Advice Topic:
My community has a POA. Our covenants have no mandatory dues written or listed anywhere in them. Our POA board interchanges the use of HOA/POA terminology to illicit mandatory dues from property owners selling their homes and land. The POA a few years back hired a property management company who were also real estate agents to manage the financial side of the association. In doing so they were given a set of bylaws stating the association had mandatory dues. These bylaws did not align themselves to our covenants. Anyone not paying those annual dues were told they would have to pay when selling their property at closing. The management company shared this information with all the other realtor groups in the county. Also, informing title companies there was a transfer fee to be paid by seller at time of closing. If the seller refused to pay any " outstanding" fees the sale of property could /would be jeopardized and risked the sale not going through. This situation is illegal, the covenants do not subscribe to mandatory fees of any description in the entirety of the document, and therfore real estate companies have no right to enforce this and should stop demanding this from sellers. How can we stop real-estate agents giving potential buyers false information about mandatory dues and transfer fees, and forcing sellers to pay for fees that are not mandatory?
Referring to article written by Kelsey Heath, she says: a second home can be converted into primary residence and therefore, would qualify for a primary residence capital gains tax exclusion. To qualify for the exclusion, you must meet both the ownership and use tests. This means you must have owned the home and lived in it as your primary residence for at least two of the five years preceding the sale, but the two years do not need to be consecutive." I currently am in the process of selling my Huntington Beach Ca home. We have owned the home for 5 years now. I am a resident of Utah. In the past 5 years, we have spend between 45-50% of our time at this home here in Huntington Beach, which would mean in the past 5 years we have lived here more than 2 years. Would this not qualify for the reduction of capital gains tax along with the real estate withholding exemption?
I bought a house about a year ago. My interest on the loan is pretty high. How do I know when it's the right time to refinance? I want a lower rate. I'm worried if I jump on the first rate drop that I'll miss out on something better later.
There is no will . Just myself and sister. I been paying the mortgage for 4 years now. I just want the deed in our name. Chase mortgage will transfer the mortgage over to our names if we can transfer the deed over.
Already closed but sellers didn’t sign contract. Only has a date on the signature line. Addendum and amendments that were part of the contract wasn’t given to the lender or signed by the sellers. We signed them but I don’t know what happened after I sent them to the Realtor. No one caught this error and now I have to sue the sellers for fraud and non disclosure. Agent said it was an executed contract, nothing to worry about? Is she correct?
I am a beneficiary of a 2016 addendum for a commercial building adjacent to a income property the addendum was to separate mine from the sale. The owner and buyer both named I was an intentional beneficiary it covers necessary work and upgrades to the apartment and detailed use of property i now have none although I pay for out -of - pocket while the other tenants have social services and other perks. My landlord has done nothing to rectify the discrepancy nor has she offer or intend to fulfill the obligation she made to me and accepted bythe buyer
Our listing company is insisting that we bring a cashier's check to them before closing because the lender the buyers are using doesn't work with them. Our listing agreement states that they will receive their money AT closing. They want $3000 prior to closing the deal.
Why is a 15-year fixed rate mortgage better than a 30 year mortgage? Are there other factors that I should think about?
What are mortgage points? And how do they work? What are the benefits or drawbacks of mortgage points? Is there a reason why a lender would offer that option and another lender wouldn't?
What are the different types of mortgages? I know there's different lengths of time. And it seems like then the interest rates changes with the different lengths?
How do I decide what mortgage is right for me? With the rates being so high I'm trying to figure out the best way to go forward. It feels like there are a lot of options and I don't know what's best for me.
What credit score do I need to buy a house? I have decent credit, and I want to make sure I can get the loan I want.
What is the minimum down payment for house first-time buyer? How do you decide how much to put down on a house?
How to buy a house in California with bad credit? I'm trying to get better credit, but that will take a long time and I want to buy a house now.
What credit score is needed to buy a house in California? Does the credit score need to be higher than in other states?
If the deed and mortgage are in my name only does my boyfriend have any right to ask me to see financing or any money that has been paid in?
What is the difference between closing costs and prepaids? And what about credits? How do all these affect what I pay for a house?
What is better a 15 year mortgage or a 30 year mortgage? Or if one is not better, what's the advantages or disadvantages of a 15 year mortgage or a 30 year mortgage?
What are the tax implications for selling a house? When selling a house do I pay state and federal taxes? If I buy another house can I avoid taxes?
Our mortgage company sold our home to Sheriff without discussing anything even though we have proof of making all of our mortgage payments
What is owner financing for a house? Are there any hesitations or concerns with owner financing for a house? How do I know if this is an option?
How does buying land and building a house financing work? Are there separate loans for buying land and then financing a house?
I have a mortgage and a home equity loan, can I sell my house? If I can sell a house with a home equity loan, what if I owe money on it?
I'm planning to move out of my home and it will be vacant until it sells. Do I need home insurance on the vacant home?
Is a mortgage for a condo different than a mortgage for a house?
How long can I wait to buy a home and avoid capital gains tax?
Can I avoid paying capital gains tax? If so, how? I'm planning to sell and buy within the next year or so, but not immediately.
If I get an adjustable rate loan, my interest rate is lower. But my family tells me I shouldn't get an ARM loan. This is my first home purchase, so I'm figuring all this out.
Hi we moved to FL in Aug 2021. He gave me 20k to put down on the house. I put down the other 120k. He’s not on the title or the loan. Does he have the legal right to any proceeds from the sale?
Is there anything I can do to save money on a mortgage?
How big should I make my downpayment? If i can squeeze and put more than 20% down should I? I'm also worried about having a cushion if something breaks on the house.
We're already paying a hefty sum every year in property taxes. And every year they're going up. Should I appeal my property taxes to try to get them reduced? Or do I just need to accept the increase in property taxes?
We received our tax assessment and our property value went way up. This also means our taxes went up significantly. Do we have any recourse to fight the increase in property taxes? We live in Illinois.
I have a low-interest rate on my house thanks to the recent years of low-interest mortgage rates. Is it better to pay an extra $200/month to pay down my mortgage or should I take that money and invest it?
Do you pay taxes when you sell a house?
Can I use my 401K to buy a house? Should I use my 401K to buy a house? First time home buyer and I need additional cash for the downpayment. I have decades before retirement and I'm thinking of using my 401K for the downpayment.
Who pays real estate agent fees with a FSBO house?
Who pays realtor fees and commissions?
Selling one house and buying a new one... do I pay closing costs on both homes? Do I pay different closing costs for each home? How are they different?
I bought a place before and feel like I paid a bunch of money for closing costs, but didn't know what it was for. I'm hoping to sell and buy a different place this spring, but I want to understand what I need to pay and make sure I have enough money for it.
So, the seller usually pays the commission for both agents, right? Who determines the commission rate for the buyer's agent? Can the seller's agent get 2.5% and the buyer's agent get 2%? Or is it always split evenly?
What should I pay attention to when reading a real estate agreement or contract? There's so many pages and so many details, I don't know what to look for or what's important.
Do you need to report sale of real estate at a loss?
Just wondering if I should do some home improvements before I sell. Would they be tax deductible or is there any kind of tax benefit?
Hi, How do I avoid paying capital gains tax on real estate? We're planning to move, rent for a bit to see what neighborhood is best for us, and then buy a home. It might take a year or so before we buy our next home. But we don't want to pay capital gains tax. Is there a way to avoid this?
Help me understand earnest money. What is it? Why do I need to pay it? Does it go towards my home purchase? What if I back out, do I get that money back? Clearly I need some help in understanding how this works. Thanks.
If we sell a property that is in a trust, do we have to pay taxes? And who is responsible for the taxes, the trust? Thanks
I sold a property last year and need to report it. How do I report a real estate sale on my tax return?
If I put my house on the market for sale will it stop my property tax auction
I signed a lease agreement in 2018 for the purchase of my mobile home for 10years to pay off .In July 2019 one late payment but it was broken down to 6payments for 6months As of 2022 I was told the agreement was default an know I’m being asked to sign a year lease.2018 I paid 10.000 up front and 805 for almost 4year