3.8% Sales Tax coming for home sales, Well, not exactly

Q: Does the new health care law impose a 3.8 percent tax on profits from selling your home?

A: No, with very few exceptions. The first $250,000 in profit from the sale of a personal residence won’t be taxed, or the first $500,000 in the case of a married couple. The tax falls on relatively few — those with high incomes from other sources.

FULL ANSWER


Many are claiming that as a result of the new health care bill home sellers will incur a 3.8 percent tax on all home sales .This is inaccurate and needs to be corrected. The truth about the bill is that if you sell your home for a profit above the capital gains threshold of $250,000 per individual or $500,000 per couple then you would be required to pay the additional 3.8 percent tax on any gain realized over this threshold.

Most people who sell their homes will not be impacted by these new regulations. This is not a new tax on every seller, and that correction needs to be made. This tax is aimed at so-called “high earners” — if you do not fall into that category you will not pay any extra taxes upon the sale of your home.

For example, let’s assume that a couple with an income of $325,000 bought a house in 2004 for $300,000 and resold it in 2013 for $850,000, thus producing a $550,000 profit.

After excluding $500,000 from their gain of the sale, they are left with $50,000 investment income. Since their AGI is $75,000 over the married threshold amount the lesser amount of $50,000 would be subject to taxation – at 3.8 percent they would owe $1,900.

The referenced tax is therefore not a tax on all real estate sales; it is an investment income tax which could result in a very small percentage of home sellers paying additional taxes on home sales profits over a designated threshold amount. In short, if you’re a “high earner” and you sell your home at a substantial profit, you might be required to pay an additional 3.8% tax. However, given that only about 3% of U.S. households have incomes that exceed the specified income threshold amount, the existing home sale capital gains exclusion on a principal residence ($250,000 for individuals, $500,000 for couples) still stands, and the national median existing-home price in January 2012 was only $154,700.

The 3.8 percent tax will take effect beginning January 1, 2013.

 

bannerpsst … I’m a Realtor! Thanks for stopping by my website. I  would love to help you find your dream home and community in the Hampton Roads or Williamsburg areas of Virginia or to sell your existing home.

This post was authored by local resident and REALTOR, John Womeldorf. John is known around town as Mr. Williamsburg, for both his extensive knowledge of the Williamsburg/ Hampton Roads area and  and his expertise in the local real estate market.

His websites, WilliamsburgsRealEstate.com and Mr Williamsburg.com were created as a resource for folks who are exploring a move to Williamsburg, VA , Hampton Roads VA and the  surrounding areas of the Virginia Peninsula.

Here you can search homes for sale , active adult communities, 55+ communities, condos and townhomes , foreclosures/ REOland, building lots, commercial property  in Williamsburg , Yorktown, New Kent, Gloucester, Poquoson as well as the surrounding areas of Hampton Roads, Virginia
You can reach John by phone at 757-254-8136 or email him atJohn@MrWilliamsburg.com

I look forward to serving your real estate needs!

Best,

John

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