2024: Worst Year for Home Sales? Just before the election, the National Association of Realtors announced that 2024 would likely be an even worse year for home sales than 2023. It could wind up as the worst since the late 1990s. Existing home sales fell one percent in September to a seasonally adjusted rate of [...]
Avoiding Capital Gains Tax When Selling Vacation Home Q: We are selling a vacation home. We were told that we should put some of the money from the sale of the property into a 1031 to avoid paying a 28 percent tax on the sale. Is there another way to avoid paying capital gains tax? [...]
Joint Financial Accounts: Pros and Cons Q: Could you explain the pros and cons of having joint financial accounts with a daughter? I also own my home with her as well? My husband has passed away. I have a will and other needed documents. A: We’re sorry for your loss. We understand how having joint [...]
Co-Signing a Mortgage? You'll Need These Docs Q: My daughter is buying a home. The mortgage company wants me to submit a ton of information in order to be her co-signer. They want all pages of my bank statements for the last three months and my tax returns for the last two years. They also [...]
Zoning: Splitting Lots Q: I have a zoning question. My daughter and son-in-law bought a cabin as their second/vacation home near Seattle a couple of years ago. The property is actually two lots (with two separate tax parcels). And, the cabin on one of the lots. But there is only one deed and one mortgage. [...]
Buyer Agency Gives Home Buyers Pause Q: My young adult children are thinking about buying a house. And, they're confused about some of the new rules and regulations concerning buyers agents. We're all a bit befuddled by the new rules regarding commissions for buyers agents. I am giving Ilyce’s "100 Questions Every First-Time Home Buyer [...]
Life Estates and Lady Bird Deeds Q: My lawyer can’t seem to get the title cleared on my Florida condominium. My mom and stepdad received title to my grandmother’s condominium as tenants-in-common from my grandmother back in 1995. My stepdad died without a will about 20 years ago. His estate was never probated as my [...]
Square Footage: Sizing Up a House Correctly Comment: I read your article on how people buy homes and use the square footage of the home to compare one home with the other. I wanted to let you know there is an ANSI standard for measuring square footage of a residential unit though few in our [...]
Timeshares: How Difficult Are Timeshares To Sell? Before buying a timeshare think about how tough it will be to sell it We get many questions from readers on timeshares. By far, the most common issue is how owners can get rid of their timeshare. There are many reasons why an owner would want to sell [...]
Reverse Mortgages After Death What happens to a house that has a reverse mortgage after the owner passes away? Q: I took out a reverse mortgage back in 2009. The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) holds the mortgage and they have a different company that services the loan. I have approximately $100,000 in [...]
