Pending sales of previously owned homes edged up as expected in December, a survey showed on Tuesday: Will this help to calm fears of renewed weakness in the troubled housing sector? The National Association of Realtors’ index of pending home sales rose 1% in December after tumbling 16.4% in November. Economists had expected sales to be unchanged. The NAR’s index was 10.9%… [Read More]
WHITE HOUSE 2011 BUDGET: NOW WHAT?
How will the just announced White House $3.8 trillion budget for fiscal 2011 impact the luxury real estate market? In it is a proposal to raise capital gains taxes back to 20%. (The Bush tax cuts had reduced this to the current 15%.) …..Better get those capital gains posted in 2010! The top tax bracket would… [Read More]
SUPER-BUSY JANUARY MARKET.
The month of January 2010 was a busy real estate month indeed: Brokers babbled about how this weekend’s Open Houses felt more like 2007/2008. How sustainable is this when The White House just announced raised budgets and taxes? Only time will tell. Manhattanites are often similar to Igor in ‘Young Frankenstein’….the world may see the… [Read More]