foreclosures

A year ago, I would have told you that you needed to avoid real estate dealer status and that you should always take advantage of the capital gains exclusion for primary residences.

Boy, things have changed. And as commonly happens when law and policy changes rapidly, not all of the loopholes are thought through. In fact, there are a couple of loopholes right now that I’m not sure Congress and the IRS intended. But, nevertheless - there they are.

Foreclosures are on the rise and there are opportunities for savvy investors. But tax and legal changes make this a brand new ball game. Learn the rules PLUS the possible tax credits for foreclosure investors.

California is the land of opportunity, especially for real estate investors. I’ve made my fair share of profit from appreciation in California.

After all, a few years ago all you had to do was be IN the market to make money. There was a strong economic force pushing all the values up. But market values have now stabilized or decreased and the foreclosure rates are climbing. Lawmakers in California are expecting less-than-ethical scam artists to start showing up to take advantage of homeowners who are facing foreclosure. And they’ve come up with some pretty stringent laws to stop them. Before you start on your plans to become a real estate tycoon in California, take a minute to check out the laws.

More than a dozen states have now enacted laws restricting what you can say to homeowners who have homes somewhere in the foreclosure procedure. If you don’t follow the strict requirements, you are looking at large penalties and even jail time.

I’m concerned because I see so many people now promoting foreclosure seminars with “make millions in your spare time” promises. Without a doubt, there is a lot of money waiting to be made in the foreclosure market, but it needs to be done legally or you risk everything you already have. At a minimum, there are five minimum requirements that you should follow if you’re buying foreclosure properties.

Intelligent Investment — or Illegal Activity?

I don’t know about you, but my email inbox is getting flooded with solicitations for Foreclosure Investment Workshops. Without a doubt, now is the time to make some money on the buy!

I’ve been in real estate investing long enough, that I’ve seen this cycle before. So have most of the foreclosure instructors out there. The one thing that is very different, though, is the rules have changed in many states. Please read the rest of this article before you sign up for anything.

Courtesy ABC News

For Sale … Like it or NotOne of the benefits I get from working with a nationwide group of CPAs, is that I get to keep up with what successful business owners and real estate owners are up to. The real estate market is booming in some areas, crashing in others and just holding its own in others. But, there is one area of real estate that is exploding – the foreclosure market!

With constituents facing foreclosure and an election year looming, the pressure’s on Washington lawmakers to give homeowners a helping hand out of the mortgage meltdown.