Tag Archives: RPAC

2013 Realtor Voter Guides are here!

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You’ve been busy taking listings, showing property and closing transactions. You may not have had time to vet the candidates running for office on November 5th, so we thought we could offer a little help and provide you with information to help you make your decision in Mt. Pleasant and the City of Charleston.

Each election season, a volunteer group of REALTORS® take the time to interview the candidates running for office, review questionnaires filled out by the candidates and then rate the candidates based upon their positions and records as it relates to REALTOR® principles.

2013 REALTOR® Friendly Voter Guides
Click on a thumbnail below to download a PDF of each county’s voter guide. Click the names of candidates to access their websites and/or their completed interview questionnaires (where available).

      

Can’t see the images above?
Download the City of Charleston REALTOR® Voter Guide here.
Download the Mount Pleasant REALTOR® Vote Guide here.

Elections matter – and the business of being a REALTOR® is affected as a result. Real estate is the most heavily regulated industry and at the city level, it’s highly regulated. Whether it’s a sign ordinance, property taxes and fees, or protecting private property rights – the issues that matter to your business and the community.

The Charleston Trident Association of REALTORS® (CTAR) and the REALTORS® Political Action Committee (RPAC) voting guide serves as a roadmap to voting in support of REALTOR® issues. The guide is not meant to mandate REALTORS® to vote for specific candidates, but as a vehicle for the Association and PAC to present our members and affiliates with a list of recommended candidates, based on input from fellow REALTORS® and the CTAR Board of Directors as to the candidates who best represent the values of REALTORS® and the real estate community.

If you would like to serve on a future candidate screening committee, please click here.

Take Action! Tell congress to extend the real estate tax provision

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TAKE ACTION!
Homes sales to become more difficult without tax provision extension

If action is not taken soon, short sales could become even more difficult to complete next year. At the end of 2012, a tax break to families whose homes have lost value and are underwater could prove more difficult to sell without action from Congress.

At issue is a 2007 temporary law that exempts families from paying taxes on owner occupied homes for mortgage debt that was forgiven by the lender in a short sale or foreclosure. Prior to 2007, any mortgage debt forgiven required the seller to pay taxes as if that debt forgiven was ordinary income.

Home sellers in distressed situations are selling for a reason – they don’t have the money to pay their mortgage and are underwater. So they opt for a short sale or in drastic situations are foreclosed upon. They don’t have the money to pay the taxes and thus are saddled with more debt to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

Already real estate transactions, including loan modifications, short sales and foreclosures, are in the pipeline and may not be able to close before year-end. If owners are unable to close these transactions, and if Congress does not act, these owners and sellers will not receive the benefit of tax relief provisions they have relied on.

Why is this important?
• Homeowners shouldn’t be forced to pay tax on money they’ve already lost with cash they never received – and never will receive.

• More than 20% of current homeowners with a mortgage owe more on their homes than the current fair market value.

• Transactions not completed by year-end could become taxable in 2013, despite a borrower’s reliance on this tax relief.

• The housing market, while recovering, is still fragile enough that this tax relief will be needed in 2013 and possibly beyond.

TAKE ACTION!
Click here to tell Congress to extend this important real estate tax provision.

 

For more information on the Mortgage Debt Cancellation Act, click here.

Understanding 2013’s Capital Gains Tax Changes

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New tax on capital gains to go into effect in 2013

As the Supreme Court recently upheld the Affordable Care Act, it’s important to understand the details of the Act’s new taxes as they effect real estate and real estate derived incomes.

Starting January 1, 2013, there will be an additional 3.8% tax on investment income and capital gains for those individuals who make more than $200,000 of Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) or $250,000 AGI on a joint return. The new tax applies to investment income, defined as interest, dividends, capital gains and net rents. These items are all included in an individual’s AGI. A formula will determine what portion, if any, of these types of investment income would be subject to the tax.

Here are some additional facts based on misinformation that has been disseminated through emails:

The tax is NOT a transfer tax on real estate sales and similar transactions. Not long after the tax was enacted, erroneous and misleading documents went viral on the Internet and created a great deal of misunderstanding and made the tax into something far more draconian than the actual provisions.

The new tax does NOT eliminate the benefits of the $250,000/$500,000 exclusion on the sale of a principal residence. Thus, ONLY that portion of a gain above those thresholds is included in AGI and could be subject to the tax.

REALTORS® should familiarize themselves with the tax, but should not advise their clients about the application of the tax. The amount of tax will vary from individual to individual because the elements that comprise AGI differ from taxpayer to taxpayer.

The Facts: National Real Estate Tax

Find additional information here, or download a brochure with hypothetical scenarios of the tax in action, as it relates to real estate.

See you at the Rally!

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If real estate is your profession then politics is your business!

 

Please join us on March 27, 2012 on the South Carolina Statehouse grounds to show your support for the American Dream of Homeownership and Quality of Life for all South Carolinians!

CTAR will provide transportation to and from the Statehouse, but registration is required.

  • Meet with your legislators
  • RALLY with your REALTOR® colleagues
  • Grab a BBQ lunch courtesy of SCR!

2012 NAR President Moe Viessi will be a speaker at the Rally and press conference. Don’t miss your chance to meet Moe!