Ask Liz Weston

Get smart with your money

Real Estate

Q&A: Homeowners association fees

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Dear Liz: I am a single woman 10 to 15 years away from retirement. My town home will be paid off next month. Does it make better financial sense to sell my town home to avoid significant monthly homeowners association fees and invest in a single-family home?

Answer: It depends. Many single-family homes, particularly in newer developments, also have sizable HOA fees. Even when that’s not the case, you can face significantly higher repair and maintenance costs with a single-family home compared to a town home.

You also need to factor in the costs of selling your home and moving. Real estate commissions can eat up 5% to 7% of the value of your home, and moving expenses can add thousands of dollars to your costs.

Now would be an excellent time to consult a fee-only financial planner who can review your plans for retirement and discuss your alternatives.

Mistakes you make in the years immediately before and after retirement can be particularly devastating, so make sure you have an objective second opinion.

Q&A: Capital gains taxes

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Dear Liz: My wife owns a house that was separate property before our marriage. She has since fallen ill and needs round-the-clock care. I am selling the house to support this and will net about $250,000 at close. Will we have to pay capital gains taxes, or can I claim a one-time exemption, based upon this not being community property?

Answer: If your wife lived in the property as her principal residence for at least two of the five years prior to the sale, the profit would qualify for the capital gains exemption of up to $250,000 per owner.

People who have to sell their principal homes before they meet the two-year residency requirement may qualify for a partial exclusion if the sale was triggered by special circumstances such as a change in health or employment or “unforeseen circumstances.” You’ll want to talk to a tax pro about whether your wife’s situation qualifies.

Even if the gain is taxable, she may not owe tax on the entire amount netted from the sale. When figuring home sale profit, her basis in the home — essentially, what she paid for it, plus any qualifying improvements — is subtracted from what she nets from the sale.

There’s another way to avoid paying taxes on home sale gains, and that’s to hold on to the property until your wife’s death. At that point, the home would get a “step up” in tax basis to the current market value. An inheritor who sold the home at that market value wouldn’t owe any tax, said Mark Luscombe, principal analyst for Wolters Kluwer Tax & Accounting U.S.

Q&A: Investment property

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Dear Liz: Eight years ago, we bought a fixer-upper in an up-and-coming neighborhood. Now it’s mostly fixed up, and property values have soared. We would like to borrow against the equity to buy a beach house we could use and also rent out. This would be a long-term investment. We already own one rental property that is turning a small profit. Managing it allows me to bring in much-needed extra income while staying home with my children. I want to increase that income with a beach house we can also enjoy. Is this a smart use of home equity?

Answer: It may be. You’ve got some experience as a landlord, so you understand what’s involved in maintaining and repairing a rental property and dealing with tenants. A property that’s split between personal use and rental is somewhat different, since you won’t be able to deduct all the expenses as you could with a full-time rental. The expenses have to be divided proportionately, and you can’t deduct rental expenses in excess of the rental income you get. IRS Publication 527, Residential Rental Property, offers more details, or you can talk to a tax pro (which you should have, given that landlords can face some complicated tax situations).

Your first task is to ensure the beach house is in an area that allows short-term rentals on the scale you’re anticipating. Not all communities do. Some don’t allow “vacation rentals” at all, while others limit the amount of time that the property can be rented. Those that allow short-term use may require annual licenses and assess taxes or fees on the rentals, which are costs you’ll want to factor in before you buy.

Your next step, if your goal is to generate income, is to find a property that is “cash flow positive” from the start, with expected rents more than covering expected costs. Obviously, though, you can’t predict everything, which is why it’s essential to have a fat emergency fund for unexpected repairs or greater-than-anticipated vacancies.

Another smart move would be to lock in your interest rate if you don’t expect to pay back what you borrowed against your house within a few years. That means a home equity loan with fixed rates rather than a line of credit with variable rates. You put your home at risk when you borrow against it, so be conservative and lock in predictable payments.

Q&A: Renovations with high returns

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Dear Liz: What renovation projects reap the most return when selling? Replacing windows and carpeting is what I had in mind.

Answer: Remodeling magazine’s latest Cost vs. Value report puts window replacement near the top of renovation projects that pay off, but none of the projects the survey tracked recouped more than they cost.

In 2014, a homeowner could expect to recoup about 79% of the cost of window replacements, assuming the home was sold soon after the improvement. Major kitchen remodels offered a 74% return on a mid-range project that cost about $55,000, or 64% of a high-end project that cost about $110,000. The amount you can expect to recoup usually declines over time as the improvements start to get dated or suffer wear and tear.

The survey doesn’t track projects that are typically considered more maintenance than improvement, such as replacing carpeting or painting. Those projects may, however, get a home sold faster if done just before the house is put up for sale.

Q&A: Terminating private mortgage insurance

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Dear Liz: I bought my first home about a year ago. Because I had very little money for the down payment, I have to pay private mortgage insurance, which is a whopping $385 each month. My burning question about this is: How can I get rid of it? There must be a way to pay the loan quicker or pay more each month or something to make it go away.

Answer: Mortgage insurance protects the lender in case you default on your loan. Since loans with small down payments have a higher risk of default, mortgage insurance is typically required until your balance falls to 80% of the original value of your home. At that point, you can request in writing that the mortgage insurance be canceled. If you don’t make the request, the lender is still typically required to terminate PMI when your balance reaches 78% of the home’s original value.

To speed that day, you can pay down your principal, but do it the right way. Call your mortgage servicer and ask how to be sure the extra money you submit is reducing your mortgage balance. Otherwise, your extra money may just be applied to the next month’s payment, which won’t help reduce your balance much.

Q&A: The tax implications of downsizing

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Dear Liz: My mother just turned 75 and wants to downsize from her four-bedroom house. My father passed away six years ago. She owns her home outright, and at the time of my father’s death the value of the house was estimated at $1.2 million. Right now she has enough income from retirement accounts and investments to live comfortably. She could even buy another smaller property if need be. As the executor of her estate, I’m trying to help her decide what to do with the house. She could let another family member live in it who couldn’t pay rent but could help with upkeep; she could rent it out for market value; or she could sell. We see advantages and disadvantages with all three options. What do you think?

Answer: If she hasn’t already, your mother needs to hire a good estate-planning attorney who can help her evaluate her options. Consulting a fee-only financial planner and a tax pro may be a good idea, as well.

If she sells, your mother could face a sizable capital gains tax depending on where she lives. Federal law allows a certain amount of capital gains on the sale of a primary residence — $250,000 per person — to be excluded from income, but after that, capital gains taxes apply.

The gain would be the difference between the home sale proceeds and your mother’s tax basis in the home. At least half of the home received a “step up” in basis to the then-current market value when your father died. If your mom lives in a community property state, such as California, both halves of the property would have received this step up at his death. Any increase in value since then would be subject to capital gains tax (minus, again, the $250,000 federal exclusion).

There’s another tax issue to consider. If she dies owning this house, her heirs would get a tax basis equal to the property’s value at her death. In other words, regardless of the state where she lives, none of the house’s appreciation during her lifetime would be taxable.

The tax issues alone shouldn’t dictate what your mother does. But she should be aware of them to make an informed decision about what to do next.