How to Avoid Getting Taxed for Phantom Income and Debt Forgiveness By Eva Rosenberg, EA If you negotiate with a lender or credit card company to get your debt reduced, you walk away feeling lighter, happier, and calmer. Until the 1099-C arrives. Panic time! Not only is cancelled debt taxable income, but it’s also generally [...]
Since 2003, I have been a member of the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors, or NAPFA, which is the largest professional organization of fee-only advisors. Several years ago, NAPFA created a number of small study groups. The group to which I belong has nine members, and all of us are either solo or have [...]
All About the Mortgage Market on the Ilyce Glink Show June 19, 2011: I realize that I probably sound like a broken record at this point, but the news from the housing market continues to worsen. It's even hard for the S&P Case/Shiller Home Price Index to tell what passes for good news anymore when [...]
Q: My father passed away a year and a half ago with few assets other than his home. I am executor of his will. He left me his house and all his personal effects but the will stipulated that his current wife would be permitted to live in the house until she dies or moves. [...]
Q: I am co-trustee of my mother's estate. I was informed by my mom’s mortgage company of the debt, $4,000.00 and that there is a lien on the condominium. I would like to settle the debt but the lender has the lowest level of "customer no service" and is not interested in settling. My lawyer [...]
If you’re looking to buy foreclosures or short sales, there are can’t miss opportunities out there, in every market. That’s what Mike Rose, an Atlanta-based loan officer with Wells Fargo, and I were discussing on my radio show recently. Rose had recently assisted a customer who bought a $50,000 house (he needed only a $40,000 [...]
Q: I am in the process of a property tax appeal. What are some good websites I can go to so that I can see how much property values in my area have dropped? A: There aren't really any good websites that have up to date information you can rely on for a home value. [...]
Q: We just received our Annual Notice of Assessment from our county tax collector. The current value has remained the same as last year on the notice. But if you dig a little deeper online, you can see that the "building value" decreased by $34,000 and the "land value" increased by $34,000. My question is [...]
In the current market, first-time homebuyers have their work cut out for them. In the past, when the market was going up, first-time homebuyers’ main concern was finding a home—any home. Their secondary concerns were how to get financing for the home and the condition of the property. They knew that if they could purchase [...]
Switching Insurance Plans Can Cost You More In The End By Linda Rey Everyone makes mistakes. This may be a cliché, but it’s true. There is no discrimination as to who screws up every once in a while. The good thing about mistakes, however, is that they can lead to valuable lessons learned. Recently, we [...]
