Meet Congressman Tom Price to discuss Healthcare

This just in from Cobb Chamber of Commerce:
Congress is currently considering legislation, that would significantly change healthcare in America. These drastic changes in policy are sure to affect all businesses. We invite you to share your thoughts and concerns on this issue, by participating in a conference call led by Congressman Tom Price.
The call will be held on Wednesday, July 29 at 9:30 a.m. Please R.S.V.P. to Thomas Beusse at (770) 565-4990 or thomas.beusse@mail.house.gov.

Where's your mortgage rate headed this week?

What's Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week : July 20, 2009Mortgage markets had a tuff week last week as a combination of strong economic data and stand-out earnings results led investors into more risky investments. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 7 percent.Mortgage rates, unfortunately, didn't fare as well. As the first week since June in which mortgage rates rose, rates were up by a lot. Mostly for three reasons.The week's first big mortgage rate bump came Tuesday, right after Goldman Sachs released its blowout quarterly numbers. As one of the world's largest financial firms, Goldman's strong showing hinted that the financial crisis may finally be finished.Next, rates were impacted by the release of the Fed Minutes from its June meeting. In the report, it was revealed that Ben Bernanke & Co raised the economic forecast for both 2009 and 2010, noting that the recession should be ending soon.Lastly, June data showed that Retail Sales is expanding and that jobless claims are falling -- two potential positives for the U.S. economy that relies so heavily on consumer spending.This week, without much data, the mortgage market should continue to take its cue from the stock market. If stocks improve, rates are expected to worsen. And vice versa.The week's key events are Fed Chairman Bernanke's Tuesday testimony on Capitol Hill and Thursday's Existing Home Sales data. Mortgage rates remain volatile so if you're offered a rate that comfortably fits your household budget, consider locking in before the market can change.
Posted by Capital Credit at 11:28 AM

The First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit : Use It By December 1, 2009 Or Lose It

The First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit : Use It By December 1, 2009 Or Lose It

The government's First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit expires December 1, 2009.

If you expect to use the program in conjunction with a home purchase, therefore, you may want to consider yourself officially "on the clock".

Assuming a 60-day window between contract and closing, there are now 77 days left to find a home and go under contract for it.

The First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit refunds up to $8,000 at Tax Time for qualified home buyers. A few of the program's qualification criteria include:

• Home buyer must not have owned a primary residence in the past 36 months
• The home may not be purchased from a family member
• The household adjusted gross income must be below $95,000 for single tax filers and $170,000 for joint tax filers

The tax credit itself is limited to $8,000 or 10% of the purchase price, whichever is less.

Remember, though: The refund is a true tax credit -- not a deduction. This means that a taxpayer owing $8,000 to the IRS and claiming the $8,000 First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit would owe the IRS nothing on April 15, 2010.

The complete list of qualifying criteria is posted on the IRS website.

HTTP://WWW.ATLLOANS.COM PETER BRIGHT

Ready to go Green?

Ready to go Green? You can do this!

We stumbled across a resource recently that could be utilized by anybody. www.localharvest.org provides a search to find nearby farmers’ markets, family farms and others sources of sustainably grown food where your residents can buy produce, grass-fed meats, honey products and many other goodies, including gift baskets.


Hope to see you Green this month.

Ready to go Green?

Adjusting For Cost Of Living Differences After A Non-Local Move

Moving to a new metropolitan area requires adjustments. There's new streets to learn, new weather patterns to get used to, and new social cultures to assimilate.

There's also new costs.

Just like home values vary by area, so does the Cost of Living. To visit a doctor in Chicago, as an example, costs a person more than to visit a similar-type doctor in Smyrna, GA.

Cost of Living adjustments can't be ignored between two cities because it changes a household's budget.

And while it's a challenge to know exactly how far your dollar can stretch in a new town, Bankrate.com hosts a helpful Cost of Living Comparison Calculator to make the math a little easier. With categories such as dry cleaning, groceries and beauty salon, the calculator goes extra deep into the typical costs to a household, and can help families to make more realistic budgets.

The calculator also shows the equivalent household income between any two metropolitan areas. Check out Smyrna compares!

2nd Annual International Wine Crawl - June 20

The 2nd annual Vinings International Wine Crawl will be this Saturday June 20 from 1-7 pm. Enjoy great food specials and wine offerings from all over the world. Garrison's, Social Vinings, Soho, The Grape, La Paz and Vinings Inn are all participating. Cover charge is $5 in advance or $10 at the door and a portion of the proceeds go to Upper Chattahooche Riverkeeper. Register at Social Vinings (1-6pm), 3621 Vinings Slope Dr., Ste 4110, Atlanta, GA 30339, close to Quick Trip. www.atlantabartours.com

Retail for the River will be earlier that same day from 11am - 5pm at Vinings Jubliee. Special offers and coupons are available for that day from free massages compliments of Integral Chiropractic to 75% off select items at American Mountain and more. www.RetailForTheRiver.com

Presented by Atlanta Bar Tours.com, USA Entertainment and Tred Setting Productions.

How To Receive A Cash Gift For Downpayment

Tighter mortgage guidelines since late-2008 are forcing home buyers to make bigger downpayments. Anecdotally, the change has led to a surge in buyers taking gifts of cash from family members.

If you're among those accepting a cash gift from family, it's important to know that you can't just deposit the money in your bank account.

There is a proper way to accept a cash gift and it requires 3 distinct steps:

Complete and sign an acceptable gift letter
Document the gifter's withdrawal of funds with teller receipts
Document the giftee's deposit of funds with teller receipts
See, mortgage lenders pay close attention to gifts-for-downpayments. For one, lenders have to make sure that downpayment cash is "clean" (i.e. not laundered). And, secondly, they want the gift to really be a gift and not a loan-in-disguise.

This is why lenders will often require that a signed, dated letter accompany the home loan application.

As an example:

I am the [relationship to recipient] of [name of recipient] and this letter serves as evidence that I am gifting [name of recipient] [amount of gift] to be used for the purchase of the home at [complete address of property].

This is a gift -- not a loan -- and there is no expectation of repayment.

Signed,
[Signature of gifter]

To further appease lenders, gift recipients should make sure that gift funds are not commingled at the time of deposit. If the gift is for $12,000, for example, the bank's deposit slip should indicate that a $12,000 deposit was made -- nothing more, nothing less.

Don't add a random $50 check to the deposit, in other words. If you have a separate deposit to make, make it as a subsequent transaction with its own receipt.

It's also worth noting that gifting funds between family members can create both legal and tax liabilities. If you're unsure about how donating or receiving a gift may impact you, call or email me directly. If I can't help you with your questions, I can refer you to somebody that can.