A son bought a home for his financially-troubled father 10 years ago because the father wouldn't qualify for a mortgage. His father now wants him to quit claim the property to him but the son wants to sell to get out of the mortgage mess. The son has limited options for getting his name off the mortgage and still taking care of his father.
A divorced man has been asked by his ex-wife to sign a quit claim deed to the home they own together. But their divorce decree says the wife must sell or refinance the home within five years of the divorce. Signing a quit claim deed will give up any rights to the property, so he should wait until the home is refinanced to sign the quit claim deed.
While the average commission for a real estate agent used to be 6 percent, or 3 percent per side of a transaction, the average commission rate has dropped significantly over the past few years. One reason is that the cost of doing business as a real estate agent has increased along with competition. Even in a buyer's market, real estate agents earn their commissions because it takes a long time to sell property.
A homeowner owns her home with a friend who wants to move on and take the equity in the home, but the other isn't ready to leave. If the friend wants to buy her interest in the home, she could take out a home equity loan. A real estate attorney can help the two friends work out a deal that could work for them both.
How can you avoid capital gains tax? If you have a second home that you have been renting, you might face a large capital gains tax, especially if you have been taking depreciation on the investment property. The IRS has very specific requirements for how to handle primary and secondary property. You may be able to use a 1031 exchange if you move back into the rental property for two years.
Make sure your new home still passes important inspections before closing. When purchasing a not-yet-built home, you should include a home inspection contingency as part of the contract. This way, if the home doesn't pass the home inspection, you as a buyer can delay closing until the problems are fixed.
When your parent wants to put your name on the title to his or her home, what's the best option? Is a trust or a quit claim deed the better way to go? A living trust is better than a quit claim deed because of the cost basis of the home. Cost basis is the property value that's used to calculate capital gains taxes later on when you go to sell the home.
