Clay Lee
Broker/Realtor®
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Top Ten Tax Tips for Home Sellers
September 7th, 2011 Categories: Real Estate News, Selling Real Estate
The IRS doesn’t always have to inspire dread, sometimes they can help us make our dealings with them a little easier. The taxmen have released their 10 tax tips for home sellers. This handy information can help sellers ease the stress of tax time.
Here’s the list:
- In general, you are eligible to exclude the gain from income if you have owned and used your home as your main home for two years out of the five years prior to the date of its sale.
- If you have a gain from the sale of your main home, you may be able to exclude up to $250,000 of the gain from your income ($500,000 on a joint return in most cases).
- You are not eligible for the exclusion if you excluded the gain from the sale of another home during the two-year period prior to the sale of your home.
- If you can exclude all of the gain, you do not need to report the sale on your tax return.
- If you have a gain that cannot be excluded, it is taxable. You must report it on Form 1040, Schedule D, Capital Gains and Losses. Read the rest of this entry »
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Bryan / College Station’s Very Own Chef Tai Ranks #1 in The Great Food Truck Race
September 1st, 2011 Categories: Community Events, Restaurants & Fun
Chef Tai’s Mobile Bistro has been nominated for Food Network’s The Great Food Truck Race! This contest pits the best food trucks from around the nation in a winner take all competition based on votes from fans. Chef Tai is currently in 1st place due to the diligent food lovers of this great community. Earlier in the day, though, Chef Tai dropped to 2nd place. So we all have to keep voting to keep our hometown truck in 1st place!
Chef Tai has expressed his great appreciation for the outpouring of support from the Bryan/College Station area as well as the great Aggie Network. Let’s show the rest of the country how proud we are of our community and the great entrepreneurs in it.
If you haven’t had any of Chef Tai’s food before, you are seriously missing out. You can check his website at cheftai.com, to find out when the truck will be near you! Try the Kobe burger, it’s paradise on a bun.
Remember to vote everyday at http://foodtrucks.teamdigital.com/, let’s bring home a victory!
Now that you know where to eat lunch tomorrow, let me help you find your new home or sell your current one. Feel free to give me a call @ 979.255.1839!
Clay Lee – Realtor
Century 21 Beal, Inc.
(979) 255-1839
Timeless Service, Quality, and Experience Guaranteed
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Do we need more foreclosures?
August 31st, 2011 Categories: Foreclosures, Real Estate News
Foreclosure is a scary word, but experts say it is a word that needs to used more often. It is something that no one wants more of, but it is something that this market very well may need. The Obama administration has tried with multiple programs to help save the fledgling market to no avail.
According to CNN Money, some housing experts say that if the administration is interested in the future, it should help speed up the foreclosure process to get the delinquent borrowers out and to get the foreclosed homes on the market and back into use.
Some of the July ’11 numbers on delinquency are staggering:
- 2.2 million loans in foreclosure
- 37% behind more than 2 years
- 34% behind more than 1 year, less than 2 years
- 71% total behind more than 1 year
- 6% behind more than 2 years
- 35% behind more than 1 year, less than 2 years
- 41% total behind more than 1 year
Thomas Lawler, founder of Lawler Economic & Housing Consulting, thinks this is a dangerous pattern emerging. “Delaying foreclosure increases the percentage who’ll likely never catch up”, Lawler said. The delaying of foreclosure also means that vacant properties can fall further into disrepair and this can hurt surrounding property values.
The other key besides speeding up the foreclosure process is facilitating the resale of these properties that can lower home values due to the increasing amount of vacant properties. ”There can’t be a glacier hanging over the market with everyone waiting for it to fall,” said Jim Gaines, economist at the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M. ”Those properties have to clear the market.”
Not everyone is pushing for faster foreclosures. Some believe that mortgage holders could look to forgiving some principle to home owners who are not far behind on their payments. Foreclosures are expensive to process, and many companies may save money by allowing the current borrowers a way to get back on track. Some say the administration could also help by changing the refinancing program, allowing some borrowers to take advantage of today’s low interest rates.
This market can be difficult to navigate as you can see, I’m always here to help. Feel free to give me a call to discuss your buying opportunities @ 979.255.1839
Clay Lee – Realtor
Century 21 Beal, Inc.
(979) 255-1839
Timeless Service, Quality, and Experience Guaranteed
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Home buying Help for Heroes
August 25th, 2011 Categories: Buying Real Estate
Part of the American Dream is owning your own home, now there is a program to help America’s heroes achieve that part of the dream.
Active duty personnel (Active Duty, Reserve & National Guard), employees of the U.S. Departments of Homeland Security & Defense, and Veterans are eligible to qualify for the Dream Makers Program by the Pentagon Federal Credit Union Foundation. This program allows qualifying first time home buyers to receive a grant of up to $5,000 for a down payment and closing costs.
Do you qualify? You are eligible if:
- You are active or former Military – Active Duty, Reserve, National Guard, Veteran, DoD or DHS
- You are a first time home buyer. Or have not owned a home in 3 years or have lost your home through divorce or natural disaster.
- Your gross household income, that you use to qualify for your mortgage is: A maximum of $55,000 per year or a max of 80% of the median income of your community based on your family size
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If a picture is worth 1000 words, how many is a video worth?
August 24th, 2011 Categories: Selling Real Estate
A little while back I wrote a post on the The Importance of Good Pictures When Marketing Your College Station Home, while this is still absolutely vital to the success of your sale, we are in the midst of the YouTube age and it’s role can not be ignored in marketing your home for sale.
Just like a good movie can bring you into that world, a good video walkthrough can bring you right into a home. Not only does it give potential buyers a fairly true look at the layout of your home, but it allows them to catch details that might not be the center of attention in a photo. When you give buyers a 180° look (or even a 360° look if space allows) in full video you are able to pique their interest and create a longer lasting impact on them. Let’s look at it this way, a buyer finds 2 different homes in the same neighborhood, similar square footage, similar amenities, & a similar look. Which home will they remember if one has a video walkthrough and the other doesn’t? The one with the video, because it sets it apart from the competition.
Below is a great example of how a video walkthrough can transport you right into the home:
This marketing tool is utilized in ALL of my listings. I mentioned in my post on photos that in this clogged real estate market, you have to set yourself apart. I can not repeat this enough. You have to set yourself apart. Video is a great technique of doing just that.
Video is only one of the many ways I can help you sell your home faster, to find out more please feel free to give me a call @ 979.255.1839
Clay Lee – Realtor
Century 21 Beal, Inc.
(979) 255-1839
Timeless Service, Quality, and Experience Guaranteed
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Feast of Caring raises $56,000 for Brazos Valley Food Bank
August 22nd, 2011 Categories: Community Events
This year’s “Feast of Caring” for the Brazos Valley Food Bank should be considered a HUGE success!
The event, held on August 10th at the Brazos Center, served up a modest meal of rice, beans, sausage, salad and a tasty dessert. Although, the cost of the event was free for attendees the Food Bank raised over $56,000 in a few short hours.
The generosity displayed by residents of Brazos Valley showed an increase of donations by about $32,000. These donations will be put to great use by the Food Bank to ensure that the less fortunate in our area can put a decent meal on the table.
I would like to personally thank each and every person that came out to the event and helped make it a success! I know I enjoyed seeing everyone come out, let’s hope we can make next year even bigger and better!
If you weren’t able to attend, but would still like to donate you can find more information at: http://www.bvfb.org/donate.html
Clay Lee – Realtor
Century 21 Beal, Inc.
(979) 255-1839
Timeless Service, Quality, and Experience Guaranteed
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Resort Style Living Right in College Station
August 17th, 2011 Categories: Home Improvement & Design, Pebble Creek, Real Estate News
How many times during the hectic work week do you find yourself asking “When do I get a vacation?”
You imagine yourself relaxing by the pool with a cold drink in your hand without a care in the world.
What you imagine might look a little like this:
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Bridal Registry List: Toaster, Blender, New Home?
August 16th, 2011 Categories: Buying Real Estate, Real Estate News
Seems like asking a lot of your wedding guests, huh? With the FHA’s little known Bridal Registry program, it isn’t that wild of an idea.
Are there keys inside?
Young couples are in need of lots of items when starting their new partnership. What is one of the most important things they need? A roof over their head! Couples can start off on the right foot towards homeownership by establishing a FHA Bridal Registry account. The program, started in 1996, has been recently changed to make it easier for newlyweds to put their wedding gifts towards a home purchase. You can apply these funds towards a down payment on a FHA loan, and even earn interest before you make the purchase!
How to get started:
- Visit your choice of FHA lender and set up a savings account for the down payment
- Give your friends and family the banking info on where their gifts can be deposited
- You can even put gifts received by Uncle Joe who didn’t want to bother with the bank in the registry account
- All of the funds can be used towards a FHA down payment
- You don’t even have to tie the knot before you can close on your new home with this program!
The biggest advantage of this program is that you do not have to follow the typical rules and regulations regarding gifts that are applied to a home purchase. The program allows the funds to be used with simple documentation, no more than a letter from the lender verifying that the funds were gifts from friends and family with no business interest in you purchasing a home. That is the only kicker; builders, Realtors, and any other party that could benefit from the sale are not allowed to give to the account.
This underutilized program could help that soon to be wed couple make their first home purchase even before they walk down the aisle. Share it with friends and family that could put it to use!
For help finding that perfect first home in the Brazos Valley, give me a call @ 979.255.1839!
Clay Lee – Realtor
Century 21 Beal, Inc.
(979) 255-1839
Timeless Service, Quality, and Experience Guaranteed
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My Favorite Websites
December 18th, 2010 Categories: The Realtor's Life
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Pebble Creek Elementary Reserved Parking for The Waller Family
September 12th, 2010 Categories: The Realtor's Life
Pebble Creek Elementary School has a reserved parking space for the Waller Family? I knew there was handicapped reserved parking. And, I think I remember that the Principal has a reserved spot but who is the Waller Family?
I’m sure the school has a great reason having something to do with the school carnival and fund raising….
Do you know what the Waller Family had to do to get this spot? Please let me know! My children are no longer in Pebble Creek Elementary (grown on up to high school…) but I bet there are other parents who would also LOVE to try to get this parking space next year. If it is a fund raiser, the stakes are going up.
Congratulations Waller Family!!! Let me know how much you are enjoying your space.
Susan Hilton
CENTURY 21 Beal, Inc.
979-764-2100
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