicers are required to collectively dedicate $20 billion toward various forms of financial relief to borrowers. At least $10 billion will go toward reducing the principal on loans for borrowers who, as of the date of the settlement, are either delinquent or at imminent risk of default and owe more on their mortgages than their homes are worth.
At least $3 billion will go toward refinancing loans for borrowers who are current on their mortgages but who owe more on their mortgage than their homes are worth. Borrowers who meet basic criteria will be eligible for the refinancing, which will reduce interest rates for borrowers who are currently paying much higher rates or whose adjustable rate mortgages are due to soon rise to much higher rates.
Up to $7 billion will go towards other forms of relief, including forbearance of principal for unemployed borrowers, anti-blight programs, short sales and transitional assistance, benefits for service members who are forced to sell their home at a loss as a result of a Permanent Change in Station order, and other programs.
Because servicers will receive only partial credit for every dollar spent on some of the required activities, the settlement will provide direct benefits to borrowers in excess of $20 billion.
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency also said on Thursday that Bank of America, Citigroup, JPMorgan and Wells Fargo have agreed to pay a penalty of $394 million as part of a settlement they reached in April 2011 with regulators over foreclosure abuses.  The banks can meet the terms of the penalty through payments they make as part of the larger settlement with the state attorneys general and the Justice Department the OCC said. (Reuters and the Associated Press contributed to this article)

Thank you for staying in touch with Short Sales4U blog for today.  Remember to visit us at www.shortsales4u.com anytime!

Short Sales 4 Success: Short Sales 4 Success: 2012 mortgage debt relief a...

Short Sales 4 Success: Short Sales 4 Success: 2012 mortgage debt relief a...: Short Sales 4 Success: 2012 mortgage debt relief act is expiring this year!

Short Sales 4 Success: Short Sales 4 Success: 2012 mortgage debt relief a...

Short Sales 4 Success: Short Sales 4 Success: 2012 mortgage debt relief a...: Short Sales 4 Success: 2012 mortgage debt relief act is expiring this year!

Short Sales 4 Success: Short Sales 4 Success: New Ways for homeowners to ...

Short Sales 4 Success: Short Sales 4 Success: New Ways for homeowners to ...: Short Sales 4 Success: New Ways for homeowners to receive money at closing for a short sale !

Short Sales 4 Success: Rumor Say's!

Short Sales 4 Success: Rumor Say's!: I cannot tell you how many times a day or week that an agent will call me and say, I heard a rumor about what short sales are or aren't all...

Rumor Say's!

I cannot tell you how many times a day or week that an agent will call me and say, I heard a rumor about what short sales are or aren't allowing. Today it was a homeowner who said "I heard that the banks aren't allowing short sales at all anymore" I said, Whoaah, I mean really? I have been doing short sales for 18 years. since before they were popular and if a homeowner owes more than what their home is worth and the NEED to sell their home because of a personal or financial hardship that they can prove, well, I am sorry folks, if they want to sell their home, no one can tell them that they cannot!! And that is called a short sale :)

Do not believe every little rumor that comes across your table. If you do, you will become more like a "worry wort", than a proactive, independent thinker who can direct and lead your clients to successful transactions.

Being able to demonstrate the ability to do research about what is not just concerning to you, but also what is concerning to your clients needs to be the benefit for everyone you know so that your sphere on influence is not only able to count on you, but they will know that you are the most capable agent for their needs.

Remember to go to www.shortsales4u.com for more information or see us on facebook!

Short Sales 4 Success: Can we rely on real estate?

Short Sales 4 Success: Can we rely on real estate?

Short Sales 4 Success: Short Sales 4 Success: Too Big To Fail

Short Sales 4 Success: Short Sales 4 Success: Too Big To Fail

Short Sales 4 Success: New Ways for homeowners to receive money at closing for a short sale !

Short Sales 4 Success: New Ways for homeowners to receive money at closing for a short sale !

Short Sales 4 Success: 2012 mortgage debt relief act is expiring this year!

Short Sales 4 Success: 2012 mortgage debt relief act is expiring this year!

2012 mortgage debt relief act is expiring this year!

How i love when Short Sales4U network of agents are on top of news that makes a difference to all!

One of my top producers at Century 21 in Rancho Cucamonga,, Ron Gent- sent me a note about this tax bill that expires this year. This is a big deal since this is a debt forgiveness tax code that can exclude up to 2 million dollars of debt on your personal residence! Read the article below by a CPA in California :

Short Sellers motivated by " IRS Tax Consequences" to close escrow by Dec. 31

Hello Agents

With short sales accounting for over half of all listings (approx.) most agents have experienced a certain frustration because of some homeowner's/ seller's "hidden agendas".

Many homeowners simply use the short sale process to stay in the home for as long as possible. That's understandable...losing a home is traumatic.

The impact for you.. as an agent (both selling and listing) is spending time, money and emotional energy trying to close the sale...when the seller has no intention of following thru with the sale.

(Note...it's almost as frustrating ...for your loan officer).

These listings /sellers can usually be identified by the terms and comments in the MLS.

Such as:

a) No lockbox or sign

b) Shown by appointment only

c) A Ridiculously high purchase price

Note...if the seller is considering bankruptcy (and assuming they qualify) the transaction probably will not "close" because the home owner can also discharge the debt with the BK filing.

Now you may have a "hammer" to close these transactions!

The Mortgage Tax Relief Act ...eliminating mortgage debt forgivenessexpires Dec. 31, 2012.

But home owners will be "motivated to act " well before the date because of the short sale and foreclosures' lengthy process.

Currently the tax-relief act allows homeowners to exclude from income (for the sake of tax purposes) primary mortgage debt (1st trust deed) forgiven by their lender.(i.e short sale, short refi , foreclosure or deed in lieu)

Impacted home owners are most easily identified by simply pulling a title report and comparing the amount of the original loan (1st TD) vs the current 1st TD.

If the balance is higher...you may have a motivated seller. Here's why:

After Dec 31., if a lender cancels a home owner's debt, the IRS requires the debt be treated (reported) as "general income"...because the duty to repay it no longer exists.

For example: if a homeowner owes $250,000 and the lender forgives $50,000 of that debt, that $50,000 is considered income.

If the homeowner's combined federal and state marginal tax rate is 36%, the seller would owe $18,000 in taxes. A BIG DETERENT TO JERKING YOU AROUND ANS SABOTAGING THE SALE AT THE VERY LAST POSSIBLE MOMENT!

Note ....when a homeowner refinances their current mortgage to a LOWER loan balance, there is no tax on the difference between what a homeowner owes on the old loan and what a home owners owes on the new loan amount.( becasue the basis is higher)

However the refinanced loan amount is now a "recourse debt" which may subject the borrower to a future lawsuit for a "deficiency judgment".

Here are a few of the other important rules the homeowner needs to know:

• The debt-relief law applies only to debt incurred to buy, build or improve a personal residence. (S ave your receipts in case of an audit).

It does not apply to a HELOC used to pay off debts or used as "walking around money".

• The act does not apply to vacation homes or investment properties.

• The max. amount a homeowner can treat as indebtedness is $2 million, or $1 million if married but filing separately.

The expiration of the act will motivate many home owners to seriously consider selling...OR..if not ...save you gas, time and emotional grief!

Well, that's all folks, I hope you enjoyed learning something new today about real estate tax law!!! Sincerely, Stacie MacDonald - Your Short Sale expert!

New Ways for homeowners to receive money at closing for a short sale !

New Ways for homeowners to receive money at closing for a short sale !

Wouldn’t you like to receive $750.00 or $2,500.00 or even $3,000,00!

Now homeowners can take advantage of government backed programs for homeowners to take advantage of across the nation.

Many real estate agents may not know of all of the government programs that are available for homeowners to take advantage of because they don’t do that many short sales to know what they can or cannot do with your loan in particular.

You must get pre-qualified to be able to receive this money at closing.

Call now and get short sales4U on board to handle your short sale successfully! We will work with your agent!

Don’t waste valuable time! We may be able to stop that foreclosure date from coming and give you more time to live in your home.

Wouldn’t you like to receive $750.00 or $2,500.00 or even $3,000,00!

Well ALL of these amounts that you see could be money in your pocket at closing to help you move!

New Ways for homeowners to receive money at closing for a short sale !

New Ways for homeowners to receive money at closing for a short sale !

Wouldn’t you like to receive $750.00 or $2,500.00 or even $3,000,00!

Now homeowners can take advantage of government backed programs for homeowners to take advantage of across the nation.

Many real estate agents may not know of all of the government programs that are available for homeowners to take advantage of because they don’t do that many short sales to know what they can or cannot do with your loan in particular.

You must get pre-qualified to be able to receive this money at closing.

Call now and get short sales4U on board to handle your short sale successfully! We will work with your agent!

Don’t waste valuable time! We may be able to stop that foreclosure date from coming and give you more time to live in your home.

Wouldn’t you like to receive $750.00 or $2,500.00 or even $3,000,00!

Well ALL of these amounts that you see could be money in your pocket at closing to help you move!

Short Sales 4 Success: Too Big To Fail

Short Sales 4 Success: Too Big To Fail

www.shortsales4u.com

See our website for more information

Too Big To Fail

Short Sales4U Real Estate News: Too Big To Fail~

“Too Big To Fail” this is a phrase that the CEO’s at Large US Banks know is not that far from happening all over again.

We all want to learn from history, especially when it comes from our recent history. Many of us believe that our Government was created to protect us and also that we may use our government as our voices as citizens of the United States of America. I for one would like to use my platform or voice to echo the calling of my concern to create a fair and equitable platform for all citizens to depend on when it comes to investing our money into the banking institutions of the U.S. and not fear them because the Government set them up again to fail because it was in the interest of Big business and Big Government.

Short Sales 4U was originally created because we needed to answer the plague of short sales being mishandled by most of the real estate agents who really had no idea what to do next or even how to close a short sale. We created a platform for not only real estate agents to use, but homeowners to depend on which gave them dependable information and direction. I believe we met the needs of the many by being fair, honest and hardworking. We did not have to hide behind false doors or a false sense of security. We have been transparent from the beginning which people have come to depend on in this volatile market.

When I am working with most of the big banks almost every day I hear the voices within them and listen to what the agents working for them are saying. I found out about some big banking institutions “lending” practices and was literally dumfounded on what I stumbled upon. I found out that Bank of America, one of the largest banks in America is not FDIC insured anymore. I found out that ALL real estate sales in the U.S. sold after January 1^st 2012 will now have a NEW 3.8% sales tax on top of any other real estate fees in your County and State, to help fund the new heath care system in place to cover all U.S. citizens. I found out that the big banks that we so conveniently bailed out in 08’, were now borrowing from the Federal Government in or around the tune of 100 billion dollars over the last year to year and a half. This was due to there being no other outside investors/groups that wanted to give those “undisclosed” big banks any money because of their insolvency of assets. Having too much cash turns out to be a bad thing! Some of them selling off too many of their bad debts too fast turned out to bite some of them in the butt! Who would’ve thought? Now they say they have no good standing outside institutions that will lend to our big banks, but the Federal government. This is not a good thing since the Government shouldn’t be in the Banking business, or quite frankly any of our private business.

I now know that the Government has created a “tantalizing” recipe for disaster. We know that AIG was bailed out because it was “too big” to fail right?

Well, now there is the rumor floating around that one of our larger U.S. banks will merge with another large U.S. bank. That will leave the U.S. with only two or possibly three large banks left running most of the national mortgages for most of the U.S. homeowners. If even ONE of those banks begins to fail that would leave Americans holding the bag again for the banks. Those banks would be “too big to fail” in the governments eyes and the CEO’s know this. They could literally drive their banks into the ground. They could use their liquid assets to do just about anything they want. They could boost their own salaries into the sky and then know the whole time they are “too big to fail”, and they will be bailed out because of it.

This really leaves a bad taste in my mouth as a tax paying citizen, and I really don’t think we should stand for it again. (It’s only been 4 years!!!) Don’t let the banks just walk all over the poor citizens of America. Turn this around and let your congressman know that we need more regulations within the merging and bail out rules that Congress implemented a few years ago. We need an independent committee that audits the bail-out company’s monies spent regularly. We also need to make sure that when we do help them, that they can’t turn around and help themselves get into the same boat we just bailed them out of. We need to make sure that when large banks want to merge that it must be voted in by congress before such an event could take place to insure us that we aren’t allowing this “too big to fail” concept to happen. Having separate committees set aside to audit their money isn’t too costly when we avoid making mistakes that not only cost us, but our children’s children. To me that is cost effective!

Even though the banks are what’s driving my business forward, I need to know that what I am doing in real estate is good for my children and everyone else that I represent in short sales and real estate is being helped for the greater good.

Sincerely, your real estate advocate at Short Sales 4U,

Stacie MacDonald

stacie@shortsales4u.com