Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
this is the internet , everyone is an expert lol ....
on all forums that revolve around fact and or opinion most people even in the business do not know it all and so you will see misguided information .
i am active in the financial forums and even those in the business sometimes run on out dated information or old school teachings that have been disproved to be the best way to do something by more modern research . they are not totally wrong , but they are behind the times in doing things better .
I agree that everyone is an expert and most people know to beware of what they read on forums.
However, I do draw a big distinction between average Joes here and professionals posting in their professional capacity. I.e. they identify themselves as licensed real estate professionals so any information or advice given is under that umbrella of acting in a professional capacity. A licensed professional posting here suggests a level of credibility behind the information and advice given. In other words, it creates a much greater responsibility for the poster to ensure that any information given is correct, not misleading, current, responsible, etc. Consumers would tend to view any information and advice given by a named, licensed real estate professional here no different than walking into their office and talking to them live. They would assume that a licensed professional here is operating under all required laws, standards of practice, ethic codes, etc.
Also, looking at it from the agent's perspective, why would you want to come here to give bad, wrong, incoherent, sloppy, poorly articulated, reckless advice as it does nothing to help your reputation with potential clients.
If I were an agent posting here I would do my best to give the best information that I could. I would take pride in offering correct information in a responsible manner. if I got things wrong, I would own up to it and correct it at the first opportunity. I would not dig in and value winning an argument over providing correct information to consumers. Unfortunately some agents here post like they are on a sports forum or like they are BS'ing with their buddies in the bar. I.e. just say 'whatever' and don't really worry about it. Others do seem to take pride in helping people responsibly so we should not let a few bad apples give everyone a bad name.
the problem even with pro's there will always be somethings they don't know that they don't know .
that is something i have seen in all fields . they only know what they know and don't know the things they don't know so they never know what they don't know , if that makes sense lol ..
of course somethings are more excusable than others .
i think anyone selling real estate needs at least a basic education on the main tax areas relating to sales , exchanges and what is involved when someone buys a 2nd home .
the basics relating to the exclusion on a primary , how a second home or investment property is taxed and the need to exceed standard deductions before a client sees any tax advantage on a primary home should all be part of their basic skill set in my opinion .
it may not be required , but that is what makes one agent better than another one
Last edited by mathjak107; 03-11-2018 at 09:49 AM..
If I were an agent posting here I would do my best to give the best information that I could.
I'm quite certain that all agents who post in this forum are trying to give the best information that they know. Occasionally, some may be mistaken or some may be a bit behind the times as far as current law or regulations. It happens as no one is perfect or knows everything, tax "professionals" and other professionals included. There's been more than a few times when the "professional" advice someone was given outside of this forum was corrected here.
I have no qualms about correcting an agent if I feel that they've posted incorrect information. I just don't go out of my way to be overly critical of them, as some people are wont to do. With a free flow of information, everyone has an opportunity to learn...and hopefully people are smart enough to verify any information which they receive online.
I'm quite certain that all agents who post in this forum are trying to give the best information that they know. Occasionally, some may be mistaken or some may be a bit behind the times as far as current law or regulations. It happens as no one is perfect or knows everything, tax "professionals" and other professionals included. There's been more than a few times when the "professional" advice someone was given outside of this forum was corrected here.
I have no qualms about correcting an agent if I feel that they've posted incorrect information. I just don't go out of my way to be overly critical of them, as some people are wont to do. With a free flow of information, everyone has an opportunity to learn...and hopefully people are smart enough to verify any information which they receive online.
I'm quite certain that all agents who post in this forum are trying to give the best information that they know. Occasionally, some may be mistaken or some may be a bit behind the times as far as current law or regulations. It happens as no one is perfect or knows everything, tax "professionals" and other professionals included. There's been more than a few times when the "professional" advice someone was given outside of this forum was corrected here.
I have no qualms about correcting an agent if I feel that they've posted incorrect information. I just don't go out of my way to be overly critical of them, as some people are wont to do. With a free flow of information, everyone has an opportunity to learn...and hopefully people are smart enough to verify any information which they receive online.
Now 62.5 and retired.. To summarize our problem.. we have a house in Denver that was good while I worked but no reason to keep it other than the convenience of the larger city (and that is somewhat of a big deal). We have a cabin up in the mountains (close to Elevenmile state park) that is fairly remote.. 30 miles to the closest large grocery store.. but very scenic.
The house in Denver is our primary residence and we are thinking about selling it next year and as suggested by others earlier in this thread, move into the cabin "for a couple years".
I talked to my tax guy about this.. and despite all the comments about not getting advice on the internet.. I think that mathjack107 gives as good (and I think actually better) advice so am wondering..
As far as capital gains tax on selling the cabin, I need to go and read the SS link mathjack107 posted earlier in this thread.
But the new question..
Suppose we keep this cabin - possibly living in it as our "primary" residence - until after I am eligible and then enrolled in medicare.
I understand the medicare premiums are somehow set on your income for two years prior to your being eligible.
But what happens if you have a jump in income from selling a piece of real estate with some capital gain AFTER you are on medicare. Is the premium based on the two years before and stays about that way.
Or is the premium always set on the previous two years of income so could spike if I sold something say at 67? Or are those two years income before you take medicare particularly important even for years after.
I also dont really know how big of an issue this is as I currently am using the exchange for health insurance so at least hope that whatever I get on medicare will be a big decrease in premium.. but have no idea what the medicare numbers are.
Sell one. Move into the other. Sell the other one two years after that.
Wait until summer to sell the mountain one.
it no longer works like that for the exclusion on a 2ND HOME OR RENTAL . the exclusion is prorated today over the total years you owned the property vs how many years it was a primary . if you owned the property 10 years and it was your primary for two years , you would get a very small allowance of the exclusion if you sold .
the ability to move in to a 2nd home or rental for 2 years and take tthe exclusion ended 10 years ago .
Last edited by mathjak107; 09-12-2018 at 01:26 PM..
Now 62.5 and retired.. To summarize our problem.. we have a house in Denver that was good while I worked but no reason to keep it other than the convenience of the larger city (and that is somewhat of a big deal). We have a cabin up in the mountains (close to Elevenmile state park) that is fairly remote.. 30 miles to the closest large grocery store.. but very scenic.
The house in Denver is our primary residence and we are thinking about selling it next year and as suggested by others earlier in this thread, move into the cabin "for a couple years".
I talked to my tax guy about this.. and despite all the comments about not getting advice on the internet.. I think that mathjack107 gives as good (and I think actually better) advice so am wondering..
As far as capital gains tax on selling the cabin, I need to go and read the SS link mathjack107 posted earlier in this thread.
But the new question..
Suppose we keep this cabin - possibly living in it as our "primary" residence - until after I am eligible and then enrolled in medicare.
I understand the medicare premiums are somehow set on your income for two years prior to your being eligible.
But what happens if you have a jump in income from selling a piece of real estate with some capital gain AFTER you are on medicare. Is the premium based on the two years before and stays about that way.
Or is the premium always set on the previous two years of income so could spike if I sold something say at 67? Or are those two years income before you take medicare particularly important even for years after.
I also dont really know how big of an issue this is as I currently am using the exchange for health insurance so at least hope that whatever I get on medicare will be a big decrease in premium.. but have no idea what the medicare numbers are.
medicare premiums are based on income 2 years prior. it is set every january on a rolling time period. so if your income bumps you it is for the year . next year it is based on another tax filing .
so at 65 premiums are based on income when you were 63 even though you were not on medicare yet or even retired . it is always the tax return two years prior since in january you would not have done last years taxes yet .
capital gains can run from zero to 23.80% . plus they may trigger the amt tax penalty on all other income. the amt may be harder to hit under the new laws .
Sounds like with medicare premiums, if we sold something that resulted in a spike in income because of capital gain, we would get dinged in the medicare premium a year or two later but only for one year.
And.. since we have owned that cabin for about 13 years now.. the reason to live there for a year or two would NOT be to avoid paying capital gains tax when selling.
Amt.. I dont know what conditions trigger this.. but I know its something I would really like to avoid..
it is all in that publication from the irs that was posted as far as how it works when you convert a second home , rental or business property to a primary .
it is calculated using the worksheet on page 15 section b. this is where you calculate unqualified use for the exclusion so it gets prorated .
it is just easier to follow in the articles on line .
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Section B. Determine your non-qualified use gain.
Complete this section only if there is a period, after the year 2008, when neither you nor your spouse (or your former spouse) used the property as a main home,
and that period of non-use occurred during the 5–year period prior to the date of sale and before the time when you or your spouse (or your former spouse) used that the property as a main home.
in my opinion real estate agents should have a basic understanding of major tax law changes like this .
I think this means that if you move into your second home or investment for 5 years, not 2, you get primary residence status instated.
Can someone prove me wrong?
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
