The Gift of Home Tax-free!

December is not only when we give gifts to our loved-ones for the holidays but it's also the time to review tax-saving options for 2019 and plan for 2020 and what could be a better gift than tax-free help with a down-payment for a new home?

Parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles, and even friends can start to pass along/gifting their estates while reducing inheritance taxes and getting to see their family enjoy the benefits of their gift

Under current IRS guidelines (please consult your accountant for tax advice and ramifications) each

parent or relative can give up to $15,000 to each child or relative every year. That would mean that a mother and father can each give $15,000 a year to each son, daughter, and/or grandchild that would amount to $30,000 a year in total per couple for each person that you gift.

If both sets of parents want to help with the down-payment on a house; each of the parents can give each borrower a gift of $15,000 per year. That would add up to $60,000 for both of you! That is a significant amount of tax-free money to help you buy a home for your family! Of course, a gift can also be less than $15,000, so give what you can.

That amount is per calendar year and not based on every twelve months. That would mean that they could give $60,000 (or more) in December 2019 and an additional $60,000 (or more) in January

2020. With less than one-month left , this is the time to bring up the subject with your family. What could make them happier than helping you buy a house and saving money on taxes?

For most types of mortgage loans, you will need to have 5% of the amount of the down-payment on your own, however, there are exceptions. To find out the exceptions and details about how gift money can be applied to your down-payment contact a reputable mortgage broker.

More about tax-free gifts and life-time limits: https://smartasset.com/retirement/gift-tax-limits

--------------------------------------

About the author: Marilyn Messenger, a licensed real estate broker, Certified Residential Specialist, and Accredited Buyer Representative, and Certified Luxury Homes Marketing Specialist is associated with Andrew Mitchell and Company in Concord has been representing home buyers and sellers in Wayland, Sudbury, Maynard, Stow, and Concord MA since 1993. www.MarilynMessenger.com for more. Visit www.marilynmessenger.com to see homes for sale, get the latest real estate market reports, and learn about having your own buyer agent on your side.

Millennials Becoming Homeowners!

First-Time homeowners at their townhouse in Maynard

Housing wire magazine recently published and article entitled Realtor survey: Millennials are no longer a renter generation. Well, I guess it's a catchy headline but really what's the surprise? Millennials are smart, hard-working people and they want the same things every other generation wanted when they were establishing themselves as self-sufficient adults - financial security and a comfortable place to live where they can have a great quality of life that to enjoy now and in the future.

These happy home-owners (pictured above) closed in September on their first home, a townhouse at Oak Ridge in Maynard and they are so excited about their move. After renting a similar townhouse for a couple of years at Deer Hedge Run in Maynard, like a lot of smart Millennials, they decided it was time to pay their own mortgage instead of their landlord's. With rents going through the roof, and interest rates as low as they are going to be for a long time (the Fed has said they will start going up again by year-end) a lot of younger buyers are coming into the market and Maynard has some great opportunities for townhouses and single-family homes. See homes for sale at www.marilynmessenger.com.

While headlines are focusing on Millennials becoming home-owners, baby-boomers are a large segment of the housing market and they are moving to down-size/simplify, relocate, or change their lifestyles. I recently worked with a couple who owned a two-family house in the city. Tired of the congestion and of being a landlord, they wanted a smaller, more manageable single-family house and decided Maynard would be the place to move. They had friends in Maynard, love the open space and the thriving arts community; she is an artist. And like many boomers who may be eligible for retirement, he is still works in Cambridge and is finding the commuter rail service from west Concord an easy commute. They closed on a single-family in Maynard this past month and are happy with their choice.

Home-ownership is not about age. It is about making smart financial decisions and being comfortable in a place where you can do the things that are important to you. It's never too soon or too late to make that move!
_____________________________
About the author: Marilyn Messenger is a licensed real estate broker, a Certified Residential Specialist and Accredited Buyer Representative associated with Andrew Mitchell and Company in Concord MA. She has been representing buyers and sellers in Maynard, Sudbury, Wayland, Concord, Stow, and the towns west of Boston since 1993. Click here to read what her clients say.