When you are buying your house did you consider whether you can have a professional office, whether you can add an addition to the north side, whether you can live in the third floor attic? These are all questions relating to the building and zoning laws both of New York…
Articles Posted in Real Estate Hints and Help
No Equity, Scammers Go for the Debt Consolidation Fraud in New York.
When there’s distress, there’s fraud, scams and victims, especially in New York. Distressed homeowners beware– no equity, no plan, no defense to scammers. The NYTimes reports about a new breed of scammer, one who takes your payments, fails to deal with the debt they promised to consolidate or “solve,” and…
Don’t be Fooled by the Power of the Appraisal in New York
How was it that during the “heyday” of the credit spigot the “lender’s” appraisal for real property in New York always ended up at or close to the exorbitant purchase price and inflated mortgage sought by the purchaser. That is the question that New York’s Attorney General threatened to investigate,…
New York Attorney General Asks–Do You Know Your Home Improvement Contractor?
Your home is your sanctuary, your largest investment, and possibly your largest headache if you are not careful about who you hire. So, it pays to be careful when hiring home improvement contractors, whether for a small construction project or a huge renovation, you need to know that your contractor…
Refinancing — the Fed to the Rescue of New York Homeowners?
Is the price of re-financing worth the expense in New York? Well, as you can imagine, that depends. As a recent NYTimes article points out, as the prices for mortgages drop, consumer interest perks up, and we all go around wondering whether it makes sense to re-finance again!! Here’s the…
IRS and New York State Tax Department Trying to Expedite Tax Lien Information and Closings.
How do you sell your distressed home or refinance your real estate if you have a federal or state tax lien? Well, WSJournal.com reports that the IRS is trying to help themselves get paid for their tax liens more quickly, thereby speeding up relief to distressed homeowners trying to re-finance.…
Second Home Taxes and Exclusions–Capital Gains Tax May Hurt in New York
It appears that the Federal Government is getting a little more needy, because it is now going to collect more capital gains taxes on the sales of residential real estate property in New York. As discussed in other posts, under the “The Housing Assistance Tax Act of 2008,” homeowners no…
Attorney Contingency Clauses in Upstate New York.
Beware of what you are signing in an upstate New York real estate transaction. The problems and perils of non-lawyers having contracts signed prior to attorney review. New York State’s highest court, the Court of Appeals, recently considered a frightening set of facts and protected the attorney-client relationship. But, beware.…
What is a CEMA and How Does it Save Money in New York?
“CEMA” stands for Consolidation, Extension and Modification Agreement, and is used to save mortgage tax in certain situations. Sellers sometimes use this process and procedure to refinance real estate located in New York State because, when recording a New York Consolidation, Extension and Modification Agreement, they pay only the mortgage…
What is an “Apostille” or “Authentication?”
You have relatives in Greece, but need them to sign a deed in a form recordable with the New York State courts. How, in today’s age, where people move, fly and otherwise re-locate, do we get them to sign a deed without coming back to Rockland County? How do we…