IRS's Summertime top 10 tax tips for home sellers

IRS Summertime Tax Tip 2011-15, August 8, 2011

The Internal Revenue Service has some important information to share with individuals who have sold or are about to sell their home. If you have a gain from the sale of your main home, you may qualify to exclude all or part of that gain from your income. Here are ten tips from the IRS to keep in mind when selling your home.

1. In general, you are eligible to exclude the gain from income if you have owned and used your home as your main home for two years out of the five years prior to the date of its sale.
2. If you have a gain from the sale of your main home, you may be able to exclude up to $250,000 of the gain from your income ($500,000 on a joint return in most cases).
3. You are not eligible for the exclusion if you excluded the gain from the sale of another home during the two-year period prior to the sale of your home.
4. If you can exclude all of the gain, you do not need to report the sale on your tax return.
5. If you have a gain that cannot be excluded, it is taxable. You must report it on Form 1040, Schedule D, Capital Gains and Losses.
6. You cannot deduct a loss from the sale of your main home.
7. Worksheets are included in Publication 523, Selling Your Home, to help you figure the adjusted basis of the home you sold, the gain (or loss) on the sale, and the gain that you can exclude.
8. If you have more than one home, you can exclude a gain only from the sale of your main home. You must pay tax on the gain from selling any other home. If you have two homes and live in both of them, your main home is ordinarily the one you live in most of the time.
9. If you received the first-time homebuyer credit and within 36 months of the date of purchase, the property is no longer used as your principal residence, you are required to repay the credit. Repayment of the full credit is due with the income tax return for the year the home ceased to be your principal residence, using Form 5405, First-Time Homebuyer Credit and Repayment of the Credit. The full amount of the credit is reflected as additional tax on that year’s tax return.
10. When you move, be sure to update your address with the IRS and the U.S. Postal Service to ensure you receive refunds or correspondence from the IRS. Use Form 8822, Change of Address, to notify the IRS of your address change.

For more information about selling your home, see IRS Publication 523, Selling Your Home. This publication is available at www.irs.gov or by calling 800-TAX-FORM (800-829-3676).

Which State has the Most Mortgage Fraud?

Reports of mortgage fraud are on the rise: A government agency reported this week a 31 percent jump in mortgage fraud cases for the first quarter of this year, largely attributed to additional reviews from banks of loans issued several years ago that now have gone bad.

California cities dominated the rankings for the highest incidences of mortgage fraud in the nation — occupying six of the top 10 spots, according to the report issued by The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network.

The following is a list of the top 10 metro areas with the highest reports of mortgage fraud in the first quarter of this year, according to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network.

1. San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, Calif.
2. San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, Calif.
3. Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, Calif.
4. Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, Calif.
5. Sacramento-Arden-Arcade-Roseville, Calif.
6. Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, Fla.
7. San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, Calif.
8. Las Vegas-Paradise, Nev.
9. Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, Ga.
10. Salt Lake City, Utah

Source: Finacial Crimes Enforcement Network, U.S. Department of the Trasuary 1st Quarter 2011

What is Due Diligence?

Most buyers and sellers share similar frustrations in the current housing market. Buyers look long and hard for the right home to buy, exercising caution to make sure they don't make a mistake that could be costly. Sellers wait anxiously for a committed buyer who sees the value in their home and is willing to put pen to paper.


There are exceptions: Relatively hot neighborhoods surrounded by areas of sluggish sales. But, typically, negotiations between buyers and sellers are lengthy and tedious -- neither ending up with exactly what they want, but something they can live with.


The negotiations often don't end when the contract is ratified. Ratification occurs when the initial offer and all counteroffers are signed and accepted by both parties. The buyers' lender can be the source of problems like refusing to lend the amount the buyers need to close the deal, either due to a low appraised value of the property or a problem with the buyers' credit.


A major cause for further negotiations is inspection-related issues. This can encompass a broad range of problems from physical defects with the structure itself, like faulty electrical wiring, to discovering something previously unknown about the neighborhood like the fact that it's zoned for multi-dwelling housing and the house next door is being converted into a 12-unit building.


HOUSE HUNTING TIP: Do as much due diligence investigation as you can about a home you're seriously considering buying before you make an offer. It's time consuming and emotionally draining to make an offer. If you can discover in advance that there is something about the home or neighborhood that you can't live with, you come out ahead.


Some sellers provide a disclosure package about their home that provides presale inspection reports and information about the property. If so, read and understand these before you make an offer. A seller's disclosure package should not be viewed as a substitute for doing inspections once your offer is accepted. You should include an inspection contingency in the contract.


There is a certain amount of subjectivity involved in home inspecting. One inspector might say the roof needs to be replaced; another could think the roof is serviceable and will last another few years with maintenance. One inspector might see a crack in the foundation as a big deal; another could find it typical and not affecting the integrity of the building.


Usually home inspections recommend further inspections for such systems as the furnace, hot water heater and drainage system. Few sellers take the steps to have all recommended further inspection done.


During the buyers' inspections, issues that the buyers thought wouldn't be a big problem can turn out to require expensive fixes. Or new defects are uncovered of which neither buyer nor seller was previously aware. These situations can lead to further negotiation.


Buyers should be aware that a contract may not permit you to simply cancel without penalty if you decide you don't like the house after taking a serious look at it. It depends on the wording of the inspection contingency. Make sure you understand this before you sign the contract. In some cases, the buyers are required to request that sellers make repairs. The seller may have no responsibility to do so.


However, buyers should consider how long they have looked and how difficult it will be to find another house like the one they're trying to buy. Sellers need to realistically assess how difficult it might be to find another buyer if they have to put their home back on the market.


THE CLOSING: It's usually in both parties' interest to try to reach a mutually satisfactory solution, either in the form of a credit to the buyers, the sellers getting work done, or a price reduction.


Always do your homework, and be guided by the licensed professional you are paying to educate and help you.

Do you or a family member have unclaimed money in California?

Unclaimed Property is generally defined as any financial asset that has been left inactive by the owner for a period of time specified in the law, generally three (3) years. The California Unclaimed Property Law does NOT include real estate. Unused gift certificates are also generally excluded from unclaimed property and are not sent to the State as unclaimed property. 


The most common types of Unclaimed Property are:

• Deposits for utilities
• Bank accounts and safe deposit box contents
• Stocks, mutual funds, bonds, and dividends
• Uncashed cashier’s checks and money orders
• Certificates of deposit
• Matured or terminated insurance policies
• Estates
• Mineral interests and royalty payments
• Trust funds and escrow accounts

Remember this can apply to anyone you know.  Do you really know what your parents may have done before you were born.  Or what they did when they were single.  It doesn't hurt to check, you might find money for a family member.  Good Luck!

http://scoweb.sco.ca.gov/UCP