Tag Archives: homes

TAX BREAKS FOR HOMEOWNERS

31 Friday Jan 2014

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Congratulations, homeowner!  In addition to the pride of owning your own property, there are many subsidiary benefits, including TAX benefits.  With April 15th fast approaching, let’s take a look at some of these.  You want to be sure that you don’t miss any of them if they apply to you.

One huge benefit is the mortgage interest deduction.  Basically, the interest you pay on your mortgage is fully deductible from your taxes.  In the first years of your mortgage, most of what you are paying is interest, so this benefit can be huge!  Your mortgage company will send you a statement showing the exact amount you paid in nterest in 2013, and you can use this information to save a bundle on your taxes.

And, if you purchased your home this year, your closing costs may also be tax deductible – even if all or a portion of them were paid by the seller.  As with all of these deductions, be sure to consult your tax professional about the proper way to claim the benefit and the appropriate amount.

Here are some smaller, but still significant tax savings that are good for your 2013 taxes but which may *not* be available in 2014 (unless Congress decides to extend them), so be sure to take advantage of them this tax season if at all possible.

  • Energy-Efficiency Upgrades.  This is a tax credit, which reduces what you owe dollar for dollar. The types of upgrades that meet the criteria include new exterior windows, insulation, exterior doors, and roofing.  The tax credit is capped at $500 (less in some cases), but you’re likely to save even more in the long run – by having lower utility bills. 
  • Debt Forgiveness.  If you sold your home in a short sale or foreclosure last year, your lender likely forgave at least a portion of your mortgage debt.  The Mortgage Debt Forgiveness Act will save you from having to pay taxes on at least some of the debt forgiveness.  (Without the Act, the debt forgiveness would count as income).   
  • PMI Deduction.  Private mortgage insurance, or PMI, is sometimes required by lenders for homebuyers who make a down payment of less than 20 percent. PMI protects the lender in the event the borrower stops paying on the loan. PMI premiums were deductible from your taxes in 2012 and 2013.

While Congress has allowed the above deductions to expire for 2014, and must reinstate them if they are to apply in the future, the capital gain deduction stands.  Homeowners who have owned and occupied their homes for at least two of the past five years do not have to pay taxes on the gain. The amount of you can gain (tax-free) from such sales varies, depending on your marital status. Married people can earn up to $500,000 on a sale without paying tax on the earnings, and single people can earn up to $250,000 without paying any federal tax.

One more benefit to mention: the Home Office Deduction has been simplified for 2013.  If you have a home office, rather than using a 43-line form (as required in years past), the new method allows home-based workers to simply claim $5 per sq. ft. for up to 300 sq. ft. For example, if your home office is a 10×10 ft. room (100 sq. feet), that’s $500 you can deduct.  Keep in mind – the basic requirements for claiming the home office deduction haven’t changed. Your home office still must be used exclusively for business purposes and on a regular basis.

Whether you have a single-family home, townhouse, or condo, there are tax benefits available to you, but it’s tough to take advantage of them if you don’t know all the details.  Seek help from a good accountant or tax advisor.   

Mary Anne Walser is a licensed attorney and full-time REALTOR, serving buyers and sellers in all areas of Metro Atlanta. Her knowledge of residential real estate and her legal expertise allow her to offer great value to her clients. Mary Anne serves on the Committee that drafts and reviews the contracts utilized by all REALTORS in the State of Georgia. In addition, she is a member of the Atlanta Board of Realtors, the Georgia Association of Realtors, the State Bar of Georgia and the Georgia Association of Women Lawyers. Contact Mary Anne at 404-277-3527, or via email: maryannesellshomes@gmail.com.

 

Frankly, My Dear… Antebellum is Making a Comeback

23 Wednesday Jan 2013

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510 Londonberry FRONT

Atlanta will forever be associated with Margaret Mitchell and the famous novel Gone With The Wind – her tale of the Civil War South and the genteel characters who endured the war and its aftermath. Tara, Scarlett O’Hara’s fictional  home, never existed, and most real homes like it that did exist are themselves “gone with the wind”.  The quintessential architectural style of the period, and of Tara, is the Antebellum home – Antebellum means “before war” in Latin, and the term now applies to the style of certain homes built in the period prior to the Civil War which remain distinctly southern. The style is also known as Greek Revival or Classical Revival.  Not many remain in Atlanta and environs – there’s Bulloch and Barrington Halls in Roswell, but not many other examples.

But the Southern elegance and charm of the period do live on in select homes here.  Take, for example, this gorgeous Southern home on Londonberry Road, in the ritziest part of Atlanta. Scarlett would have died to live here. First, befitting a southern estate, it has a commanding presence from the street and a grand entrance featuring stairs up to a rocking chair front porch. Like many Antebellum homes, it features large Corinthian columns and a symmetrical façade.

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The home was designed by Mitch Ginn, an architect from Newnan, Georgia, for the original owner who specifically requested this style of home. Mr. Ginn and his firm have designed many homes in different styles – but some of their most memorable have been antebellum like this one. According to Mr. Ginn, “We design 150 to 200 homes a year, but the Greek Revival and Classical Revival styles are unfortunately few and far between. Popular styles today with future homeowners include Craftsman, Bungalow, and homes with English or French cottage influences. I guess I could say I look forward to a Greek Revival “revival”. “

Like many architects, Ginn enjoys recreating classic styles from the past: “I have always loved the timeless beauty and grandeur of the classical architectural styles. They are dictated by historic architectural structure and proportions. I am also a romantic sucker for the “image” of the Old South.”

The home Ginn designed on Londonberry parlays that image into the modern day. The lot was perfect for a sweeping driveway – and it made the most sense, given the lot, to place the swimming pool to the front and side of the home.  That showcases it as part of the “estate,  and allows a wonderful view of the pool area from the front porch. A meandering creek also wanders far below the home and to the back of the property, adding to the interest of the landscape.

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The interior of the home on Londonberry continues the grand southern feel with a sweeping stairwell (can’t you just imagine Scarlett making her grand entrance) and two story foyer. There’s also a screened porch overlooking the back grounds – the perfect place for some iced tea or a mint julep, don’t you think?

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And of course, the style makes way in some respects for the demands of the modern day homeowner – for instance, the kitchen is open to the breakfast and family areas, a must-have for many modern buyers. In addition, there’s a master suite on the main floor with a large master bath. The doors to the master bath and the lighting fixtures are all of grand southern design.

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As a new generation of homebuyers grows into their “dream” homes, the grandeur of the Antebellum style has a new appeal. It does come with a price tag – the home on Londonberry is currently listed for sale for $1,785,000.

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IN AND OUT OF THE CLOSET

08 Wednesday Aug 2012

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One thing about being a real estate agent – you become very comfortable looking into other people’s closets.  It’s just part of the job.  Closet space is IMPORTANT – we have lots of stuff these days.  The homes built in the 1960s or earlier generally have very very small closets compared to what we’re used to today.   Lots of times, owners have added on closets or expanded closets (one of my relatives even made a small bedroom into a closet).  In any event, closet space, and storage in general, is an important aspect of a home for most buyers.

Now when I go to a friend’s home to socialize I sometimes find myself automatically opening closet doors as I’m getting a tour of the house.  Not cool.  I catch myself right away, and people laugh.  But now I try to remind myself when the house I’m viewing is not on the market to NOT look in the closets unless prompted.  Looking into closets has become an automatic reflex.

When we put my now-husband’s home on the market, in one of the closets we left a piece of artwork that consisted of a stylized hanging skeleton, hoping that buyers would get a kick out of it and feel warmly towards the home.  Okay, it’s a stretch – but the more you can make buyers feel GOOD when they are in your house, the more likely they will buy it!  The house sold, but I have no clue whether or not the skeleton had anything to do with it – I am pretty certain it didn’t hurt, however.

I got the idea for this blog from one of my favorite columnists, Joel Stein, who writes “The Awesome Column” in Time Magazine.  Stein’s article is about “stuff” and “clutter” in general and was based on the book “Life at Home in the Twenty-First Century”, about an 11 year UCLA project studying the homes of 32 Southern California middle class families.  I can’t wait to read it.  If you’re as fascinated as I am about homes, home life, and what people use and keep, I also recommend Bill Bryson’s “At Home: a Short History of Private Life”.  Bryson goes room by room – including the closets – to describe how the modern home got to where it is today.  Happy reading!  Excuse me now, I’ve got to go clean out those closets…..

The Most “Artistic” Home in Atlanta

13 Thursday Oct 2011

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All right, so it’s not a home anyone actually LIVES in, but it’s immediately recognizable.  This house sits on the grounds of the HighArt Museum.   The High Art Museum, of course, is one of Atlanta’s great treasures, and the sculpture is “House III” by Roy Lichtenstein (1997), the famous pop artist who also constructed such classics as Crying Girl (1964), seen here (and brought to life in the film Night at the Museum). 

House III looks like an ordinary home, but as you walk past it, and look at it, it appears to move as you move – sort of like the eyes in a portrait following a character in an old-time horror film.         I really ought to post a video, shouldn’t I?  Or maybe this will inspire you to go see for yourself.  It’s really quite amazing.  The house appears to undulate and move with you, and the optical illusion also has the perspective fooling your eye – like an Escher sketch.  The sculpture was completed in 1997, the same year that Lichtenstein died, so I presume that it was one of his last works (he died in September of that year).

Being a Realtor, I love that one of the major attractions one sees in the outdoor pavilion at the High is a *house*.  The piece has me reflect on the thought that many operate under the illusion that home never changes – when, in fact, whatever you call home is constantly in flux, and it is rarely how you remember it.   

I must also mention that the exhibit currently at the High, Picasso to Warhol, the Modern Masters, is AMAZING.  I had high expectations and it exceeded them all.  The exhibit runs through April of 2012, so you have plenty of time to see it (and marvel at the most artistic home in Atlanta on your way in).

CHEAPER TO BUY THAN RENT

26 Monday Sep 2011

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I just placed an offer for a client who told me that he’ll be SAVING $450 a month by purchasing the condo we found for him.  He is actually SAVING money by purchasing rather than renting.  Really?  I asked him.  Does your calculation INCLUDE the monthly HOA (homeowner’s association) dues on the condo?  He assured me that it did – and that yes, he’ll save $450 a month.  Not to mention the money he’ll save on his income taxes.  Interest he pays on his mortgage is TAX DEDUCTIBLE, and in the early years of a mortgage, much of what you pay is interest rather than principal.  So he’ll see more savings add up when he files his income taxes with the I.R.S.

It’s unbelievable, isn’t it?  Why are so many people still renting?  My client assures me he’s going to spread the word to his neighbors in the apartment complex, and I hope to see more clients from there!  But why aren’t more people automatically following his lead, with interest rates as low as they are, and home prices bottoming out?  As long as my client holds on to his condo for a few years, chances are he’s making a heck of an investment – and saving money in the interim to boot!

One reason more renters aren’t purchasing, of course, is that many of them have been foreclosed upon or have had to short sale their properties (a short sale is when the seller sells the home for less than is owed on it, and the mortgage holder agrees to accept a reduced payoff).  If you’ve been through a foreclosure or short sale, you won’t be able to purchase a new home for some period of time.  (Typically, lenders tell me, a foreclosure will prevent you from purchasing for seven years, and short sale for at least three years, although these time periods can vary).  Then there’s another group of potential buyers who have relocated toAtlanta, but who cannot afford to buy a new home until their home in the former state sells.  And of course, it’s much harder to sell a home these days – you’re competing with all the foreclosures and short sales.

But if you haven’t had a foreclosure, short sale or bankruptcy recently, if you have steady employment and enough money for a down payment, it seems crazy NOT to buy.  The client in this example is buying a one bedroom condo in a great part of Buckhead for less than $50,000.  Just two years ago the same condo was selling for double that.  I have other clients who are looking at homes $200,000 and below – and we are finding LOTS of homes in that price range that they like.  They are having difficulty deciding upon which they like best.  Home prices are just incredibly affordable right now.

If you are currently renting, you owe it to yourself to explore whether or not purchasing a home makes sense for you.  Interest rates are again at record lows and who knows HOW LONG these low home prices will last – so please, call or email me or your other favorite Realtor – we’d love to help!