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Your Bi-Weekly Newsflash from
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A quick dash of news you need to hear
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| Taxpayers Tapped in Mortgage Mess |
 South St. Petersburg may not be the most obvious place for real estate investors to make a profit. Homes on some streets are abandoned or dilapidated in low-income neighborhoods tainted by crime.
But Joseph F. Daniele is a persuasive man.
Of the 347 properties he or his companies have had a hand in trading, 73 percent have fallen into foreclosure.
Now, taxpayers will pick up the tab.
The struggling neighborhood is targeted by city leaders for $9.5 million in federal money, part of a payout to municipalities with neighborhoods particularly hard-hit by foreclosures.
The Tampa Tribune in 2007 revealed the deals, which had peculiar mortgages that allowed third parties to collect large sums of money at closing. Since that report, Daniele and his companies have continued to buy and sell homes in the neighborhood despite ongoing law enforcement investigations.
And the foreclosures continue to mount.
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| Elder Law: Recession can have silver lining for wealthy |
 I am sure the recent economic downturn, or recession, has made life difficult for most of our readers. However, for some very high net worth individuals, there may be a silver lining.
Let's look at some tax planning which works better in a down economy.
Among other things, now is a good time to make gifts for estate planning. Such gifts will take advantage of the tax-exclusive nature of the gift tax and the million-dollar lifetime exclusion for gift taxes, as well as the bad economy. Let me illustrate an example.
Suppose Jane and Howard retired 10 years ago with a net worth then in excess of $20 million, having sold the majority interest in their chain of shoe stores. They purchased five rental houses for $300,000 each. By 2004, each was appraised at $500,000. Today, they would be lucky to be able to sell them for $200,000 each. Fortunately, they have no need for the rental income and want to give one property to each of their five adult children. Read on... | |
Mortgage Bankruptcy Bill Passed by Congress
After almost two years, it now looks like bankruptcy judges will soon be allowed to offer loan modifications through bankruptcy court as a last resort for a homeowner to stop foreclosure.
The process of claiming bankruptcy on your mortgage has been dubbed "cramdown."
Under current BK laws, bankruptcy courts may reduce many forms of debt for struggling borrowers. Including but not limited to, boats, cars, vacation homes or family farms. But until now, not a primary residence.
The bankruptcy measure was approved by a 234-191 vote on Thursday in the U.S. House of Representatives.
For any Loan Modification questions or concerns, you may contact our office. Until next time...
Sincerely Yours,
Michael C. Blickensderfer, Esq.
This excerpt is not meant to substitute for legal advice in any way. If you have a legitimate legal question, please contact our office and speak with an attorney. |
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