Sales Tax on Selling Homes Starting in 2013 (real estate, mortgage)

[kiggy]

I heard somewhere that in the Obama health care bill there was a sales tax of 3.8% on houses sold, starting in 2013? Has any of you real estate professionals heard about this? Fact or fiction? How does this affect the housing situation in Florida?

Mods, if this is inappropriate in this forum, please feel free to move it.

[photoman_6]

guess i wouldn't put it past them demicrats eh

[gettinoutofjersey]

check on snopes snopes.com: 3.8% Tax on Real Estate Transactions

add to that the talk of not being able to deduct mortgage interest. and also the talk of requiring 20% down and bringing the length of a mortgage to 15 years.

[Sunshine Rules]

I check out Urban Legends:

3.8% Real Estate Tax in Health Care Bill - Urban Legends


This source indicates you have to make over $250,000 as an individual or $500,000 as a couple before the tax potentially impacts you.

[kiggy]

Thanks for the replies on this one -- I knew I could count on you!

[TamRE]

Instead of being a sales tax on all real estate transactions, the 3.8 percent tax is actually a tax on investment income for the wealthy. It applies only to the investment income of single taxpayers who make more than $200,000 or couples who make more than $250,000.

Still, maybe empty-nesters are scared they'll be hit with this tax if they sell their homes for more than $250,000. But that's not a likely scenario for most tax payers, because there's a long-standing tax exemption on the profits from home sales.

To be hit with the new tax, you would have to clear more than $250,000 in profit off your home, which means at least $250,000 more than you paid for it. And the ceiling is even higher for a married couple. Married couples are now taxed on the first $500,000 of profit from home sales. Again, that's profit, not the sales price.

[gettinoutofjersey]

its a real shame that we have to got to urban legends and snopes to find out the answer to a question like this. the bill is so complicated and intertwined no one still can understand it and there are surprises coming out all the time. kind of like a pandoras box.

so now someone that worked hard and lived good and wants to sell their house potentially will be penalized.

i cant say any more or this will get deleted

[d4g4m]

re: Obamacare.
Remember, we had to pass it to find out what was in it.