Texas Land Trust Conference

TPWD: News Release: Feb. 2, 2004: TPWD To Host 2004 Texas Land Trust Conference Maincontent Local Navigation Supplemental Information print friendly search Regulations Publications Outdoor Learning Kids Game Warden Grants Get Involved Shop FAQ Calendar Español Experience Texas Fishing & Boating State Parks & Destinations Hunting & Wildlife Land & Water Doing Business Home News & Media Releases TPWD Media Links: Texas Parks & Wildlife Magazine Texas Parks & Wildlife Television Program Passport To Texas Radio Program TPWD News Releases Boating Fishing Game Warden Field Notes Hunting Weekly Migratory Bird Hunting Reports State Parks and Destinations News Roundups News Images Radio News Calendar Plain Text: Plain text versions of TPWD news releases are provided for copying and pasting into editing software. To copy text into an editing software: Click a Plain Text link to display the plain text page in your browser. Select all. Copy. Paste in a document in your editing program. If you have any suggestions for improving these pages, send an e-mail to webtech@tpwd.state.tx.us and mention Plain Text Pages. News Releases Note: This item is more than a year old. Please take the publication date into consideration for any date references. Plain Text Media Contact for This Release: Tom Harvey, (512) 389-4453, tom.harvey@tpwd.state.tx.us Feb. 2, 2004 TPWD To Host 2004 Texas Land Trust Conference AUSTIN, Texas – With each passing year, Texans trade in open ranges, grasslands and rivers for strip shopping malls and concrete parking lots. But landowners have other choices for the use of their wide-open spaces, even in a slow economy. The 2004 Statewide Land Trust Conference hopes to offer a few more conservation-friendly options for open lands. Common Ground, Gaining Ground: Tools for Shaping the Texas Landscape on Feb. 27-28 in Austin will offer participants training for land conservation, networking opportunities and meetings with state and federal agencies. Carolyn Vogel, with the Texas Land Trust Council at the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, encourages attorneys, appraisers, private landowners, and those involved in land trusts to attend. Vogel said when land is passed down through a family, it often is split up through fences or partitions, which can harm the natural movement of wildlife. Sometimes the inherited property is too small to live off of, and parcels are sold off. Development affects water quality and the ecosystem. “A lot of landowners feel they are backed against a wall,” Vogel said. “The only thing they can do is sell since the land can no longer support them. Texas loses more farmland every year, (about 283 square mile), than any other state in the country.” Landowners, their advisors and the conservation community will come together at the 2004 conference to learn about the range of assistance available to them. This includes technical and financial assistance programs and potential tax incentives. These tax incentives will be discussed as part of an all-day conservation easement workshop on Friday, Feb 27. Another topic will be a recent study by the American Farmland Trust and Texas A&M University called Texas Rural Lands: Trends and Conservation Implications for the 21 st Century. A session and workshop will discuss findings about how and why open land is disappearing and what the future may look like. Continuing education credits in several fields are pending. Early registration by Feb. 6 is $65 for Texas Land Trust Council members and $85 for non-members. After that date, the fee is $100. For more information about the conference, contact Susan Harris at (512) 389-4961 or by e-mail at susan.harris@tpwd.state.tx.us or download a brochure (http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/conserve/tltc/bulletinboard/). SA 2004-02-02 Contact Us | Help | Accessibility | Media | Site Policies | Complaints | Intranet | State of Texas | TRAILS Search | TexasOnline | Compact with Texans Texas Parks and Wildlife Department , 4200 Smith School Road, Austin, TX 78744 Toll Free: (800) 792-1112, Austin: (512) 389-4800 Content of this site © Texas Parks and Wildlife Department unless otherwise noted. Last modified: December 27, 2005, 3:47 pm

Buy Home

REALTOR.com: Real estate listings & homes for sale Welcome, Visitor! Sign Up to: Save Searches Save Listings Sign Up Now! Already a member? Sign In Homebuying Tools Find a Lender Find a Mover Market Conditions Neighborhood Tour Real Estate 101 Buyers Sellers For REALTORS® Resource Center News REALTOR.org Search the Web Select a Top Search: Bad Credit Contractors Homeowner's Insurance Debt Consolidation Interior Design Mortgage Rates Loan Types Rates Points 30-yr fixed 5.74% 0.37 15-yr fixed 5.39% 0.28 ARM 3/1, 30Yrs 4.87% 0.26 Updated: 12/29/2005 12:30:37 PM Check Local Rates Search our national directory of mortgage brokers and lenders. Find a Home Over 2.5 million listings for sale! State/Province AB AK AL AR AZ BC CA CO CT DC DE FL GA GU HI IA ID IL IN KS KY LA MA MB MD ME MI MO MN MS MT NC ND NE NH NJ NM NV NY OH OK ON OR PA PR RI SC SD TN TX UT VI VT VA WA WI WV WY - OR - Minimum Price $0 $500 $1,000 $1,400 $2,000 $5,000 $10,000 $20,000 $30,000 $40,000 $45,000 $50,000 $55,000 $60,000 $70,000 $75,000 $100,000 $125,000 $150,000 $175,000 $200,000 $225,000 $250,000 $275,000 $300,000 $325,000 $350,000 $400,000 $450,000 $500,000 $550,000 $600,000 $650,000 $700,000 $750,000 $800,000 $850,000 $900,000 $1,000,000 $1,250,000 $1,500,000 $1,750,000 $2,000,000 $2,250,000 $2,500,000 $2,750,000 $3,000,000 $3,500,000 $4,000,000 $4,500,000 $5,000,000 $6,000,000 $8,000,000 $10,000,000 to Maximum Price $1,000 $1,400 $2,000 $5,000 $10,000 $20,000 $30,000 $40,000 $45,000 $50,000 $55,000 $60,000 $70,000 $75,000 $100,000 $125,000 $150,000 $175,000 $200,000 $225,000 $250,000 $275,000 $300,000 $325,000 $350,000 $400,000 $450,000 $500,000 $550,000 $600,000 $650,000 $700,000 $750,000 $800,000 $850,000 $900,000 $1,000,000 $1,250,000 $1,500,000 $1,750,000 $2,000,000 $2,250,000 $2,500,000 $2,750,000 $3,000,000 $3,500,000 $4,000,000 $4,500,000 $5,000,000 $6,000,000 $8,000,000 $10,000,000 no maximum Beds 1+ Beds 2+ Beds 3+ Beds 4+ Beds 5+ Beds Baths 1+ Baths 1.5+ Baths 2+ Baths 2.5+ Baths 3+ Baths 3.5+ Baths 4+ Baths More Search Options Map Search Hurricane Relief Find or offer immediately available temporary housing to assist Hurricane victims: HurricaneHousing.net Relief.WelcomeWagon.com -- Find a REALTOR State/Province Alabama Alaska Alberta Arizona Arkansas British Columbia California Colorado Connecticut Delaware District Of Columbia Florida Georgia Guam Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Manitoba Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Ontario Oregon Pennsylvania Puerto Rico Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virgin Islands Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming From the National Association of REALTORS ® Join REALTORS® in supporting hurricane victims Why Use a REALTOR® With a GRI? Make the most of every moment with FamilyTime, an interactive DVD celebrating the family. Visit REALTOR® Magazine Online Read current NAR Press Releases For REALTORS ® REALTORS Relief Effort exceeds $5.2 million for Hurricane victims, donate now... Enter the Business Success Zone at REALTOR.org! Find out how REALTOR.com can help you secure more listings, sell homes for more and promote yourself and your brand NEW name for NAR member benefits offeringsthe REALTOR Benefits(sm) Program. Learn about the practical, everyday solutions for your professional and personal life! Reach new levels of success with NAR partner, The Pacific Institute! About the National Association of REALTORS ® Representing Home Owners State & Local Associations Real Estate Specialty Organizations Find an Appraiser Find a Commercial Property International Real Estate Search in popular metros: Atlanta | Austin | Boston | Chicago | Dallas | Denver | Houston | Las Vegas | Long Island | Los Angeles | Memphis | Miami | New York City | Orange County | Palm Beach | Phoenix | Sacramento | San Diego | Seattle Site Map | Corporate News & Info | Contact Us | Advertise With Us | Join our staff Terms of Use and PrivacyPolicy . 1995- NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS and Homestore, Inc. All rights reserved. Equal Housing Opportunity REALTOR.com is the official site of the National Association of REALTORS and is operated by Homestore, Inc. REALTOR -- A Registered collective membership mark that identifies a real estate professional who is a member of the National Association of REALTORS and subscribes to its strict Code of Ethics. Inquiries regarding the Code of Ethics should be directed to the board in which a REALTOR holds membership.

Investment Property for a

How to Sell an Investment Property for a Loss - eHow.com Clear Instructions on How To Do (just about) Everything Web eHow.com Home Finance & Business Center Real Estate How to Sell an Investment Property for a Loss Selling an investment property for a loss will give you a tax write-off directly against your income. Steps: 1. Calculate your "basis;" this is the base variable used to calculate the gain or loss on the sale of a property. Your original basis is comprised of the property's purchase price plus the buying expenses (non-recurring escrow costs such as title insurance, escrow fees, recording fees, transfer taxes, commission, tax service, deed preparation, credit report, appraisal fee and termite inspection) upon acquisition. 2. Calculate your adjusted basis. The adjusted basis is the original basis plus improvements made to the property while you've owned it. 3. Sell the property. With an all-cash transaction the tax event occurs in the year the property is sold. 4. Calculate depreciation. (According to the I.R.S., every asset has a useable life, and the amount of depreciation is calculated according to the life of a certain asset. Consult with the I.R.S. or an accountant/C.P.A. to determine the correct amount of depreciation you should use.) Use the total amount of depreciation taken on tax returns for the total time the property has been held. 5. Calculate the expenses of the sale. Expenses include real estate agent commission (if any) and any other expenses directly associated with the sale of the property. 6. Add the expenses of the sale to the adjusted cost basis. This is your new adjusted basis. 7. Add the total depreciation to the sales price, and subtract from the new adjusted basis. This is the amount of your loss. 8. Assure yourself of a loss by calculating that the adjusted cost basis of the property plus the expense of sale will be greater than the gross sales price plus all depreciation. 9. File I.R.S. form 4797, Sale of Business Property. Tips: Points are not deducted as a buying expense, but are amortized over the life of the loan. Properties held for investment must have been used for personal use less than 14 days throughout the year. There are other ways to sell investment property, such as through an installment sale or an exchange. Consult a C.P.A or exchange facilitator for assistance. These selling options are complicated and require the assistance of a trained professional. Sometimes a seller will agree to pay a certain number of the borrower's points for obtaining a loan. When a seller pays points for a loan, they are considered to be selling expenses (just like a commission) and can be added to the adjusted cost basis. Warnings: In order to include certain selling costs, such as repairs required to sell the property, these costs have to occur within a specific period of time before the sale to qualify. Check with your accountant or C.P.A. Please Share Your Tips with Us More Resources: Contribute to eHow: Write an eHow Article Suggest a Topic Give Us Feedback on This Article Related eHows: Choose a Real Estate Agent to Sell a House Pay Taxes on Your Rental Home Get Tax-Free Profit From Your Rental Home Sell Mineral Rights Do a Tax-Deferred Exchange on Investment Property Things You'll Need: calculators tax consultants Project Details: Skill Advisory: Moderately Easy New! -- Related eHows: Choose a Real Estate Agent to Sell a House Pay Taxes on Your Rental Home Get Tax-Free Profit From Your Rental Home Sell Mineral Rights Do a Tax-Deferred Exchange on Investment Property Check out Thousands of How-To Solutions in eHow's Centers Automotive Careers & Education Computers & Home Electronics Family & Relationships Finance & Business Food & Entertaining Health Hobbies & Games Holidays & Traditions Home & Garden Personal Care & Style Pets Sports & Fitness Travel How to: --? Web eHow.com Home | Site Map | About Us | How To Books | Link to eHow Subscribe to the eHow of the Day Mailing List : Have the eHow of the Day appear on your My Yahoo! Page: Add the eHow of the Day to your RSS reader: © 1999-2005 eHow, Inc. How things get done. Use of this web site constitutes acceptance of the eHow Terms of Use and Privacy .

Real Estate Loans

Real Estate Center RECON Newsletter Name: E-mail: Subscribe Unsubscribe It's Free. Texas Cities... Texas Real Estate Confidence Index 4th Qtr 2005 % Chg Last Qtr .60 -0.04 Apartment Complex Sold SAN ANTONIO (mysanantonio.com) – Blue Star Apartment Management Inc. has purchased Sutter’s Mill Apartment Homes at 11955 Parliament St. from Delta Court Apartments LLC and Tabor Villa LLC of San Francisco for an undisclosed price. More RECON » Holiday Gift Speaks Homebuyer's Language COLLEGE STATION, Texas Have a friend, neighbor or relative who is in the market forbuying or selling a house this holiday season? The Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University has a unique gift idea for less than $10 a glossary of realestate terms that makes real estate transactions easier to understand. More » More News Releases » Events Calendar Season's Greetings ! The Real Estate Center will be closed from December 22, 2005 until January 2, 2006 for the holidays. Instructor Training Courses , May 18-19, College Station, Texas.The Legal Update and Ethics instructor training courses include credit for the required 3-hour Legal Update course and the required 3-hour Ethics course. In addition, each instructor training course will include a brief orientation to the teachers manuals for each course as well as a discussion of training issues.Registration will open in January 2006. More Event Information » What's New • Software Directory Updated • Austin Recovers • Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac? • Homeownership Programs • Urban Big Boxes • Is Texas Land Overpiced? • Housing Affordability Index Revised • Property Tax Court Cases • Brokerage-Related Cases • Growth of Texas Cities • Depreciable Land Improvements • Monthly Review of the Texas Economy (Oct.) • Texas Homebuyers Get More Home . . . • Video: Real Estate is an Attractive Investment • Video: Texas Foreclosure in Perspective • Real Estate Confidence Drops Slightly • Family Violence Victims . . . • Numbers Pop Housing Bubble Talk • It’s Going to Cost More to Keep Cool • Consumers: "More Informal Space" • Hang on After Boarding the Homebuying Ride • Beware of ‘Gotchas’ in Home Warranties • Can’t Stand the Heat, Retire Some Place Else • Hallelujah for Hardware Heaven • Why Builders Say Your House Costs So Much • Signing Away Mineral Rights Forever • Lust for Luxury • Young Buyers Making Big Impact • Home Threats are Closer Than You Think • Lamenting Fragmenting Publications Tierra Grande is our quarterly magazine with timely research and analysis of the trends and events shaping Texas real estate today. Experts on appraisal, housing , finance, law, demography, economics, investment and other areas share insights unavailable anywhere else. Terminology associated with home buying or renting can intimidate anyone. When one party’s native languageis Spanish and the other’s is not, communication can be extra challenging.The Real Estate Center’s newly revised English-Spanish Real Estate Glossary addresses this problem by defining 700 real estateterms in English and Spanish. Now also a software program on CD. Thinking about a real estate career? Click here for a free online copy of Obtaining a Texas Real Estate License . The report includes the steps to take, types of licenses, qualifications, required educational courses, getting credit for previous class work, who offers classes, fees and much more. The Real Estate Software Directory , updated for 2005, features 977 software packages from 617 companies. Created as a resource for anyone whose business relates to real estate, the directory describes programs that design advertising, evaluate budgets, manage contacts, generate legal forms, help with loans or create web pages. More publications » Solutions Through Research News :: Publications :: Data :: Software :: Education :: Cybersites :: Site Map Mays Business School, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas

Real Estate Loan

Deductibility of Real-Estate Loan Refinancing Charges Deductibility of Real-Estate Loan Refinancing Charges By Steven V. Melnik E-mail Story Print Story With interest rates at all-time lows, many Americans are refinancing home loans. Because refinancing transactions usually cost thousands of dollars, it is important to know when refinancing expenditures are deductible. Loans Secured by a Principal Residence The IRC defines a principal residence as where the taxpayer spends the most time during any given taxable year. Consequently, principal residence status can change from year to year. As a general rule, taxpayers can deduct points paid for refinancing principal residence loans. IRC section 461(g) defines many fees as points, but only qualifying points are allowed as a deduction. Qualifying points are usually fees paid to the lender for a loan (see the Sidebar for a list of requirements). Loan application, processing, underwriting, and other fees are not deductible. Revenue Procedure 94-27 allows itemized deductions for qualifying points resulting from the purchase of a principal residence. Points paid for refinancing an existing mortgage, however, cannot be immediately deducted. According to IRC section 461(g), those points are deducted over the life of the new loan. To calculate the portion of those points deductible in any particular year, determine the deductible points for each loan payment and multiply by the number of payments made during that year (per payment amortization). For example, consider an individual who paid $1,800 refinancing qualifying points on a principal residence for a 30-year loan requiring 12 payments per year (a total of 360 payments). The $5 allowable deduction for every loan payment is calculated by dividing $1,800 by 360. Six loan payments during the year would result in a $30 itemized deduction, with unamortized points amounting to $1,770. Multiple Refinancing Activities Remaining refinancing points are generally deductible in the year when a second refinancing occurs with a different lender. In the example above, the remaining $1,770 first-loan points would be deductible that year. If the second refinancing is with the same lender, however, the remaining points and any new qualifying points paid would be deductible over the life of the new loan. Points paid during a refinancing transaction are immediately deductible to the extent the new loan is used to substantially improve a principal residence, assuming the requirements listed in the Sidebar are met. Substantial improvements, such as building an addition to a house, qualify. For example, a $60,000 loan from bank B to refinance bank A’s $40,000 loan and a $20,000 house addition would result in one-third of the newly paid qualifying points being deducted that year. Refinancing of Second or Vacation Homes Some Americans are investing in real estate as an alternative to stocks and bonds. Tax rules applicable to vacation and second homes differ from those for primary residences. Points paid for a purchase, substantial improvement, or refinancing of second and vacation homes are generally deductible over the life of the loan. The per-payment amortization method is applicable. Other refinancing-related expenditures increase the tax basis of the home. Rental Properties and Properties Used in a Trade or Business. When refinancing rental properties and properties used in a trade or business, all ordinary and necessary refinancing expenditures are deductible over the life of the loan. Refinance-related expenditures for rental properties are deductible on line 18, Form 1040, Schedule E; for properties used in a trade or business, expenditures are deducted on Form 1040, Schedule C. Other Deductibility Issues When sellers of real estate pay for points on the buyer’s behalf, they are not allowed to deduct those points, but can reduce sales proceeds. Buyers can deduct those points if the property basis is reduced by the same amount. All other refinancing-related expenditures, such as attorney, appraisal, bank, title, and other fees, are not deductible. They do, however, increase the tax basis of the home to the extent they are not deductible. Points are deductible when a cash-basis taxpayer itemizes deductions. Deductibility can be affected, however, when a taxpayer’s adjusted gross income reaches a certain threshold. (The 2003 threshold is $69,750 for married filing separately returns and $139,500 for all others.) The deductibility of refinancing-related expenditures depends upon the type of property securing the refinanced loan, as well as how the loan proceeds are used. The use of the property must be understood, because properties can be used for more than one tax purpose in any given year. It is important to be familiar with the tax consequences of refinancing transactions in order to derive the maximum benefit. Steven V. Melnik, LLM, JD, CPA , is Professor of Tax Law and Director of Graduate Tax Programs at Bernard M. Baruch College, City University of New York. May 2004 Issue Enlarge Cover Features Regulation of Professions by Interstate Compact 20 Questions onTrust, Medicaid, Insurance, and Asset Transfers Accounting for Stock Option Government Procurement Basics More This Issue | Past Issues Home | Contact | Subscribe | Advertise | Archives | NYSSCPA The CPA Journal is broadly recognized as an outstanding, technical-refereed publication aimed at public practitioners, management, educators, and other accounting professionals. It is edited by CPAs for CPAs. Our goal is to provide CPAs and other accounting professionals with the information and news to enable them to be successful accountants, managers, and executives in today's practice environments. ©2005 The CPA Journal. Legal Notices