| Tax strategy for unused vacation home |
| Mike and Claudia McIntosh have not spent one night in their mountain cabin in 2010. One of their sons was married in June; Claudia's family held a reunion in ... |
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| Avoid a capital gains tax bite |
| One of our former neighbors, John, still wonderfully engaging at 91, has been living in an assisted-living community for nearly three years. He stops by his f... |
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| Minimize risk in real estate investment |
| In a recent column, we considered how an expensive waterfront property could be viewed in the eyes of the purchaser. While many consumers would consider the $... |
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| Realize retirement with real estate IRA |
| The recent national story about a $12 million sale of a waterfront mansion listed for $40 million six years ago sparked some interesting comments and question... |
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| Deconstructing home renovation |
| A few years ago, some friends of ours purchased an older home from a widow who no longer could maintain the house and the more than two dozen fruit trees that... |
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| Reduced fees for reverse mortgages |
| The checkered beginnings of reverse mortgages made them a difficult sales proposition to seniors. In the early years, some programs gave the lender a bigger ... |
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| 'Pivotal' year ahead for reverse mortgages |
| Former FHA Commissioner Brian Montgomery, who oversaw the nation's most popular reverse mortgage product for nearly five years, sees a "pivotal" yea... |
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| 'Shadow inventory' concerns re-emerge |
| One of the biggest unknowns in the housing industry is "shadow inventory." That term describes the number of homes that would be on the market if c... |
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| Fannie Mae offers special REO financing |
| Have you tried to get financing for a second home lately? Just lost an investment property because a longtime lending source was unable to find a loan to fit ... |
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| Calculate cash flow for second home |
| Let's assume home values are down in the area where you like to vacation. Truth be told, you wouldn't mind retiring there one day. If you bought an inve... |
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| Vacation-home site hones in on buyer trends |
| Nearly 30 years ago, our family purchased a small cabin on a mountain lake. The intent was to give our kids a few carefree memories in the sun, similar to the... |
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| Persistence pays off in hunt for vacation home |
| For some unknown reason, I used to take some time leading up to Father's Day to visit and explore some possible places where kids would enjoy spending vacatio... |
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| Tax credit extends into 2011 for some in military |
| A new law could provide an attractive housing option for many families near and around many military bases and shipyards. While the biggest federal ince... |
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| Some homes don't qualify for 1031 exchange |
| Mention the term "second home" to a dozen people and half will probably tell you that it is also an "investment home." That's because many... |
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| Closing a seller-financed deal takes skill |
| Many of today's borrowers, even those anticipating a smooth refinance, are having difficulty qualifying for a loan on their principal residence. Homeowners be... |
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