Inheriting a house can complicate title issues

Inheriting a house can complicate title issues

Our parents, both now deceased, own our family home as joint tenants. In 1975, my father did a quit claim, granting his interest to my sister and me. The form used is entitled "Quit Claim Deed -- Joint Tenancy" and states a couple of times "not in tenancy-in-common but in joint tenancy." I always thought a quit claim converts a joint tenancy to a tenancy-in-common, but I hope that's not true. I hope my sister and I held the property in joint tenancy with my mother, and now, since my mother's recent death, hold the property together in joint tenancy. We also hope we do not have to go through probate on this matter. See Realty Q&A.

Home prices rise at slowest pace in 10 years

U.S. home prices increased 0.5% in the first quarter, the slowest quarter-to-quarter price gain in 10 years, the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight reported Thursday. The OFHEO price index shows home prices are up 4.3% compared with a year earlier, the smallest gains in 10 years. Price appreciation has slowed sharply from a 13.7% year-over-year gain in 2005. See Economic Report.

Falling home prices will likely dent subprime-mortgage credit this year

Falling house prices will keep pressure on the subprime-mortgage business in the second half of this year, stalling any chance of a quick recovery, according to a note by Rochdale Securities analyst Mark Morgan on Thursday. See full story.

Second home can boost taxes

A long vacation in a summer home can be a beautiful thing. Too long, though, and tax collectors may share the joy. People who spend a lot of time relaxing in one state while calling another home can trigger state income tax in both. A common way to go wrong is to hold on to a condo and social connections after moving away to a tax haven such as Florida or Nevada. Another potential problem: a pied-a-terre in Manhattan. See full story.

Tax strategy for real estate hits a rocky patch

A popular tax-deferral trick for real-estate investors is facing scrutiny as key middlemen in the strategy run into financial trouble. The problems are starting to leave investors with significant losses, and raising the possibility of increased oversight of a lightly regulated corner of the real-estate investment world. In at least one instance, a firm that helps investors defer taxes this way is facing allegations of fraud. The strategy, known as a 1031 exchange, lets investors who sell investment properties defer capital-gains taxes if they invest the proceeds in "like kind" property within 180 days. To qualify for the benefit, the seller can't touch the money from the sale. Instead, the funds must go into an account until they are used for the purchase of a new property. That's where the money can be vulnerable. See story from RealEstateJournal.