Cancer Summit & Race for Gold 5 K Run

In the midst of the 100^th Year Centennial Celebration, Anderson University has acquired a building from AnMed Health Hospital that will be the newest location of the Anderson University Center for Cancer Research. In an effort to jumpstart the program we are hosting a Cancer Summit conference and the Race for Gold 5k run.

On Friday March 25^th from 2:00 to 6:00pm we will be having the Cancer Summit in the Chapman Multimedia Room in Thrift Library. The Cancer Summit will feature Dr. Pamela Peeke as the keynote speaker. She is the Author of Fit to Live and is well known physician and health advocate. She will be joined by a number of oncologists and researchers who will each be presenting different topics of cancer and cancer research.

We invite you to join us for our Cancer Summit as well as dinner afterwards. The dinner will be on campus at Anderson University and will be $25.00 per person. Attached is an agenda of the Summit speakers and their presentation topics. There you will also find directions on how to RSVP.

In addition to the Cancer Summit we are hosting the first annual Race for Gold 5k run. The run/walk will take place on Saturday morning, March 26^th at 8 am, and Dr. Peeke will be present to start off the race. We are also honored to have Dr. Doster from AnMed Health Hospital to be our race day speaker. Participants will convene at the Anderson County Courthouse Plaza and take a leisurely route through Downtown Anderson and run back to the Courthouse Plaza for the finale, which includes a special presentation honoring all of those who have battled cancer or may have lost loved ones due to cancer. Race for Gold gives visitors and residents an opportunity to support those who have been affected by cancer and also to support local scientists’ and researchers’ efforts for finding a cure and new treatments for cancer. For more information and to register for Race for Gold please visit our website at www.raceforgold.org .

Please come and run in memory or honor of a loved one who has been touched by cancer! This event will not be a success unless YOU help me spread out the word and forward this e-mail to all your friends and loved ones.

Let’s make this Race for Gold a successful annual event here, at Anderson University , starting with this centennial celebration!

http://www.callnancylamar.com/

Changes Coming to FHA Loans

Be prepared for some financing changes with FHA loans.  On April 18^th, 2011, the monthly MI (mortgage insurance) requirement is changing on all new FHA loans.  Currently we are at a 1% MIP and a .9% monthly amount.  This will change to a 1% MIP and 1.15% monthly amount. 

http://www.callnancylamar.com/ for all your real estate needs.

Fives Tax Tips for Saving Money

Ask several homeowners what's so great about owning versus renting, and you'll hear them say all together: "the tax deductions!" And it's true – homeowners who itemize their taxes are able to deduct 100% of their mortgage interest and property taxes from their income tax returns.

That means that if you're in a 28% tax bracket, Uncle Sam effectively subsidizes about a third of your borrowing costs or more, making your home more affordable or allowing you to buy a larger home than you could have otherwise. Also, big chunks of your closing costs are tax deductible, and hundreds of thousands of dollars of any profit (or capital gains) that you realize when you sell your home are exempt from income taxes.

At tax time, it's critical to know what you're entitled to, so you can claim it. So, here are five essential need-to-knows about home-related income tax tips to help you get the most tax-reducing bang out of your home-owning buck – and to avoid hefty home ownership-related tax traps.

1. You Have to Itemize Your Return to Claim Your Deductions

During the recent debate on Capitol Hill about whether the mortgage interest deduction should be eliminated (it won't be, not anytime soon), it came out that nearly 40% of homeowners lose out on their major tax advantages every year when they fail to itemize their income taxes. If you own a home and otherwise have a fairly simple return, it might be tempting just to take the standard deduction – and if your mortgage, property taxes and income are low enough, the standard deduction might outweigh your homeowners' deductions. But you'll never know if you're losing out on the tax advantages of itemizing unless you try; before you grab a pen and start filling in that 1040-EZ grab those forms from your mortgage company and answer the questions on tax software like TurboTax, which will automatically do the math on whether itemizing or taking the standard deduction will result in the lowest tax bill – or the highest tax refund – for you.
2. Plan Ahead and Be Strategic When Taking a Home Office Deduction

According to the Small Business Administration, the average home office deduction is $3,686 – multiply that by your tax bracket – 15%, 20%, 30% or whatever it is, and that's what you'll save on your taxes by writing off your home office. Know, though, that the space you designate as your home office cannot be exempted from capital gains tax when you sell your home later. The $250,000 (single)/ $500,000 (married filing jointly) income tax exemption for capital gains is only good on your personal residence, after all – not including any space in your home you've claimed as your tax-advantaged office. If you foresee selling your home for much more than you bought it in the future, near or far, discuss this with your tax preparer to see if the few hundred bucks you save is worth the capital gains complication later.

3. Tax Relief for Loan Modifications, Short Sales and Foreclosures Is Only Around Through 2012

While the long-term housing outlook is beginning to look up, 2011 is projected to be the peak year for foreclosures during this market cycle. Distressed homeowners who are on the brink of a short sale, loan modification or foreclosure should be aware that normally, any mortgage balance that is wiped out by one of these outcomes is taxed as what the IRS calls Cancellation of Debt Income, or CODI.

Under the Mortgage Debt Forgiveness Relief Act of 2007, the IRS is currently not charging income taxes on CODI incurred through a loan mod, short sale or foreclosure on most primary residences through 2012. But right now, banks are taking many months, or even years, to work out mortgages in all of these ways; the average foreclosure in New York state right now occurs only after 22 months of missed mortgage payments. If you foresee any of these outcomes in your future, don't put things off. Do what you can to get to closure on your distressed home and loan, ASAP, while you won't have income taxes to add as the insult on top of your significant housing injury.

4. Project the Income Tax Consequences of a Refinance or Property Tax Appeal

Homeowners everywhere are working on applying for a lower property tax bill on the basis of the last few years' decline in their home's value. Those who have equity have flocked en masse to refinance their 7% home loans into the 4% to 5% rates of the last few months. These strategies offer some of the heftiest household savings out there for the corresponding investment in time and money they take. But here's a caveat for savvy homeowners who slash these costs: remember that property taxes and mortgage interest, the very costs you're minimizing, are also the basis for the major tax benefits of being a homeowner. So plan ahead for your income tax deductions to go down along with your taxes and interest.

5. Don't Forget Those Closing Costs
If you bought or refinanced your home in 2010, you may be so focused on your mortgage interest and property tax deductions that you forget all about your closing costs. Any origination fees or discount points that were paid to your mortgage lender at closing are tax deductible on your 2010 return, get this – even if the seller paid your closing costs. If you can't figure out exactly what you paid, look for your HUD-1 settlement statement, that legal sized paper full of line item credits and debits that you should have received at closing Can't find it? I send my clients a copy of their HUD-1 each January to make this step easy for them. It's just another service I provide that sets me about from the other agents.  

http://www.callnancylamar.com/ for all your real estate needs.

Annual passes for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers day use areas/boat ramps are available. Thepasses are $30 each and are valid for one year from the date of purchase. The pass allows unlimited nationwide use of all day use/boat ramp fee areas managed by the Corps. Passes may be purchased in person at the Hartwell Lake Visitor Center (using cash, check or credit card), by phone (using credit card) toll-free at 888-893-0678, or by mail (using check or credit card). Annual passes are also available at Corps operated campground gatehouses and staffed day use area gatehouses as well as Richard B. Russell and J. Strom Thurmond Lake Offices.

Each year people drown on area lakes. Ninety percent of drownings would have been prevented if the victims had been wearing a life jacket. There are many new styles of life jackets available today which are much more comfortable and cooler than older models; many are designed for specific activities and you might want to look into Coast Guard approved inflatable life jackets. Check out new life jackets at sporting goods stores near you or online.

Twin Lakes Campground, located in Pickens Co., S.C., will now be open year round. The campground is conveniently located near Clemson, Anderson, and I-85. "The decision to keep Twin Lakes campground open came about through customer comments and the popularity of Twin Lakes Campground during the spring, summer, and fall," said Tanya Grant, Hartwell park ranger." The campground previously closed on Nov. 30 and re-opened April 1 every year. Sites 25 through 58 have been winterized and are now open for camping. The rest of the campground will open on April 1," said Grant. Another Corps campground, Watsadler, located in Hart Co., Ga., on the lower end of the lake is also open year round. Campsites at both campgrounds can be reserved by calling the National Recreation Reservation Service toll-free at 877-444-6777, or online at www.recreation.gov. For questions concerning campgrounds or Hartwell Lake, contact the Corps’ Hartwell Dam and Lake Office toll free at 888-893-0678 or (706) 856-0300.

http://www.callnancylamar.com/ for all your real estate needs.

Six Things That Turn Home Buyers Off (And What Sellers Can do to Prevent It!)

Here are 6 big-time homebuyer turn-offs that make buyers cringe at the thought of your home, and action steps you can take to prevent your home from being an offender:

1.  Stalker-ish sellers.  I know you think you’re being helpful, walking the buyer through your home and pointing out the wagon-wheel light fixture you made with your own two hands, the custom mural of a stingray you paid top dollar to have painted across your living room wall and the way the sounds of happy schoolchildren running across the front yard of your corner lot to get to the school in the next block lifts your spirits.  However, the buyers might be trying really hard to ignore, minimize or figure out how to undo the very features of your home you hold dear.  They also may want or need to have personal space and conversations with their mate or their agent while they’re viewing your home - you being there, especially walking right alongside them while they’re in your home, prevents them from being comfortable about doing this, or discussing all the things they would change if the home were theirs. In my experience, the more nitpicky a buyer gets about a house and the more detailed their list of things they would change, the more serious they are about considering making an offer on this place.

What’s a Seller to do? Back off. Leave the house when people come to see it.  If you need to be there, at least walk outside or go sit at the coffee shop down the way while prospective buyers view your home.  If the buyers have questions, their people will contact your people.

2. Shabby, dirty, crowded and/or smelly houses.  You already know this one. Yet, buyers constantly marvel. The buyers who come to see your home are making the decision whether to choose your home for the biggest purchase they’ve ever made during the worst economic conditions most of them have ever experienced.  Your job is to get your home noticed – favorably – above the sea of other homes on the market, many of which are priced very, very low. 

What’s a Seller to do?  Other than listing your home at a competitive price, the only tool within your control for differentiating your home from all the foreclosures and short sales is to show it in tip-top shape. Pre-pack your place up, getting rid of as many of your personal effects as possible. Do not show it without it being completely cleaned up: no laundry or dishes piled up, countertops freshly washed, smelly dogs (I have a couple who smell on occasion – no judgment – but don’t show your house with pet odors) or litter boxes cleaned and/or out of the house.

3.  Irrational seller expectations (i.e., overpricing).  Buying a house on today’s market is hard work!  On top of all the research and analysis about the market and situating their own lives to be sure they’ll be able to afford the place for 5, 7, 10 years - or longer, buyers have to work overtime to separate the real estate wheat from the chaff, get educated about short sales and foreclosures and often put in many, many offers before they get even a single one accepted.  The last thing they want to add to their task lists is trying to argue a seller out of unreasonable expectations or pricing.  And, in fact, there are so many other homes on the market, buyers don’t have to do this.  When they see a home whose seller is clearly clueless about their home’s value and has priced it sky-high, most often they won’t bother even looking at it.  If they love it, they’ll wait for it to sit on the market for awhile, hoping the market will “educate you” into desperation, priming the pump for a later, lowball offer.

What’s a Seller to do? Get real. Get out there and look at the other properties that are for sale in your area and price range. Get multiple agents’ take on what your home should be listed at, and don’t take it personally if their recommendation is low. If your home has much less curb appeal or space or is much less upgraded than the house across the way, don’t list it at the same price and expect it to sell. If you owe more than your home is realistically worth, you may need to reexamine whether you really want or need to sell, or consider a short sale, if you simply have to sell.  Don’t be tempted into testing your market with an obviously too-high price, unless you’re prepared to have your home lag on the market and get lowball offers.

4.  Feeling misled. Here’s the deal.  You will never trick someone into buying your home. If the listing pics are photo-edited within an inch of their lives, or your home is described as an “approved” short sale when, in fact, the bank approved another offer, now withdrawn, but will require a new offer to go through any sort of approval process (even a truncated one), buyers will learn this information at some point.  If your neighborhood is described as funky and vibrant, as code for the fact that your house is under the train tracks and you live in between a wrecking yard and a biker bar, prospects will figure this out.  If the detailed information about your home, neighborhood or even transactional position (e.g., short sale status, seller financing, etc.) is misrepresented, the sheer misrepresentation will turn otherwise interested buyers off.  If you authorize your agent to “verbally approve” the buyer’s offer, don’t go back the next day demanding an extra $5,000. In cases where the buyer feels misled, whether or not that was your intention, running through the buyer’s mind is this question: If they can’t trust you to be honest about this, how can they trust you to be honest about everything else? 

What’s a Seller to do?  Buyers rely on sellers to be upfront and honest – so be both.  If your home has features or aspects that are often perceived negatively, your home’s listing probably shouldn’t lead with them (like the ad I recently saw with the intro line: “this place is a mess!”), but neither should you go out of your way to slant or skew or spin the facts which will be obvious to anyone who visits your home.  Make sure you know what the listing of your home reads like, before it’s published to the web, and that a prospective buyer will not feel misled by it.

5. New, ugly home improvements.  Many a buyer has walked into a house that has clearly been remodeled and upgraded in anticipation of the sale, only to have their heart sink with the further realization that the brand-spanking-new kitchen features a countertop made, not of Carerra marble, but brand-new, pink tiles with a kitty cat in the middle of each one (I saw this once, people – no joke).  Or the pristine, just-installed floors feature carpet in a creamy shade of blue – the buyer’s least favorite color.  New home improvements that run totally counter to a buyer’s aesthetics are a big turn-off, because in today’s era of Conspicuous Frugality, buyers just can’t cotton to ripping out expensive, brand new, perfectly functioning things just on the basis of style – especially since they’ll feel like they paid for these things in the price of the home.

What’s a Seller to do?  Check in with a local broker or agent before you make a big investment in a pre-sale remodel.  They can give you a reality check about the likely return on your investment, and help you prioritize about which projects to do (or not).  Instead of spending $40,000 on a new, less-than-attractive kitchen, they might encourage you to update appliances, have the cabinets painted and spend a few grand on your curb appeal.  Many times, they will also help you do the work of selecting neutral finishes that will work for the largest possible range of buyer tastes.

6.  CRAZY listing photos (or no photos at all).  I have seen listing photos that have dumpsters parked in front of the house, piles of laundry all over the “hardwood” floors touted in the listing description, and once, even the family dog doing his or her business in the lovely green front yard.  Listing pictures that have put your home in anything but its best, accurate light are a very quick way to ensure that you turn off a huge number of buyers from even coming to see your house!   The only bigger buyer turn-off than these bizarre listing pictures are listings that have no photos at all; most buyers on today’s market see a listing with no pictures and click right on past it, without giving the place a second glance.

What’s a Seller to do?  Check your home’s listing on http://www.callnancylamar.com/ and make sure that the pictures represent your home well.  If not, ask your agent to grab some new shots and get them into the MLS (and don't forget to say please.

http://www.callnancylamar.com/ for all your real estate needs!