Call for Action: Prevent New Tax Burdens on Real Estate

As a Realtor and your constituent, I feel i have to bring this to your attention. Reports indicate that Congress may vote this week on a spending and tax measure that could include two harmful tax provisions directly affecting real estate.

I urge you to oppose these changes!

The first would require that ALL landlords provide an IRS Form 1099 to all contractors they do business with if they pay that contractor $600 or more in any given year. The proposal would apply even to those who own just one property. This is a trap for the unwary. Since many of my clients are "little guys" looking to supplement their income with real estate investments, any proposal requiring them to file Forms 1099 would impose new expenses and subject them to penalties they are ill-equipped to pay. Often these small landlords don't use tax professionals; if adopted, this proposal could force them to incur the expense of hiring tax professionals. This proposal is burdensome and overreaching. Oppose it.

I also oppose a proposed change to tax carried interest at ordinary income rates. A real estate investment however, is fundamentally different from a hedge fund or financial instrument investment. An investment in real estate is nothing like playing with other people's money. Real estate is a fixed asset held for a long period of time. The worst thing about this proposal is that, for the first time, a particular type of real estate investment gain would no longer qualify for capital gains treatment. This is a terrible precedent. Oppose it.

The real estate industry, in all its commercial, multi-family and individual investment categories, is still very fragile and likely to remain so. These proposals are ill-advised, inopportune and potentially destructive. Keep our real estate market recovery on track by opposing these measures.
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What's At Stake:

1. ANYONE who receives rental income will be required to file IRS Form 1099 reports if they pay any contractor (plumbers, repairmen, etc) $600 or more in any given year.

2. Congress is considering taxing "carried interest" at ordinary income rates instead of capital gains. Currently, carried interests is taxed at 15%.

Men vs. Women During the home buying process

Who do you think wheres the pants in the family ?

Either way give me a call I'm here to help you Buy, Sell, or Invest

chris@brotchuby.com 562.900.8265

California Tax Credit Good Through December 31, 2010

California allows qualified new home buyers a total tax credit amount equal to either five percent of the purchase price or $10,000, whichever is less. Taxpayers must apply the total tax credit in equal amounts over three successive taxable years (maximum of $3,333 per year) beginning with the taxable year (2009 or 2010) in which the new home is purchased.”

AB 183, signed today by Gov.Arnold Schwarzenegger, allocates $200 million to the credit for homes purchased between, May 1, 2010 and applies to purchases where the transaction closes by December 31, 2010 and could extend as far out as August 1, 2011 as long as you were in contract on or before December 31, 2010. You will have to live in the home for at least two years, or you have to repay the credit to the state.
Read more: thepress.net - New 10K Homebuyer Tax Credit

The state has extended the new credit to first-time buyers of existing homes as well as buyers of new homes. The funds will be split evenly between the two groups, and buyers will have to occupy the home for at least two years. Are you in one of those two groups? Talk to your Local Realtor, Mortgage or CPA and find out. Don’t miss out!

KEY POINT – In order to qualify for this credit, you have to send some documents to the Franchise Tax Board within two weeks after the Close of Escrow. That would include a copy of the settlement statement and either a statement from the Seller that the home has never been occupied, or a statement from the Buyer that they are a first-time home buyer.

The Time To Buy Is Now!

Read more: thepress.net - New 10K Homebuyer Tax Credit

With Interest rates at a 2010 all time low and house prices creeping up, this is the time to buy!

1101 Marshall Pl "Open House" with Chris Goodmanson

OPEN House "Truly Inspired Living!" May 20, 2010 Thursday 12-4 PM

3042 Clark Avenue, Long Beach, CA 90808


Open House  May 18 - 20 , 2010

• Classic 1940’s Ranch Style

• South of Conant

• A Future Classic

• features 2 Bed/ 1 Bath

• Wood Floors

• 2 Car Detached Garage

• Truly Inspired Living!

Once you walk in the this desirable an spacious two bedroom
home boosts gleaming newly refinished hardwood floors, new
flooring in the light and open oak kitchen and breakfast area
along with new interior paint.

The fully fenced private back yard offers privacy and a large covered patio ideal for
entertaining family and friends. The spacious double detached
garage can accommodates larger vehicles and also includes
a work/hobby bench plus storage space along with a
separate laundry area. In this location North of Spring homes
front onto a quiet access road separated from Clark Ave. by
grassy median strip. Hurry for this one!

Low Water Landscaping In Belmont Heights, CA 90803

Drought tolerant landscaping comes to Belmont Heights where a number of homes are leading the way by already creating beautiful low maintenance low water usage yards …

 And, as one home owner Lisa Figueroa told me, She loves the look of her new yard, so much that she often feeling like she’s entering her own private oasis when she returns home at the end of the day.

As you may have heard the City of Long Beach is now offering a rebate of $2.50 a square foot to replace your standard yard with a drought-tolerant landscape, up to $2,500.00. Long Beach Water Department (LBWD)  

Click here to download:

WS_Drought_Tolerance_comes_to_Belmont_Heights.mov (2147 KB) 

 This is a nice added incentive to do what these households have already done and good for you and good for you neighborhood.

Landscaping, washing cars, and other outdoor activities make up the bulk of the 14 gallons of water used daily by the average Long Beach resident water prohibitions.… These and other programs have enabled the city to reduce its water use, by 8% from the 10-year-average. The 8% savings equals 1.8 billion gallons saved annually! My hope is that more of us will follow these progressive green thinkers as we head into the future saving dramatically more water. 

As our population continues to grow, finding new and inventive ways to expand our water supply in addition to conservation is important to ensuring long-term water supply reliability. The City uses recycled water extensively for industrial purposes and to irrigate city parks, golf course, cemeteries and athletic fields, replacing millions of gallons of imported potable water that would otherwise be used. The City has also introduced a comprehensive expansion to its water-recycling program. The expansion involves the construction of 16 miles of pipeline, new pump stations, upgrades to water system storage, and the completion of new service connections. Once complete, the project will more than double recycled water use in Long Beach and eventually will meet 12 percent of the city’s total water demand.

Long Beach has also invented its own, patented seawater desalination process, known as the Long Beach Method. This process is 20-30% more energy efficient than traditional desalination processes, making the process less expensive and more environmentally friendly. Although seawater desalination will not immediately alleviate our water shortage, the Long Beach Water Department is continuing to research and improve the technology as part of the long-term water supply.

The city has set a residential target use of 100 gallons per day, which would set the standard for water conservation in Southern California. We can all help meet this goal by making small changes like turning off the faucet while we brush our teeth, and by making larger changes like installing water efficient appliances. Together, we can not only guarantees water for today’s citizens, but also for generations to come. Thank you for conserving water—our most precious resource!

Long Beach Homes Prices Plateau

One in every 387 homes in the United States was in some stage of foreclosure last month, RealtyTrac reported Thursday showing that foreclosure filings – including default notices, scheduled auctions, and bank repossessions – were issued on 333,837 properties in April. While still elevated, that figure represents a 9 percent drop from the previous month and a 2 percent decline compared to April 2009.
According to RealtyTrac’s CEO James J. Saccacio, two significant milestones can be found in the April numbers, which he says indicate that foreclosure activity “has begun to plateau.”

The first, April 2010 is the only month in the history of RealtyTrac’s report with an annual decrease in U.S. foreclosure activity. Secondly, bank repossessions, or REOs, hit a record monthly high for the report even while default notices dropped substantially on both a monthly and annual basis. During April, a total of 103,762 properties received default notices, a decrease of 12 percent from the previous month and down 27 percent from April 2009 – when default activity peaked at more than 142,000 notices filed.
New REOs hit a record monthly high for the report in April, with a total of 92,432 properties repossessed by lenders during the month – an increase of 1 percent from the previous month and an increase of 45 percent from April 2009. April’s bank repossessions were less than 1 percent above their previous peak of 92,182 in December 2009.
“We expect a similar pattern to continue for most of this year, with the overall numbers staying at a high level and ripples of activity hitting the various stages of the foreclosure process as lenders systematically work through the backlog of distressed properties,” Saccacio said.
Arizona foreclosure activity decreased nearly 15 percent from the previous month, but the state’s foreclosure rate moved from third highest in March to second highest in April thanks to an even bigger decrease in California.
California posted the nation’s fourth highest foreclosure rate, with one in every 192 homes receiving a filing. It had the most filings of any other state – 69,725 during the month-span – although that total was down 25 percent from the previous month and down nearly 28 percent from April 2009.
RealtyTrac said metros in the sand states of Nevada, Florida, California, and Arizona continued to account for all top 10 foreclosure rates among large metropolitan areas, but foreclosure activity decreased on a year-over-year basis in nine of those top 10 metros. Reno-Sparks, Nevada was the only exception.
As per the U.S. Foreclosure Market Report released by California-based RealtyTrac, a total of 333,837 properties in the nation received auction notice, meaning that one out of every 387 houses received a foreclosure filing. This is 9 percent less than the homes foreclosed last month, and 2 percent less than April 2009.
There is some even more positive news coming locally in the Greater Long Beach, CA region is one of the strongest and most active markets in the country. The Median Price of homes sold in April of 2010 is 30% higher than the Median Price of homes sold in April 2009 and the number of sales is up 42% April 2010 vs. April 2009! When combined with the Condo market, prices are up 17% and Sales are up 44%. Obviously, as these numbers reflect, the local market has stabilized and is improving rapidly. The median price for single family in real numbers for the first quarter of 2010 were up $379,500, compared to all of last year’s $275,000 again according to statistics at Clarus Marketmetrics, which is substantiated by the number of new listings and sales numbers we’ve seen at Coldwell Banker Coastal Alliance, Long Beach’s top brokerage. Which is all good news indicating we are moving away from the bottom. @chrisgoodmanson

New Media World, Real Estate Made Easy

I am truly enjoying helping my clients finding a new home in Belmont Heights or surrounding area. We have an open electronic communication via text, e-mail, voicemail, and in utilizing the web-based searches I’ve set up for them on Listingbook or HBM (Home Buyers Marketing) or their visits to sites like www.trulia.com or www.Redfin.com. We can truly communicate from on level ground, not to mention the fact that they are active and truly engaged in the property search process. We have looked at and eliminated many properties before personally touring them. After picking out a number of good prospective listing this last week-end I brought my clients son to see 5 properties over night he talked and sent his mother my client his thoughts and photos we took on the property.
This morning I woke to an e-mail stating we’ve decided to offer on… please send us the contract.
So this morning using www.docusign.com I was able to send of the contract to my out of town client, get her signature and send the offer package to the listing agent in Los Angeles, CA this all taking place by 10:00 AM, with no additional fuel costs, no over use of paper products.
Not only am I finding the new electronic media sped up the transaction, use my clients and my time much more efficiently and is GREEN and ECCO friendly to boot, the future looks good to me!
@chrisgoodmanson www.rebelmontheights.com www.lifeinbelmontheights.com

Are you Short Sale Feasible?

To get the process moving for the purpose of assessing a possible Short Sale, we will need the Short Sale Feasibility Form filled out completely, please ask me more about this. After it has been fully completed, please email it back to me for review. The review / assessment process normally takes between 2-3 days to complete after I have received it.

A Short Sale occurs when real estate is sold and the lender agrees to take less than what is owed on the loan. One of the Short Sale prerequisites is that the property owner demonstrates either a personal or financial hardship, and cannot continue to make their mortgage payments. It is not simply an easy escape from a bad investment or a type of loan, and lenders are placing an increased focus on whether there is a true and documented hardship.

What is the role of a Short Sale Coordinator?

• To conduct a thorough financial assessment of both the seller and their property to determine if a bonafide and documented hardship exists which would warrant an approved Short Sale.

• To work meticulously on behalf of the seller and Realtor toward the successful negotiation and closing of the Short Sale.

• To provide valuable information at a time when distressed property owners are uncertain of their options, and to suggest possible alternatives.

A team with expert negotiators (I would consider removing “expert” as no one has received any designations from any realtor associations), Short Sale coordinators, hands-on management, and my relationship with the attorneys on staff, IFR works to save Sellers and Realtors countless hours of tedious processing and time on the phone with lenders, giving the Realtor the time to focus on the sale of your property.

Give me a call today and let me help you with “your Short Sale negotiation” to create a “win – win” situation for you the seller and buyer, to free up your life to do what you do best! I am looking forward to working with you.

www.chrisgoodmanson.com twitter @chrisgoodmanson chris@brotchuby.com 562.900.8265

Pending home sales index rises 5.3% in March, 2010

The improvement was attributed to the expiring home buyer tax credit. The National Assn. of Realtors' sales contract index showed increases of 12.7% in the South and 1.9% in the West.


Supported by a tax credit, a pending home sales index rose a seasonally adjusted 5.3% in March and was up 21.1% compared with a year earlier, the National Assn. of Realtors said Tuesday.
The index tracks sales contracts on existing homes and is considered a good indicator of actual sales, which are recorded a month or two later at closing.


For March, sales contracts rose 12.7% in the South, 1.9% in the West and 1.2% in the Midwest. Contracts declined 3.3% in the Northeast from a month earlier.
"Clearly the home buyer tax credit has helped stabilize the market," said Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the real estate lobbying group, in a statement. "In the months immediately following the expiration of the tax credit, we expect measurably lower sales."
To qualify for the extended and expanded home buyer tax credit, a sales contract must have been signed by April 30 and the sale must close by June 30. Analysts expect the tax credit will also support contract signings in April.
In February, the pending home sales index rose 8.3%, compared with an earlier estimate of an 8.2% gain.
The strong results in February and March probably reflect an increase in demand before the credit expires, according to an analysis from Barclays Capital Research.
"Looking ahead, the strength in pending home sales (which tend to lead closed sales by a month or two) supports our view that existing home sales will rebound over the spring, also buoyed by the forthcoming expiration of the tax credit," according to Barclays.
Yun added that home sales will probably "become self-sustaining" in the second half of this year and into 2011 if jobs are added "at a respectable pace" and as buyers see stabilizing values.

Short Sales

The U.S. government is encouraging short sales as a solution to the nation’s still-growing foreclosure crisis, but insight from industry players indicates that borrowers and lenders alike are having trouble executing short sale transactions.

To help lenders and servicers educate troubled borrowers on the benefits of opting for a short sale and help them successfully pursue this foreclosure alternative, DepotPoint, a provider of default management workflow solutions headquartered in Bellevue, Washington, and AssetPlanUSA, a nationwide provider of foreclosure alternative solutions based in Long Beach, California have joined forces.

Through this partnership, AssetPlanUSA says it plans to use DepotPoint’s technology to help its lender/servicer clients and their borrowers effectively achieve short sales. The company explained that DepotPoint’s TrackPoint platform incorporates an enterprise-class, web-based workflow engine and tracking system for managing default transactions, including short sales.

Starting on April 5, 2010, the administration will begin providing incentives to servicers who help borrowers facing foreclosure exit their homes gracefully outside the foreclosure process, thereby lessening the negative impact on the borrower’s credit score compared to a foreclosure.

The government’s Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives (HAFA) program provides relocation assistance for borrowers choosing foreclosure alternatives, allows borrowers to receive pre-approved short sale terms before listing their property, and pays servicers cash incentives to cover administration and processing costs.

But according to DepotPoint and AssetPlanUSA, many financial institutions are not adequately set up to approve short sales in a timely fashion, leading to a very low success rate for short sales to date.

“Our nation is in the midst of a distressed property crisis affecting millions of Americans, and we must act swiftly and creatively to either help keep people in their homes or support a homeownership exit outside the foreclosure process,” said Joe Filoseta, president and CEO of DepotPoint. “It will take integrated teamwork and relationships like the one we have forged with AssetPlanUSA to have a real impact on this crisis. AssetPlanUSA’s management team has extraordinary experience with short sales and working with troubled borrowers to find alternatives to foreclosure.”

AssetPlanUSA is led by president and CEO Rayman Mathoda, former EVP and chief people & efficiency officer with IndyMac Bank.

“In evaluating technology solutions, we focused on the quality and caliber of the leadership, the business logic, and workflow of the technology, as well as the flexibility and speed of the team and company in adapting their solution to the needs of AssetPlanUSA and its clients,” Mathoda said. “DepotPoint emerged as a clear winner for us, and because they host their TrackPoint solution, it can be implemented in no time. We are looking forward to a long and fruitful relationship, as we help borrowers and financial institutions achieve optimal outcomes in the relatively new and fast evolving short sale market.”

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Studies Find "Strategic Defaults" on the Rise

The number of homeowners deciding to throw in the towel even though they can afford to pay their mortgage is growing, according to two new industry studies. Still-falling property values are pushing more homeownersunderwater, and the social stigma attached to foreclosure is steadily eroding as delinquencies become almost commonplace – such factors are giving rise to so-called strategic defaults.

Researchers at the University of Chicago and Northwestern University found that the number of homeowners willing to default when the value of a mortgage exceeds the value of their house, even if they can afford to pay their mortgage, has dramatically increased compared to just a year ago. The percentage of foreclosures that were perceived to be strategic was 31 percent in March 2010, compared to 22 percent in March 2009.

According to their study, one likely reason for this growing trend is the increasing perception that lenders are not going after borrowers who walk away. In March 2010, homeowners surveyed said there was just a 54 percent chance that a lender would pursue them if they default on their mortgage.

The results also indicate that the likelihood of strategic default increases by 23 percent when homeowners learn

that their neighbor with negative equity has received a partial loan for forgiveness. Additionally, strategic default increases by 29 percent if homeowners are able to find an alternate way to finance a new home.

“A key deterrent to strategic default is the fear of losing a good credit score,” said Luigi Zingales, a professor at the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business, who conducted the study along with Paola Sapienza, a finance professor at Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management.

“Approximately 74 percent of homeowners in our survey believe it is very important to maintain good credit and this can be a factor in encouraging them not to walk away,” Zingales said.

A separate report from Morgan Stanley showed a similar elevation in the number of defaults made strategically, although the investment bank’s assessment is quite a bit lower than the one put forth by the academia researchers.

Morgan Stanley’s study says that about 12 percent of all mortgage defaults in February involved homeowners who could still afford to make payments but opted to renege on their mortgage contract anyway. The figure is up from the firm’s estimate of 4 percent who strategically defaulted in mid-2007.

According to Morgan Stanley’s analysis, the homeowners most likely to walk away are those with high credit scores and outstanding mortgage balances far above the current market value of their homes.

The magnitude of strategic defaults is reflected in the Obama administration’s new set of housing initiatives, one of which provides for principal write-downs when borrowers owe more than 115 percent of their home’s current value.

The analysts at Morgan Stanley wrote that by focusing on principal reductions for borrowers who are severely underwater, the government’s mortgage programs could curb future strategic defaults.

via dsnews.com

"Strategic Defaults" on the Rise,
Luckly here in Long Beach and especially Belmont Heights and the surrounding coastal communities we are finding this not the case in such numbers, we seem to be stable and those in trouble are working to mitigate there situation.
this coupled with the low market inventory has created a true sellers market, proices are on the rise.

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LACMA Lamps

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Long Beach Bicycle Festival 2010, May 7, 8, and 9, 2010

Recreational and competitive cycling is set to take over the streets of Downtown Long Beach for a three-day event, May 7, 8, and 9, 2010. The annual Long Beach Bicycle Festival consists of anything and everything bicycle-related: from Fixed Gear Fest contests to bicycle polo, a charity benefit Tour of Long Beach ride, USA Cycling Bicycle Grand Prix to the CYCLESTYLE Fashion Show, vendors, food, music and much more. The event represents the ongoing Bike Long Beach campaign, an innovative plan to make Long Beach "the most cycling friendly urban city in the United States."

The Bicycle Festival is produced by the Downtown Long Beach Associates.

The weekend kicks off from 6 to 11 p.m. Friday in the East Village Arts District (First Street between Elm and Linden avenues) with the Fixed Gear Fest, featuring freestyle riders, tricks, track stand and skid contests and Gold Sprints competitions.

<object width="400" height="300"><param name="allowfullscreen" value="true" /><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always" /><param name="movie" value="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=11056725&amp;server=vimeo.com&amp;show_title=1&amp;show_byline=1&amp;show_portrait=0&amp;color=&amp;fullscreen=1&amp;group_id=" /><embed src="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=11056725&amp;server=vimeo.com&amp;show_title=1&amp;show_byline=1&amp;show_portrait=0&amp;color=&amp;fullscreen=1&amp;group_id=" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" width="400" height="300"></embed></object><p><a href="http://vimeo.com/groups/1806/videos/11056725">2010 Long Beach Bike Festival Kick Off</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/southerntier">Jeff Hyland</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com">Vimeo</a>.</p>

The event will start off with the return of the City Council Tricycle Race, pitting members of the city council against one another in a light-hearted one-lap tricycle race.

At 8 a.m. Saturday the Tour of Long Beach (www.touroflongbeach.com), a new component to this year's event, invites amateur cyclists and bicycle enthusiasts of all skill levels to ride on a a four-mile family fun ride or a 30-mile open course along bike paths throughout the city.

Tickets are $20 per person for the family fun ride and $45 per person for the 30-mile open course. Registration information, www.touroflongbeach.com.

Proceeds from the tour benefit Miller Children's Hospital.

Beginning at 10 a.m. Saturday, competitive USA Cycling for amateurs and professionals takes center stage as the Long Beach Bicycle Grand Prix offers more than $17,000 in cash prizes. The race is expected to draw more than 600 riders to compete in eight events, including men's and women's pro and amateur events, three kids races and a police, fire and armed services competition. Register at www.socalreg.com.

The .83 mile closed course

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Bike Long Beach the New Bike Fiendly City

Download now or watch on posterous

IMG_0003.mov (2124 KB)

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