Hope Leitner, Realtor®, CRS

Most buyers and sellers know a home appraisal is required as part of a real estate transaction. Not all of them realize, however, that the appraisal’s results pretty much run the show. The only exception is an all-cash deal. An appraisal is an unbiased professional opinion of a home’s worth. In all 50 states, home appraisers are required by law to be licensed or certified. Each appraisal encompasses a variety of factors. Typical data for a single-family home include recent sale prices of similar properties nearby, amenities, square footage, number of bedrooms and bathrooms, floor plans, and condition of the property’s interior and exterior. Proximity to transportation and the community’s school district might even be factored in. Appraisers consider these and other information to determine the home’s fair-market value. Why is this so important? Primarily, the appraisal helps the bank protect itself against lending more than it might be able to recover if the borrower defaults on t...

Choosing to buy your first home is a monumental decision, if you’re considering buying a second home, put as much thought and care into that decision as you did the first time around. As a seasoned homeowner, you know the work that comes along with owning your home. Consider if you’ll be prepared to make the same commitment with a second home. To help you determine what’s best for you, we’ve put together a few questions to consider before you make the leap into second home ownership. Why do you want to buy? What is your motivation for a second home? Is it a vacation home, potential rental opportunity, or maybe a place to retire? By defining your motivation, you’ll be able to find a home that is suitable to your needs. How will you pay (cash or financing)? Buying a second home is financially different than buying your first home. Typically, you’ll need a considerable down payment in order to buy. Lenders may require up to 25 percent down. Can you afford a second home with...

If a new job forces you to sell your home and move, you can deduct some job-related moving costs. Your new job must be at least 50 miles from the old and you must work full time at the new work place for 39 of the 52 weeks following the move. Deductions include travel or transportation costs and expenses for lodging and storing your household goods. To be eligible for moving costs deductions if you are self-employed, you must work full-time for at least 39 weeks during the first 12 months and a total of 78 weeks during the first 24 months after arriving at the new job location. Check with your tax professional and state and local tax authorities to learn about home selling-related tax benefits.

If when you sell your home, you realize a taxable gain even after the exclusion, you can reduce your gain with selling costs. Your gain is your home's selling price, minus deductible closing costs, minus your basis. Your basis is the original purchase price, plus capital improvements, minus any depreciation. Real estate broker's commissions, title insurance, legal fees, administrative costs and inspection fees are all considered selling costs. Selling costs can also include items otherwise considered repairs—painting, wallpapering, planting flowers, maintenance and the like—provided you complete them within 90 days of your sale and provided they were completed to make the home more saleable.

As the time nears to pay your dues in Club America, your home offers financial shelter from what otherwise could be a taxing expense—especially if you've sold your home when your tax returns are due. The Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997, credited with having a significant role in keeping the real estate sector ahead of the rest of the economy, is perhaps the best tax shelter your home provides. Generally, the federal tax law says when you sell your home, if you qualify, you can keep, tax free, capital gains of up to $500,000 if you are married filing jointly or $250,000 for single taxpayers, or married taxpayers who file separately. Under the law, to qualify for the $500,000/$250,000 exclusion, the home must have been your primary residence for at least two of the prior five years. The exclusion is not a one-time deal, but a benefit you can use again and again, theoretically every two years -- provided you qualify each time by meeting the owner-occupied-two-out-of-five-years ...

Expect the home-purchase market to strengthen along with the economy in 2015, according to Freddie Mac's U.S. Economic and Housing Market Outlook. "The good news for 2015 is that the U.S. economy appears well-poised to sustain about a 3 percent growth rate in 2015 — only the second year in the past decade with growth at that pace or better," says Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac's chief economist. "Governmental fiscal drag has turned into fiscal stimulus; lower energy costs support consumer spending and business investment; further easing of credit conditions for business and real estate lending support commerce and development; and consumers are more upbeat and businesses are more confident, all of which portend faster economic growth in 2015. And with that, the economy will produce more and better-paying jobs, providing the financial wherewithal to support household formations and housing activity." Freddie Mac economists have made the following proje...