By law, the dollar amounts for a variety of tax provisions, affecting virtually every taxpayer, must be revised each year to keep pace with inflation. New dollar amounts affecting 2012 returns, filed by most taxpayers in early 2013, include the following…

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Help with a down payment With most lenders requiring borrowers to put down at least 20 percent as a down payment – unless using an FHA or VA loan, or purchasing mortgage insurance – the best holiday gift some people might receive would be help with a down payment on a house.

Filed under: Buying, Commentary, Finance, IRS, Money-Saving, Tax Issues, VRN | No Comments »

I don’t normally send out requests to sign petitions as I’m not sure how effective they are and I think we all get petitioned out. A personal call or letter to your elected official is often the best way to be heard.

* In this case though I think it is very important to respond to the request to sign the petition for the FairTax’s consideration on the whitehouse.gov site.

Filed under: Current Events, Economy, IRS, Petition, Politics, Tax Issues, VRN | 1 Comment »

Ready to buy? Then here’s what documentation you need to prepare so a mortgage banker can let you know exactly what loan amount and purchase price you can qualify for…

Filed under: Buying, Finance, IRS, Making Home Affordable, Money-Saving, Mortgage, Mortgage Rates, Real Estate Market, VRN | No Comments »

At the beginning of the year, the fraud surrounding the homebuyer tax credit program attracted a lot of national attention; the numbers and circumstances connected to these schemes were quite astounding.
Scott Van Voorhis of the Boston Globe wrote that $139 million was wasted on “homes that had not yet been purchased [...]

Filed under: Homebuyer Tax Credit, IRS, News, Real Estate Market, VRN | Comments Off