Get a tax break if relatives finance your house purchase
Some people borrow money from their parents or other relatives to purchase a house. If a relative has enough money on hand to be able to finance a home purchase, this can be a very “friendly” alternative to a traditional mortgage. In addition, for some people without a sufficient down payment or credit history, it […]
Landlord couldn’t use lease to avoid personal injury lawsuits
A landlord can’t put a clause in a lease that says it won’t be liable if a tenant has a slip-and-fall injury, says the Idaho Supreme Court. The law on this issue varies from state to state, but the Idaho ruling is interesting and points out that landlords need to be very careful if they […]
Cities are sued for dragging their feet on eminent domain
A landowner can sue a city for announcing that it was going to take some property by eminent domain, and then doing nothing else for a long time. That’s the result of two recent decisions by the highest courts in Nevada and Missouri. In the Nevada case, the city of North Las Vegas announced that […]
New rules for home mortgages will protect consumers
The Federal Reserve Board has issued a number of new rules for home mortgages that are designed to protect consumers. The rules apply to “subprime” mortgages and to some “Alt-A” mortgages (which are given to buyers whose credit is less than ideal but is better than subprime). The rules include: Lenders cannot offer a mortgage […]
An equity line of credit could mean rethinking your estate plan
If you take out a second mortgage or a home equity line of credit, be aware that it could affect your estate plan. The reason: Many people plan to leave their house to one child, and the rest of their property to their other children (or other heirs). But their will doesn’t say specifically whether […]
Congress makes ‘jumbo’ mortgages easier
Should you refinance now? Mortgages are often divided into two types, “conforming” and “jumbo.” For some time, a “conforming” mortgage has been any loan up to $417,000, and a “jumbo” mortgage has been any loan over that amount. The reason is that $417,000 was the largest loan that could be repurchased by Fannie Mae and […]
Supreme Court limits out-of-state taxes
A new ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court is good tax news for companies that operate in multiple states. The case involved a packaging company that was based in Ohio and did business in Illinois. The company had a separate Ohio-based subsidiary with an unrelated information-technology business. When the company sold the subsidiary, it had […]
Your business loan could mess up your estate plan
If you own a business and you plan to leave it to one of your children when you die, be aware that taking out a business loan or line of credit could affect your estate plan. The reason: Many wills that provide that a child will inherit business assets don’t specify whether the child will […]
$100 million Starbucks verdict shows danger of ‘tip pools’
A recent $100 million verdict against Starbucks for the way it required employees to participate in “tip pools” should jolt employers with all the force of a Venti extra-shot Caramel Macchiato. Tip-pool lawsuits have been filed recently not only against restaurants, but also against hotels, transportation companies, delivery services, casinos and sports facilities. Recently, many […]
Meet the typical homebuyer
The typical homebuyer today is 39 years old, has a household income of $74,000, searches for eight weeks, sees 10 homes, and makes a down payment of 9%, according to research conducted by Bankrate.com. Married couples constitute 62% of homebuyers, with single women accounting for 20%, single men 9% and unmarried couples 7%. (The remaining […]
