If you are married, and file a joint income tax return, the tax laws allow you to exclude up to $500,000 on any gain you make on the sale of your principal residence. There are some basic rules (conditions) which must be met, the most important is that you must have owned and lived in the house f
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01/25/2016
It's that time of year of again. Seemingly everyone is dedicating the next few days, weeks, and months to getting in better shape. That being said, traditional gyms are absurdly crowded right now and will most likely be for the next few months.So how about just building one in your home? Sounds e
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01/25/2016
Struggling to get your credit cards paid off? Juggling balances between several cards? Just plain tired of paying interest? Make this the year you get your credit in order. Whether your goal is to buy a new home, become debt free and raise your credit score, or just make your payments more manage
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01/20/2016
Millennials. They're the ever-frustrating group that's been making the real estate industry quiver for years. Where are they? Why aren't they buying homes? What's going to happen to the market if they don't step up? What is going on here?!Every blip, bump, and bounce has been microstudied, overan
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01/20/2016
Homeownership has always been the "great American dream".To foster and encourage this dream, Congress has consistently enacted tax legislation which favors homeowners. Indeed, much has been written that our tax laws discriminate against renters, by giving unfair and unequal tax benefits to those
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01/10/2016
Question: Can the board enact a policy to exclude certain categories of dogs that are perceived to be dangerous such as rottweilers or pit bulls?Answer: The board has the authority to make rules but should not do so without feedback from the members. This is especially true of pet issues which ar
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01/10/2016
The High School Exit Exam, you only have 4 CORRECT answers out of 10 to be able to pass….Remember….. 4 correct answers means you PASS!1. How long did the Hundred Years’ War last?2. Which animal do we acquire cat gut?3. Which country creates Panama hats?4. What is a camel’s hair brush consists of?
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01/08/2016
You just moved into your new home. You've purchased the perfect furniture and accessories. You even found the perfect area rug to add to your hardwood floors, but you're totally stumped on which size to buy.There are so many questions: Should the furniture be placed on or off the rug? Does the ru
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01/08/2016
Do you start each New Year full of great intentions only to discover, before January ends, that you've slipped back to "always done it that way" behavior and thinking?To kick 2016 into high gear without changing where you do business and what you sell, first take stock of where you're starting fr
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01/08/2016
About one year ago, our column dealt with the subject of wire transfer fraud in real estate transactions. Regrettably, the topic is still a current one. On December 15, NAR issued an alert on the subject. Anecdotally, incidents have increased in the Southern California area. The nature of the sca
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01/07/2016