COMMUNITY

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

New Year’s Eve is here!  Have you thought about how wonderful 2010 can be for your family, friends, and strangers?  Resolutions are a New Year’s tradition.  Start a realistic list and make at least one promise with a loved one to do something out of the ordinary. 

FAMILY RESOLUTIONS:

Agree to disagree. Learn to cooperate and compromise. Put yourself in your loved one’s shoes, and truly try to understand how they are feeling and why they are reacting the way they are. Think before you speak or react. If all else fails, make believe the person you are hard on is a stranger, we often treat strangers kinder than our loved ones. Try not to hold a grudge, and don’t allow it to upset the other aspects of your relationship.

COMMUNITY RESOLUTIONS:

Volunteer somewhere you feel you could make a difference. It could be a hospital, nursing home, church daycare, literacy programs, meals on wheels or your local SPCA. You’ll know what feels right. There are volunteer opportunities everywhere. Check the Internet, local newspapers, and charities in your area.

PERSONAL RESOLUTIONS:

Plan to exercise for 10 minutes everyday. Stretching is great for circulation, walking around the block is great for your heart. Not anything strenuous, just something to get the joints moving. Dancing and yoga are also good for your overall well being.

Read a daily devotion, mantra, or quote to enlighten your spirit. Keep a daily journal of best thing that happened today or one thing per day that you are thankful for. Meditate, pray or focus on something beautiful in nature. Any of these suggestions will do wonders to nurture your inner spirit and will also help relieve stress.

FINANCIAL RESOLUTIONS:

Budget, spend less, and have more. Plan meals, shopping trips and make a list. Stick to the list and do not buy anything except what is on the list. Plan monthly allowances for birthday and special occasion gifts. Start putting money from coupon savings, bottle returns, or loose change in a jar for next year’s holidays. Have a yard sale and put those proceeds away as well. Cut down on your heating bills by wearing layers of clothing. Walk to the corner store instead of driving. Shop at thrift stores, rummage sales and garage sales for clothing, garden ornaments, and household decor.

But most of all, think positive, love and be loved…. and live every moment to its fullest!  HAPPY NEW YEAR to YOU!!!!

–Tara and April

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Today is a day of giving thanks, even though every day should be reserved for giving thanks and expressing gratitude in general.  Tara and I are grateful for our family, friends and clients!  To be able to live in the neighborhood where we work is also a blessing.  From helping families purchase their very first home, to helping families sell a current home and move to their next life chapter are accomplishments we are grateful to have been given the chance to perform.

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone, including the men and women serving in the military around the world!

Our blessings,

Tara and April

* VETERANS DAY *

Fifty-five years ago, President Dwight D. Eisenhower issued America’s first Veterans Day Proclamation.  In it, President Eisenhower called on all Americans to “solemnly remember the sacrifices of all those who fought so valiantly, on the seas, in the air, and on foreign shores, to preserve our heritage of freedom, and let us re-consecrate ourselves to the task of promoting an enduring peace so that their efforts shall not have been in vain.”

In 2009, we continue to honor those brave Americans who have served our nation in uniform; some 48 million men and women whose service spans our history — from the War for Independence to the current conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Our Veterans Day observance has evolved over the years.  Our nation’s custom of observing the end of World War I in 1918 at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month became a legal holiday known as Armistice Day in 1938.  In recognition of military service members’ sacrifices in World War II and Korea, the name of the holiday was changed to Veterans Day so that, as President Eisenhower said, “a grateful nation might pay appropriate homage to the veterans of all its wars who have contributed so much to the preservation of this nation.”

This year on Veterans Day 2009, we honor not only those who fought in our nation’s wars, but all who took that solemn oath to ”support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies” as members of America’s armed forces.

Of course, we remember and honor the more than 1.1 million patriots who have died while in military service to America.  We must never forget them, or the 24 million other American veterans who passed on since their service.  But the beauty of Veterans Day is that we take the time to remember and thank those who have defended us, or stood ready to do so, while they are still with us.

And more than 23 million veterans are still here with us.  Three-fourths of them served during time of war; all of them served and all deserve our gratitude!!

Homebuyer Tax Credit Extended!!!

On November 6, 2009, President Obama signed a bill to extend the tax credit for first-time homebuyers through June 30, 2010 at a maximum purchase price of $800,000!  The bill also opens up opportunities for others who are not buying a home for the first time.

WHO GETS WHAT?

First-time Homebuyers (FTBHs):  First-time homebuyers (that is, people who have not owned a home within the last three years) may be eligible for the tax credit.  The credit for FTHBs is 10% of the purchase price of the home, with a maximum available credit of $8,000.00.

Current Homeowners:  The tax credit program now gives those who already own a residence some additional reasons to move to a new home.  This incentive comes in the form of a tax credit of up to $6,500 for qualified purchasers who have owned and occupied a primary residence for a period of five consecutive years during the last eight years.

THE NEW DEADLINE

 In order to qualify for the credit, all contracts need to be in effect no later than April 30, 2010 and  close no later than June 30, 2010. 

TAX CREDIT VS. TAX DEDUCTION

It’s important to remember that the tax credit is just that… a tax credit.  Tax credit is a direct reduction in tax liability, owed by an individual to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).  The benefit of a tax credit is that it’s a dollar-for-dollar tax reduction, rather than a reduction in a tax liability that would only save you $1,000 to $1,500 when all was said and done.  So, if a first-time homebuyer were to owe $8,000 in income taxes and would qualify for a tax credit of $8,000, she would owe nothing.

Better still, the tax credit is refundable, which means the homebuyer can receive a check for the credit if he or she has little income tax liability.  For example, if a first-time homebuyer is eligible for a tax credit of $8,000 but is liable for $4,000 in income tax, she can still receive a check for the remaining $4,000!

WHAT ARE THE INCOME CAPS?

 The amount of income someone can earn and qualify for the full amount of the credit has been increased. 

Single tax filers who earn up to $125,000 are eligible for the total credit amount.  Those who earn more than this cap receive a partial credit.  However, filers who earn $145,000 and above are ineligible.

Joint filers who earn up to $225,000 are eligible for the total credit amount.  Those who earn more than this cap can receive a partial credit.  However, joint filers who earn $245,000 and above are ineligible.

HOW MUCH ARE FTHBs ELIGIBLE TO RECEIVE?

An eligible homebuyer may request from the IRS a tax credit of up to $8,000 or 10% of the purchase price for a home.  If the amount of the home purchased is $75,000, the maximum amount the credit can be is $7,500.  If the amount of the home purchased is $100,000, the amount of the credit may not exceed $8,000.

WHO IS ELIGIBLE FOR FTHB TAX CREDIT?

Anyone who has not owned a primary residence in the previous 36 months, prior to closing and the transfer of title, is eligible.

This applies both to single taxpayers and married couples.  In the case where there is a married couple, if either spouse has owned a primary residence in the last 36 months, neither would qualify.  In the case where an individual has owned property that has not been a primary residence, such as a second home or investment property, that individual would be eligible.

 

IF A PARENT (WHO WILL NOT LIVE ON THE PROPERTY) CO-SIGNS FOR A MORTGAGE, WILL THEIR CHILD STILL BE ELIGIBLE FOR THE CREDIT?

Yes, provided that the child meets the other requirements for the tax credit.

ARE THERE OTHER RESTRICTIONS TO TAKING THE FTHB CREDIT?

Yes.  According to the IRS, if any of the following describe a homebuyer’s situation, a credit would not be due:

• They buy the home from a close relative.  This includes a spouse, parent, grandparent, child or grandchild. 
• They do not use the home as their principal residence.
• They sell their home before the end of the year.
• They are a nonresident alien.
• They are, or were, eligible to claim the District of Columbia first-time homebuyer credit for any taxable year. (This does not apply for a home purchased in 2009.)
• Their home financing comes from tax-exempt mortgage revenue bonds.  (This does not apply for a home purchased in 2009.)

As always, if you have any questions about your specific situation or would like to discuss how you may benefit from this program, please call or email us. We will be happy to sit down with you.     –Tara and April

Daylight Saving Time Can Save Lives!

Twenty years ago, the people from Energizer Batteries and the nation’s firefighters came up with an idea that likely has saved thousands of homes and perhaps as many lives!

The idea connected two unrelated activities: changing clocks for Daylight Saving Time and changing the batteries in smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors.  It’s a sad fact that approximately 80 percent of fire deaths results from fires in homes without working smoke alarms.

Don’t forget to turn your clocks BACK one hour at 2:00 a.m. on Sunday morning, November 1st this year!

Remember the old saying, “Spring Forward, Ball Back”.