News and tips…

Do you owe tax if you close a short sale?

Q: I have heard I may owe tax if I complete a short sale on my house, is this true?

Image by Getty Images via Daylife

John M. (Livermore CA).
A: As a Realtor I need to to tell you that we are not qualified to give tax advice,
the answer may depend on which state you are in, [...]

First time home buyer tax credit.

Image by doncav via Flickr

In November congress extended this credit and made it more generous.  It is a true dollar for dollar credit of up to $8000 for 10% of the cost of the home. The credit is also refundable, meaning that even if a buyer doesn’t owe $8000 of tax, he or she can [...]

Opportunity Knocks!

Charming Oakland single level home close to shopping and BART.

Wachovia Short Sales, do you have a Wachovia or Wells Fargo mortgage?

Do you have a loan from Wachovia? If you have a Wells fargo or Wachovia loan and are getting behind on payments and need to consider a short sale you are in luck.

Unlike other banks Wachovia is streamlining the short sale process and in fact the approval time required is usually 30 days or less. [...]

Valley home Median Price up 11%!

Surprising new statistics just published show the year over year median prices in Livermore  and Pleasanton to have increased by 11%!
The new statistics take into account single family detached homes as well as condos.

Congress extends Tax Break!

WASHINGTON – Buying a home is about to get cheaper for a whole new crop of homebuyers — $6,500 cheaper.
First-time homebuyers have been getting tax credits of up to $8,000 since January as part of the economic stimulus package enacted earlier this year. But with the program scheduled to expire at the end of November, [...]

Why is a loan modification so hard to get?

With all the government bail out cash provided to banks for exactly this purpose, why can’t homeowners easily achieve a change in terms from their lender?

1/ Banks are Overwhelmed.
Hundreds of homeowners have applied for modification on their loan terms. Banks simply do not have the staff to cope with the volume of applications. Systems are [...]

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