Loan Modification

Tax on 1099C, Cancellation of Debt Income; Short Sale, Loan Modification & Foreclosure. Exception; Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act, Bankruptcy & Insolvency. Go To http://RealEstateMarketingThisWeek.com

Part 5 (Excerpt)

Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act of 2007, one exception to paying cancellation of debt income

Welcome back to the Velocity of Money I am Michael J. Barnes Arizona’s and I’m with Velocity Financial and were here every week talking about all matters financial, regarding real estate as well as finances. Brett Fallon is back on the air with us again along with Mike Patenella who is a certified public accountant for the last 20 years and amazing brain, were glad he’s back on.

Mike we were talking before the break about loan modifications, my point before going off the air was that people think they’re going to get this huge amount of money waived on a loan that they have, realistically what most loan modifications are going to look like is extended term, significantly lower interest rate, generally a fixed interest rate for the entire time, and in some cases they will do some principal reduction, and there is some exclusions for people having to pay tax on that, is that correct?

Yes, there is, before I get into that keep in mind that with taxes normally not one rule applies to everybody, were going to talk general but everyone’s going to have their own specific situation, that they’re going to have to really check with somebody and make sure they’re doing the right thing. In 2007 in response to the economic situation, they passed a mortgage forgiveness debt relief act which essentially allows people to not pay tax on $2 million dollars debt forgiven on their principal residence. Thats in regard to be principal reduction, loan modification.

Right, so in your example if $50,000 of your loan is being reduced, if your situation fits, under this new law, we might be able get you to avoid the tax on that.

Once again a very good reason for you to go to a professional CPA like yourself for that help, not something the average person is going to be able to figure out on their own. You have to keep up on the tax law and that’s almost a full-time job.

Hey how many pages is that tax code now? On last count I heard you say it was something like 9000 pages.

I don’t know the exact number of pages I know it’s in the several thousand and as Mike knows quite well, and I am aware of also is the tax code has been morphing and changing more than I have ever seen in my entire career here recently. Going back to the tax act of 2003 to the present there have been literally hundreds of changes. So for the average person whos listening to this broadcast who is considering a loan modification, trying to take care of a portfolio, and take care of their taxes at the same time, WOW! Good luck to you

So exclusions to the income, can we talk about a few different ones?

Sure bankruptcy is one exclusion, if you’re filing bankruptcy; the other one is if the taxpayer is insolvent which essentially means that their liabilities exceed their assets. When you factor in assets you factor in retirement accounts and all that, its not that easy to fall under that one.

Oh so the value of my 401(k) goes into that on the other side of the balance sheet. So for the most part if you dont fall into one of these two youre going to try to rely on this new tax law to exclude some of the debt forgiven.

How long ago was that past? I am sorry I don’t remember, was that August of 2007? It’s called the mortgage forgiveness debt relief act of 2007 and it only applies to qualified principal residences. Is that ongoing? Is there a cap on the time?

Well originally it was set to expire at the end of 09. Then in 2008, since the economy kept getting worse they extended that another three years or so through 2012

Well we hope were all well through of this mess sooner and we won’t have to need this any longer after 2009. Actually I want it gone now.

Duration : 0:6:20

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Tax on 1099C, Cancellation of Debt Income; Short Sale, Loan Modification & Foreclosure. Exception; Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act, Bankruptcy & Insolvency. Go To http://RealEstateMarketingThisWeek.com

Part 2 (Excerpt)

A team approach is best when dealing with all issues regarding taxes, real estate and investments

Brett, wow what an exciting four days

Yes the last four days in the stock market have been a really wild, you know the doom and gloom. I will give you an example, the year to date low closing of the S&P 500 at 752 was the value for that index. And that occurred last Thursday, November 20 the last four days in the stock market has virtually gone straight up, as a matter-of-fact, reporting a yearly 15% gain in those four trading sessions.

What people fail to realize is that level of gain, coming off a loss in your portfolio is really important to get you back on the right track, so those who are wondering if its time to buy or should I have sold. I say November 20 you can’t afford to miss a 15% rally. I can’t tell you what the market will do come Friday, which is a half day or next week, but I can tell you there is a growing consensus among multiple economists, and experts say were in for the mother of all rallies in an otherwise bear market economy.

And one other thing that I want to point out really quickly, thats so important to the listeners out there in regard to this show specifically. We spent a lot of time talking about strategic partnerships, and today is a perfect example of what Velocity Financial and the Velocity of Money Radio Show are all about.

We have strategic partnerships to work towards the best possible outcome for the listeners that are tuned into the broadcast. They are looking for a ray of hope, theyre looking for education, theyre looking for information. And when you put those factors together and introduce tax experts like Mike Patenella, the certified professional mortgage strategies such as you, registered financial consultants like I. Thats how people, when we have these experts and strategic partners working towards the best possible outcome.

Thats a really good point. And I like the way you illustrated that, one of the things that so many people like to do today, is to do so much on their own and that’s okay. When you do things on your own, typically people learn more about it. The problem is, now is not the time to try to figure out what to do with your money in the stock market. Now is certainly not the time.

If youre facing foreclosure, or youre considering a short sale, youre possibly losing your house, you can’t make your mortgage payments or you need a loan modification, its not something you should try on your own, its one of those things where you just don’t know the ins and the outs. More importantly, talking about doing these types of things on your own, do you really have the time to dedicate to what it is youre trying to do.

For instance there is a silly commercial on the tv, Mike where the guy is getting audited and the lady says oh, let’s talk to the box. Thats a classic example of somebody who wants to go buy a box of software at a warehouse store to do their own taxes, and Mike I know for example that you have still have people who have tried to do it on their own. And in most cases you find many things that are missed.

Yes thats why were in business. It’s worth it to have us help you out, you’ll save money and you will pay us less than you will the government. Our goal is to work for you, work with the mortgage guys and financial planners and coordinate an effort to help you out.

Brett Fallon and I have been working together for years, we share most all of our financial sense or ideals are parallel. I have learned a lot about finances from Brett that I never knew. And Brett and Mike have been working together also for many years, it has only been a year or so since you and I have met.

But having said that you could do your own taxes, you could do your own investing. You can get one of those online accounts. Well, you could do your own loan modification, but in any case, that I have ever been involved in, in regard to loan modification, doing your own taxes, or doing your own finances, you will inevitably miss something. It’s just worth paying a little bit more to hire a professional, versus trying to do something like that on your own.

Especially the impact the situation where there is substantial, job loss, loan modification or any of these potential types of situations.

Duration : 0:6:51

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Duration : 0:3:59

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Tax on 1099C, Cancellation of Debt Income; Short Sale, Loan Modification & Foreclosure. Exception; Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act, Bankruptcy & Insolvency. Go To http://RealEstateMarketingThisWeek.com

Part 1 (Excerpt)

Expert tax advice from a CPA regarding a real estate related issues

Today’s show has a timely message. We have with us, an expert in the tax ramifications of the different types of mortgage situations that people find themselves in, we have brought in Mike Patenella, that I will introduce in just a moment, as well as Brett Fallon is back with us. Were going to be talking about the tax ramifications of short sales, foreclosures, and some of the different types of loan modifications.

Now if you listen to our show regularly, of course you know, we have been over the last several weeks, talking about loan modifications, but we have been getting hundreds of e-mails and calls requesting more information on the loan modifications. There are also some interesting questions that people ask about whats going to happen in regard to taxes. Thats the one thing that so many people are not talking about.

Well we need to talk about it. Its something that we need to bring to you that you can hear and thats what were going to focus the majority of today’s show on. Before I introduce Mike I need to introduce one of my very best friends and the best financial advisor I have ever known, Brett Fallon. Brett thanks for being on the show today.

Brett also has some information in regard to the markets and there is some really great, exciting stuff out there. But before I throw that back over to Brett, we have our expert guest today. He is a CPA and his name is Mike Patenella, thank you for being on the air with us today.

Mike is an expert in taxes, he is a CPA, he knows the ins and outs of all matters tax. His expertise in this particular area is widespread. Mike is an expert and will have specific answers to questions that we have put together. If you have had a foreclosure or youre facing foreclosure or if youre considering a short sale or bankruptcy, any number of things. Were going to touch on each just a little bit.

But we have a few numbers on our staff who are experts in loan modifications, we have put together a great video that helps explain the process, it’s about seven minutes long. And we will get that sent out to you in immediately.

Duration : 0:5:25

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Tax on 1099C, Cancellation of Debt Income; Short Sale, Loan Modification & Foreclosure. Exception; Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act, Bankruptcy & Insolvency. Go To http://RealEstateMarketingThisWeek.com

Part 6 (Excerpts)

Arizona is not a recourse state, so chances are you will not owe 1099 C Income

In Arizona, typically its not a recourse state, so if they are telling you that theyre going to garnish your wages because you didnt pay back your entire mortgage, there is a local bank ,that was threatening a very good colleague of ours about a small second mortgage that person had taken out. Threatening to send it to collections and garnish her wages. It simply isn’t going to happen.

But nevertheless, there is still the tax implications that apply, if you need to navigate through this maze. There is a lot to it, you need to protect yourself. You talked about bankruptcy is one of those exclusions, right? One of the problems with bankruptcy is people dont understand the bankruptcy laws. They are so tight now and your feet are really held to the fire from the federal government right now. It’s not like you just didn’t make your mortgage payment, so you go file bankruptcy, it’s just not realistic. Assuming bankruptcy is the last resort option for everybody. And we certainly want to avoid that, it would not be sound financial advice from any credible source that I can think of.

Let’s walk through a case scenario, somebody who is listening to this broadcast, their head is spinning right now, they’re thinking, oh my gosh. I should have known about the tax implications, a short sale versus loan modification. Let’s start at the top and work through a quick scenario. And then we’ll point out the specifics of what they should be considering right now.

For example, we talk about this all the time and to your credit Michael Barnes and to Velocity Financials credit, you were early in bringing out the loan modification for people who were in a distress situation regarding a mortgage, maintaining or keeping up with the mortgage payment. So you started going down the path where the refinance started to become a much more difficult option, with new constraints and all the other factors that led to part of this economic crisis, a loan modification has become a buzz topic today. Driving to the station today, driving down Camelback Road, I see a sign on the corner. You know, one of those stick in the ground, homemade jobs, that says don’t refi a Loan, modify, with some success rate and the phone number.

Hang on there I want you to say the success rate. The sign literally said, 99% success rate, and it goes back to the point that you made when they say that they can reduce your mortgage principal by tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands of dollars, thats the absolute last resort for any lending institution. Thats not what this is about, so let’s start with that, then we will work on the tax ramifications of how that might work in the overall financial strategy.

I am familiar with the loan modification industry here in Arizona. There is no regulation, unfortunately. We at Velocity Financial work with a national network of attorneys, so if you’re the guy in El Centro California, or youre in Phoenix, or youre in Alaska it doesn’t matter where you’re at. We have someone who is an expert in that field in that state because the laws are different. But without the regulations some person with the ugly yellow sign on the side of the road says he has a 99% success rate, I don’t believe him it’s probably not using an attorney, who knows, dont buy into that garbage. Were going to tell you the truth, if we cant do a loan modification, we will tell you that we cant do it. And if a loan modification is not the best thing for you, you can find the some of these other options.

Duration : 0:5:19

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Tax on 1099C, Cancellation of Debt Income; Short Sale, Loan Modification & Foreclosure. Exception; Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act, Bankruptcy & Insolvency. Go To http://RealEstateMarketingThisWeek.com

Part 4 (Excerpt)

1099 C is for Cancellation of Debt Income Only, not for Interest Rate and Payment Reduction

So for people who find themselves in a very difficult situation considering these options whether it’s a loan modification or a short sale, whatever they need to do to relieve themselves of this particular burden of a mortgage, that for whatever reason they’re no longer able to maintain, they are not always considering the tax ramifications associated with taking a specific course of action, like this example the short sale option.

Right there is actually two pieces of tax component here, you have the forgiveness of debt income that we talked about, they still have the fact that you sold your house and you have to see if there was a gain on that. Over and above the cost basis of the home.

We talked about the 1099Cs a few moments ago, did you say that the lender sends a copy of the 1099C to the IRS? Absolutely.

Now I’m the guy for a few minutes ago who bailed on $400,000 and sold it for $300,000 am I going to get a copy of the 1099C if I haven’t given my lender my new address. Well that could be a problem, they will send it to the last address they have on record for you. And as a homeowner it’s my problem.

The IRS will get a copy, so they will look for it on your return, if you forget to put it on then you’re going to get a friendly notice from the IRS.

If somebody is going to do a short sale, its a fairly civil transaction and when I say civil I mean going for a short sale is horrible for them and their family, but it beats the alternative which is foreclosure, and I think the real problem is when there’s a foreclosure and the guy just walks away and moves off to El Centro California, he’s the one who’s really getting hurt.

So in the event that somebody takes a course of action, and I know that Velocity financial and Michael Barnes, youre not necessarily advocates for that short sale approach. It’s not normally the best course of action, we’ve been talking about loan modifications and it would help me when I talk to clients, or people who call from radio broadcasts who asked questions about loan modification process as part of a financial strategy, help me with some of the tax ramifications. Let’s say that I have a loan and I know the best thing for me is a loan modification, am I going to be faced with a 1099? A tax bill at the end of a loan modification?

Yes, the first of the two tax implications will apply which will be the debt forgiveness part.

I didn’t mean to interrupt you Mike, well I said there are several different types of loan modifications, I believe are you asking about when the loan modification is where they actually do forgive some of the debt?

Thats a point, I know there’s been a lot of discussion on the use of the TARP funds especially from the federal government regarding these banks that qualify for some of these funds, they have to do principle reductions for their mortgages. So let’s say there isn’t a principal reduction involved, from that aspect, its not a taxable event that could take place, since I’m not reducing my principal, I’m simply getting a reduction in my term or my rate.

That’s right, the only time that taxes would come into play is when the principal gets reduced because thats forgiveness of debt.

So let’s take that one step further, whatever mortgage interest I’m able to deduct on my taxes may be impacted if it’s a lower percentage, right because youll be paying less interest, but there’ll be no surprise 1099 coming your way if its just an interest modification.

One of the things that I like to make thing clear is that were trying to do the best for you the homeowner so you can stay in your home. The situation I’m talking about, the $400,000, the lender is more likely than not is not going to forgive $100,000, however the same lender is more than willing to reduce your interest rate so that your payment would be the same if they have done the principal reduction, because it’s not a permanent loss for the bank. If there is someone out there who’s telling you that they can have your mortgage reduced by tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of dollars, it’s not going to happen and I doubt it’s going to happen anytime soon.

Duration : 0:5:58

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Attorney Negotiated Mortgage Loan Modification for Home Owners. Expert Advice on Real Estate and Finance. Avoid Foreclosure Scams and Fraud. Prevent Bankruptcy. Go To http://RealEstateMarketingThisWeek.com

Part 6 (Excerpt)

Using Retirement Funds to pay your Mortgage is just a bad idea Get a Loan Modification

So it doesnt matter if it is a $100,000 property or a $500,000 property the cost to the lender is $50,000 on the average nationally.

So the idea of the upside down scenario, you may see banks more willing to entertain a broader audience of loan modifications or a broader request of loan modifications based on the fact that they know that now, what we are calling toxic assets, not only exist on their balance sheets, but they want to do something to avoid the additional cost of foreclosing on the property, to avoid the additional impact on our economy nationally with all these foreclosures mounting. So a loan modification that may not be the best or most ideal candidate today, dont throw the option completely out of the window.

And to that point I would never tell a home owner to stop making their payments just to get a better loan modification, because as of today, this may not be the case two weeks or two months from now, but as of today, your servicer is not going to entertain a loan modification unless youre late in most cases. Heres the situation, though at first you may get mad at that and they get mad at me for it, but the reality of it is we have a real problem now with lots of people who are two, three, four months behind on their mortgages, this loan modification we are jumping in, we are getting attorneys involved and getting right in front of the asset managers or the attorneys for the servicers to get these foreclosure proceedings stopped.

Im absolutely certain that in the foreseeable future they are going to allow people that are not late yet to do these loan modifications, hold on, I said I would never tell a home owner to not make their mortgage payment to get a loan modification, the other thing I would never tell a homeowner to do, never ever, is to take money out of your 401K to pay their mortgage payment because you cant go forward.

There are other stops in place, if you dont make your mortgage payment because of hard times you are going to get a loan modification. I talked to a guy the other day that had a 23 year, huge 6 figure income, he lost his job, big huge firm here in the valley, he is probably listening to the show right now, this guy drained his entire 401K, I mean a huge one, just to make his mortgage payments.

And the average 401K participant, investor, does not understand the ramification of what that is, just because your company plan allows you to take a loan against your 401K doesnt mean it is the right thing to do. There are ramifications beyond our time and the scope of this discussion regarding that decision. Loan modification first, if you are taking money from a 401K to make a house payment you are not only inefficient in creating the velocity of money but you are costing yourself in penalties, taxes, and that is certainly something we can be forthright about talking with anyone who wants to call.

And in this case the poor guy used up every dime of his 401K because his lender told him NO, NO, NO, three separate times because he was not late, well he wasnt going to allow that to happen. Unfortunately knowing what he knows now he would have looked at it differently.

Loan Modification is not for someone who has no income at all, the investor, the servicer, the bank that holds your mortgagee is not willing to do a loan modification because you dont have the means to pay. Even if it is a modified loan, you still cant make the payment. Right in some cases where you have significant cash reserves, but I have not seen one of those done.

That wouldnt be the ideal candidate, describe a little bit about who should be doing this loan modification and I know we are getting close to a break but people need to know that this option exists. They are hearing all these different concepts in the news and they are hearing in the media the spin about Hank Paulson and what the treasury is doing, and hearing about this bailout package and what that represents, and now they are hearing that the money is not going to be used to buy back bad loans, and mortgages, bad assists. So what does that do to the underlying holder of that mortgage? The owner of that house?

It is pretty scary for the majority of them, the loan modification lenders are getting very aggressive when being approached with a lawsuit or being addressed by an attorney, receiving a subpoena in regard to a specific loan case. They are paying attention to that and those are the people who are going to be getting the best options at this time…

Duration : 0:6:12

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