Property Tax Appeal

Five easy steps to get your yearly property tax bill reduced.

1) Complete the form below.
2) Sam will complete your assessment appeals application and drop it off at your front door. If your mailing address is different than your property address, Sam will mail you the completed application and comparable sales separately.
3) Sign the application and mail the forms to the county assessors office (address will be provided), along with provided comparable sales.
4) You'll receive a notice from Clerk of the Assessment Appeals Board that your application has been received and you will be provided with an application number - KEEP THIS INFO.
5) If the appeal is successful, you'll receive another notice confirming your new assessed property value along with a refund on ant monies already paid.

More information is available by visiting the county web site COUNTY WEB SITE

Serramar Homes In High Demand

Serramar Homes In High Demand

Homeowners selling their homes inside the community of Serramar – La Mesa have seen a steady decline in the amount of market time required to sell their homes. This combined with low inventory levels has created a huge demand for home buyers in our community.

Are you a Serramar homeowner looking to sell?

Contact me today. I've got a list of well qualified home buyers willing to pay fair market value for your home. If your home is a fit for one of my clients, I'd be willing to sell your home at a reduced commission, saving you literally thousands of dollars. Contact me today for more information about this.

Are you interested in buying a home in Serramar?

Sign up for my instant email notification. I'll email you any time a new home has been listed, or is about to be listed in Serramar.

Why Serramar home buyers are motivated

Take a look at the the 30 Mortgage rate one-year moving trend chart below.

Why might this effect Serramar homeowners?

Buyer can afford more with these low rates! They also hate dealing with lenders on Short Sales and Foreclosure properties. In most cases buyers are willing to pay slightly more than market value for a home if they don't have to deal with a bank. If you've got equity, now might be the best time ever to sell your Serramar home.

Comperative Market Analysis Serrmar La Mesa

Year over year foreclosure filings down for La Mesa

Year-over-year notices of sale are up 11% from June 2009. However, notice of default filings have been reduced more than 34%. Welcome news to those hoping to see an end to foreclosure properties in the neighborhood.

I've also added this chart to the menu bar on the right hand side for future updates.

California Legislature approves tax break for people in foreclosures, short sales

The measure, which is expected to be signed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, would waive state taxes on mortgage debt that has been forgiven in a foreclosure or short sale.

April 09, 2010|By Patrick McGreevy

 

Reporting from Sacramento — Thousands of Californians whose homes were foreclosed on or sold at a loss would get tax relief under a measure approved Thursday by the state Legislature.

The bill would waive state taxes on mortgage debt that has been forgiven in a foreclosure or short sale. It is expected to affect about 34,000 taxpayers.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said he would sign the measure, which would also provide about $60 million in tax credits to green-energy companies, when it reached his desk. Californians can already claim the tax breaks on federal returns. Lawmakers passed the measure in time for people to take advantage of it by the April 15 deadline for filing tax returns.

"The mortgage-debt tax relief provision in this bill will provide financial shelter for tens of thousands of Californians who have lost their hopes and dreams in the housing market crash, and it's about time we gave these folks a helping hand," said state Sen. Ron Calderon (D-Montebello).

The short-sale provision would mean about $34 million less in tax revenue for the state over three years, according to the Franchise Tax Board.

The "green" credits are a response to the federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which provides grants to firms for power plants that produce renewable energy. The federal government does not tax the grant money. Under the bill approved Thursday, California would provide similar relief.

Other parts of the measure, SB 401 by Sen. Lois Wolk (D-Davis), were called tax increases by Republicans. Even though they supported the tax-relief element, several GOP members of the Senate and Assembly voted against the bill, which was opposed by the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Assn.

The Republicans objected to a provision that would reduce deductions for charitable gifts, and to changes that would allow the state to tax more income earned by minor dependents.

The changes would also make it harder to qualify a home as a principal residence for purposes of escaping capital gains taxes when the property is sold, and some penalties and interest charges to corporations would be increased, according to Therese M. Twomey, a principal consultant for the Senate Republican Policy Office.

These changes would bring in more than $10 million in new revenue over five years, Twomey said.

"It's an issue of fairness," said Sen. George Runner (R-Lancaster). "You are giving money to one group of people and taking it away from another group of people."

With the plunge in the real estate market, many Californians have found themselves owing much more on their mortgages than their homes are worth. Some have been foreclosed upon or asked their lender to approve a short sale, in which a home is sold for less than the debt, some of which is waived.

The amount waived has been considered taxable income under California law. The measure passed Thursday would eliminate that tax when a bank agrees to accept less than what is owed on a home.

The governor vetoed a similar bill last month because it included a provision, since removed, that would have increased penalties against businesses and wealthy individuals who abuse tax credits.

Business groups including the California Chamber of Commerce and Western States Petroleum Assn. complained that the provision would have made businesses reluctant to claim the tax breaks for fear of making a costly error. The businesses also said California's tax penalties were already tougher than those in other states.

Wolk said the penalties would not have applied to honest mistakes.

The new measure would lift a great burden from the shoulders of Valarie Wood and her husband, who were facing a $10,000 state tax bill on debt that was forgiven in a short sale of their property in Ventura.

The 10-acre property, which included an avocado grove, had plummeted in value far below what they owed.

Health problems and a "mortgage gone awry" forced the couple to renegotiate their loan with their bank, which agreed to waive about $300,000 of debt on the house and property, Wood said.

"We've lost our dream home. We are in our 60s, and it was going to be our retirement," she said, her voice choking with emotion. "This bill is crucial for people like us. We are extremely relieved."

Schwarzenegger said during a news conference Thursday that he wants to give homeowners and businesses "the relief they need."

"We want to be helpful in every way we can, so we will sign it," he said.

 

 

 

Know your options

If you're having a tough time making your monthly mortgage payments, you're not alone. There are other homeowners in Serramar just like you. In fact, our community has seen a recent spike in families that have lost their homes to foreclosure.

Recently, I had a neighbor who did absolutely nothing to ward off their foreclosure proceedings. This family literally waited until the last minute when the Sheriff's department came knocking on their front door with a three day notice to vacate. I watched this family labor for three straight days, working late into the night, as they quickly packed up their personal belongs. It was an extremely sad sight to witness. Please don't let this happen to you. You have options. Do something! Don't just wait for the day when the sheriff comes knocking on your door.

3 Options to Consider;

• LOAN MODIFICATION-Although most lenders now really only offer a temporary fix, it might provide you with enough time to get back on your feet again.
• SHORT SALE-This option provides you with the
  most control of the three. You have the ability to negotiate. If your home forecloses, you may be on the hook for potential "deficiency judgments". Also, a short sale process cost you nothing out of pocket and in most cases allows you to stay in your home longer than doing nothing.
  
• FORECLOSURE-Sometimes foreclosure is unavoidable, I seriously recommend that you exhaust all the options listed above first, rather than do nothing at all. Doing nothing, in most cases, speeds up the foreclosure process.
  

I'm here to help answer any questions you might have.