SNOW | TAXES | BLACKSTONE

1. Fill your tub with water, and extra water bowls for pets
2.  Drip your faucets, and keep cupboards ajar
3. Park your car head out at end of drive, leave wipers up
4. Keep dogs inside and be aware of how long outside, esp wee ones (chart attached)
5. Pine or Gravel kitty litter for on top of ice, so don't slide
6. 1/2 and 1/2 for coffee!
7.  Cruise the Homes on my Website with your very own custom search. 
8. Finally, when you are ready to rock and roll, I can put you on a custom One Home Portal search
9. Stay safe, and enjoy the beauty!

1. The seven tax brackets and their lowered rates stay put for now, so taxpayers won’t suddenly see higher income tax rates creep back up as was feared after 2025.
2. The standard deduction remains nearly double what it was before 2017 and will continue to be adjusted each year for inflation. (For 2025, that’s $15,750 for singles and more than $31,000 for couples filing jointly.)
   
3. New temporary deductions allow taxpayers to deduct interest on car loans for new U.S.-assembled vehicles (up to $10,000 per year) purchased after 2024, with income phaseouts and expiration at the end of 2028.
4. Employees in traditionally tipped jobs, as specified by the U.S. Treasury and IRS, can exclude up to $25,000 in tips from federal income tax through 2028, subject to income limits and specific eligibility requirements (note some states are not allowing this in the state level for taxes:( )
   
5. Overtime pay up to $12,500 (or $25,000 for joint filers) can be deducted in the same period, again with income phaseouts
6. The federal Child Tax Credit of $2,200 per child remains, but requires a valid Social Security number.
7. New child savings accounts (called Trump accounts) start with a $1,000 federal deposit for kids born in 2025–2028 and allow further yearly contributions subject to limits and rules.
8. Increased estate tax exemption, raising the threshold to $15 million beginning in 2026, indexed to inflation.
   
9. Tax benefits for agricultural and rural lending. 
10. you can claim mortgage interest on your taxes annually if the loan is secured by your home and the proceeds were used to buy, build, or improve your main residence or a second home used for personal purposes. The mortgage interest deduction remains one of the chief tax breaks for homeowners.
11. Seniors may deduct up to 6K (subject to phase out if income over 75K) over the next four years
    

In other housing news, the administration is floating some good ideas and weighing the pros and cons. One that I like is the assuming of rates (the VA has assumable loans, but that is different than what is being floated I believe).  

Many  homeowners are not selling because they went for the Covid Crazy Never Should Have Happened Insanely Low Mortgage Rates. It helped to be one of the many headed snakes that created the "housing crisis" (more on that later). 

So, an idea is to allow them to get another loan for a new home with the same existing mortgage rate. Pros and Cons for sure, but seems like it could have some teeth.

Additionally the administration just announced plans to ban major investors like Blackstone from buying up single family homes.