Short Sales and the MDRA of 2007

If you are a homeowner who bought your Northern Virginia house in 2004-2006 you may be significantly upside-down in the value of your home. Meaning that the full amount owed on your mortgage, may be higher than the current fair market value of the home.

The Mortgage Debt Relief Act of 2007 made it generally possible for taxpayers to exclude the deficiency (amount still owed after negotiating for a short-sale) from their taxable income when filing their taxes in the years 2007-2012. There is a lot more information available regarding this act from the IRS, who frankly know a lot more about it than we do. The most important thing for Virginia Consumers to note, is that if you are thinking about a short-sale you probably shouldn't sit on the idea for too long. Most short-sales take more than 4 months to negotiate, and there is not a lot of inventory on the market right now...so homes are selling quickly!

If you are a buyer looking at short-sales, please pay close attention to the time frame given by the listing agent. If we tell you it will likely take 4 months, we mean it. Sometimes a short-sale can be approved in 3 months, but typically it is longer.

Should you have any questions about Real Estate, please submit an inquiry to our website. We would be happy to answer any questions you have!

I'll leave you with some photos of our latest Reston Virginia listing, which was under contract in just a few days! Email us for more information about this property as well.

Handlebar Road - Gorgeous Rambler with Mature trees

Fully enclosed Sunroom with fabulous view of the tree lined backyard

 Photos Courtesy of Dan McCutcheon

Paul Joseph McCarty Benefit for the Parnell Family

Early this May the community of South Riding Virginia has some fantastic events going on, for an amazing cause. It is always heartening to see a community pull together to take care of one of their own.

The family chosen as the recipient of these events has a remarkable story. Sara Brown-Parnell is a single mother of four. She has fought Renal Cell Carcinoma (kidney cancer), thyroid cancer, seizures, and had both her kidney and thyroid removed. In October 2011 Sara learned that cancer had spread to her other kidney and had metastasized to the brain and lungs. Sara is undergoing chemotherapy and radiation all while trying to maintain her household and support her children. As you can imagine the medical costs alone are quite high.

This year the Parnell Family has been chosen as the recipient of the Paul Joseph McCarty Benefit. Golf Tournament on Monday May 14th 2012 at South Riding Golf Club. Events will be Saturday May 12th at Freedom High School and Monday May 14th.  See the full itinerary here


For more information about the Cormac Finn McCarty foundation, please click this link

DISCLAIMER
Our Real Estate team, it's owners partners and management and our Brokerage Keller Williams Realty are in no way affiliated with the Cormac Finn McCarty Foundation. We receive no compensation monetary or otherwise for posting this on our blog. 

We do however feel good about reaching out to help a local family in need.