Klor Strong Team Blog

My email got flooded this morning with a number of clients and associates forwarding information claiming that there is a “3.8% Real Estate Sales Tax buried in the recently passed Health Care Initiative due to take effect in 2013″. 

My first response was “WHAT???? …  A Real Estate Sales Tax as part of a Health Care Bill?”. 

My immediate  action was to try and locate the original article purporting this information.  Here’s what I found: http://www.snopes.com/politics/taxes/realestate.asp.

While relieved to find that the original message received was less than correct it really made me think of all the other dis-information that is being blasted out to the public as facts each and every day.  Home Buyers and Sellers are constantly receiving information from a myriad of sources, all with some sort of spin involved, entirely dependant upon the end goal of the person delivering these so called facts.

I spoke of cliches in my last post and there being some kernel of sound reasoning behind them, so here’s another I would venture to share with you dear reader:   “Take everything you hear or read with a ‘grain of  salt’.  While my last statement may be somewhat paraphrased,  I would also add to this;  Verify – Verify – Verify, and  oh yeah… be sure and Verify … before acting on the information!  Knowledge can definitely be empowering – but only if the knowledge is correct and accurate!

So where does one go to get the straight scoop? 

Your trusted Realtor is a excellent resource to help determine if  the information being received has any basis of truth involved.  I won’t speak for all real estate agents, licensees or those who work part-time, however, of the many professional Realtors we have the pleasure of working with, all strive to have the latest correct information available for our clients.  This information is gleaned from many hours of continuing education dealing with changes in taxes, changes in local, regional and national laws and procedural changes  that affect how property transactions are conducted.  A great number of Realtors volunteer their time and energies participating in the leadership and administration of the local Real Estate Boards as well as involvement in our local  governments.  Many of these same individuals are also involved in State, and National organizations, where the primary focus is on Real Estate and the preservation of property owners rights, through the California and National Association of Realtors.  We do this not only to better prepare ourselves, we also do this to better serve and protect our greatest asset – YOU, our clients

Remember, the only question that is silly, is the one that goes unasked.

That’s my opinion – What’s yours?

Ah…to have a nickel for each time Realtors are asked this question or some variation of it each day.  Truth be known, none of us has a reliable crystal ball and the answer will certainly vary depending on who you ask and when you ask.

Personally I firmly believe it is an absolutely fantastic time for those that have wanted a piece of the American Dream of Home Ownership to capitalize on the current economic situation.  Prices of existing housing are finally in line with actual values for areas that previouly saw exponential price increases that were in my opinion economically unsupported, eventually leading to ”pricing bubbles” bursting everywhere .  Affordable housing availablity is high in most areas and mortgage interest rates are currently at record lows and are forecast to remain below 5% for the forseeable future, (  http://www.forecasts.org/fha.htm ). 

Sure, now you have to bring some cash to the transaction, generaly 20% in our area, and you have to qualify for a loan with factual proof of income but I hardly think this out of line when considering that previously it seemed  all you had to do was fog a mirror and you were qualified for 100%+ financing

So you are likely saying to yourself … all well and good but how does that help me?

Hopefully by focusing on the many positives attributes of home ownership we can help bring the mindset back to some semblence of reality and clarity.

I recently came upon an article that looked beyond the current media “Doom & Gloom” constantly harping on all the reasons Buyers aren’t moving forward that is excellent reading as well as reflecting positively on the issue of home ownership with a clarity that is rare and uncommon in the media today. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703376504575492023471133674.html

It often is irritating to hear time worn cliches but with each experience we face the more these cliches make more sense.  Take for example, ‘Every dark cloud has a silver lining’.  We are certainly surrounded by the dark clouds of economic recession & high unemployment with an uncertain future.  However the silver lining of opportunity shines brightly.

Just my thoughts, what are yours?