3 ms·
The old lady made $1m in unearned value in her house. She can use a part of that value to pay taxes on the increase, live and die in the house, and her heirs st
by robotresearcher 7y ago
The old lady made $1m in unearned value in her house. She can use a part of that value to pay taxes on the increase, live and die in the house, and her heirs still make free money.
- ericmay 7y agoIt’s also unrealized. Maybe just tax on the sale or transfer. Honestly the whole situation is a nightmare. I feel like whenever I think of a “solution” I just find problems with it.
- rcpt 7y ago> unrealized She can borrow against it and easily afford property taxes for the rest of her life.
- masonic 7y agoUnless she resorts to a reverse mortgage, it's surprisingly difficult to refi when you have no earned income. I have over 1M equity in my house but can't access it while unemployed (according to lenders I've contacted, including credit unions with whom I have 30+-year ties.)
- rcpt 7y agoLet's say property taxes are 2%. She's got a $1M house so thats $20k per year for the rest of her life. Is it really that hard to borrow $200k against a $1M house?
- ericmay 7y agoAnd then die me not pay back loans? Or what if there is a market downturn and now the lenders are stuck holding it? Maybe they don’t lend I’m the first place? Lots of unknowns here.
- rcpt 7y agoYes: Buy. Borrow. Die. It's how the wealthy skip taxes in the US. Or, if she is seriously so destitute and financially illiterate that this is all too hard there are targeted programs in California for her: https://www.sco.ca.gov/ardtax_prop_tax_postponement.html https://www.sco.ca.gov/ardtax_prop_tax_postponement.html The fact is that Prop 13 is just a handout to successful land speculators at the expense of everyone else.