Real Estate Around the World

Beautiful beaches, sand, wind blowing through your hair is what you may think of when someone mentions Costa Rica.  If only you could imagine living there. Do not imagine any more, just do it.   Costa Rica Real Estate consists of homes, condos, townhomes, villas etc.  any one of these beautiful properties would allow you to forget about the hustle and bustle of everyday life.

While there do not forget to visit the Costa Rica Country Club.  The country club offers some of the best scenic views in Costa Rica.  The club boast bold mountains and volcanic scenery that will as the locals put it “take your breathe away”.  

The Costa Rica Country Club  features a several activities that an activity person would love like a clubhouse, golf course, and tennis facilities.  Costa Rica Country Club  is conveniently located within minutes of downtown and the airport.

If the Caribbean is your dream location, you will love Belize Real Estate.  With over 35 percent of the country’s land protected, you are sure to find an enticing place to relax and may be able to hike rainforest trails.   So if you are tired of Chicago’s winter consider a move to Belize or Costa Rica and enjoy enjoy.

FREE Foreclosure Prevention Workshop in Northwest Indiana

There will be three foreclosure prevention workshops held in three different location throughout Northwest Indiana.  The workshops are FREE.  The workshops will be conducted by The Consumer Credit Counseling Service of Northwest Indiana.  The schedule is as follows:

• Monday, May 28, 2009  6:30 TO 8:30 PM Lake County Public Library 1919 West 81st Avenue Merrillville, IN 46410
• April 22, 2009  6:30 TO 8:30 PM Lake Station Public Library 2007 Central Avenue Lake Station, IN 46405 
• May 27, 2009  6:30 TO 8:30 PM Lake Station Public Library 2007 Central Avenue Lake Station, IN 46405 

Come out to learn ways to save your home while reducing expenses and maximizing your income. 

For more information contact The Consumer Credit Counseling Service of Northwest Indiana at 219-980-4800.

Tax Scams on the Rise

Tax season is over.   However, the IRS is warning consumers about tax scams that could cost them money well into the 2009 tax year.  Those tax scams are:

• phishing
• hiding income offshore
• filing false or misleading forms
• abuse of charitable organizations and deductions
• return preparer fraud
• frivolous arguments
• false claims for refunds and requests for abatement
• abusive retirement plans
• disguised corporate ownership
• zero wages
• misuse of trusts
• fuel tax credit scams

Most of the tax schemes mention here do not affect real estate investors, buyers, or sellers; however, there are several that do affect the individuals mention above so that is why this topic is being covered. 

Phishing is especially important because it has to do with internet tricks used by scam artists to get your most precious commodity, your identity.  Beware of any email that states it is from the IRS or your bank that ask for your personal information.  Remember, the IRS and your bank do not engage in such activity.

Another tax scam that you need to be care of is disgusing of corporate ownership.  Make sure that your ownership is clear and precise when filing your income tax returns.  Have your corporation’s article of organization reviewed by both your attorney and your tax preparer to ensure that you are filing all the appropriate documents.  You will also have to file the articles of organizations, ownership, and register agent information with the state in which your business is incorporated.  The state in which you are incorporate with will ask for updates to the latter information on an annual basis, so ensure this information is accurate and available.

For more information on tax scams, please visit www.irs.gov

Related Articles

Your Bailout May Come in Through Tax Credits - There are numerous tax credit that received a facelift that may be profitable for the taxpayers.

Tax Time is Here - Learn about tax deductions that are often overlooked.

New Feature at Taylor-Brown Real Estate Talks

You can now search for homes here at Taylor-Brown Real Estate Talks. Just click the link above “Search for Properties“.

Good luck searching for your dream.

Protecting Your Investments

Originally posted 2008-12-03 21:37:02. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

In order to protect your real estate investment, you must understand the tax tribulations that can be encountered.  You must first decide on the type of entity that you would like to form. Forming one or more of these entities listed below will protect your individual personal assets, so review this carefully and consult an attorney if the you are considering purchasing real estate and renting it out.

If the LLC (limited liability corporation) is the choice then the articles of organizations will have to be decide to include the shares of the partners, the exiting and entrance of partners, etc.

The LLC allows for pass-through taxation as its income is not taxed at the entity level; however, a tax return for the LLC must be completed. Any income or loss of the LLC as shown on the tax return is passed through to the owner(s). The owners, also called members, must then report the income or loss on their personal tax returns and pay any necessary tax.

As with corporations, the LLC legally exists as a separate entity from its owners. Therefore, the owners cannot typically be held personally responsible for the debts
and liabilities of the LLC.

The second type of entity that you may consider is a partnership. Partners operate a business together.  As a partnership each person is liable for any negligence of either partner. By comparison, a limited partnership is an entity formed to raise capital for business or investment ventures in which the partners (except for the managing or general partner) will not be participating in the day-to-day activities of the partnership, and will only be “at risk” for their own investment in the partnership.

The third type of entity is a “C Corporation”.  A “C” corporation which is taxed under Subchapter C of the Internal Revenue Code and is the default corporation formed by incorporating. A “C” corporation is a legal and tax entity by itself. It is similar to a person in that it has its own assets and its social security number, called a Federal Tax Identification Number. Like other businesses, a C corporation needs to have a license to do business in towns in which it has offices and may use an assumed name. A “C”corporation’s assets or ownership is easily transferred through sale of the assets or sale of stock.

The final entity is a “S Corporation”.  A “S” corporation is a corporation which is taxed under Subchapter S of the Internal Revenue Code and must elect to do so shortly after the corporation is formed with the IRS. A corporation is a legal and tax entity by itself. It is similar to a person in that it has its own assets and its social security number, called a Federal Tax Identification Number. The shareholders of a corporation must agree to elect to be a S corporation shortly after incorporating. Like other businesses, a S corporation needs to have a license to do business in towns in which it has offices and may use an assumed name.

Another important thing that you must consider purchasing liability insurance. Liability insurance will protect your asset by protecting you from being held responsible for the other party’s damages.

Please consult an attorney to determine which entity is best for your situation, but above all protect yourself.

Happy Easter!

Happy Easter, everyone.

Is the United States Broke?

A debate worth having.

With the increase in foreclosures, job losses, taxes, etc., the question becomes is the US broke?   There is a lot of money going out to bail out the car industry, the banking industry, and the insurance industry.    How will this money be paid back?  There is no new industry in the US to speak of.  There is talk of “green” industry, but there is no one trained to do the work.

State after state, city after city, county after county are increasing sales taxes to recover revenue that the municipalities need to run daily business, but where does this money come from if no one or very few people have income? 

In Indiana, the March revenue fell to $87 million which is well below December’s revenue.  Consequently, this is the five straight months that the state’s projected revenue has fallen.  It is several other states reported this devastation with the projected revenue; hence, Cook County, IL, increasing its sales taxes to the highest in the national at 10.75 percent. 

Along those same lines, it makes it difficult for states like Indiana, Illinois, and even the federal government to negotiate a budget.

Let’s face it; these entities are no different than our individual households there must be money left at the end of the month to have a successful budget.

This issue that we are facing is worth taking a good look at.  It needs to be address now whether than later.   Money does not grow on trees and there will be a bubble that will burst.  It is not good that the United States appears to be for sale to other countries because there is no one here that can buy anything due to overspending in the past and lose of jobs today.

Your Limited Liability Corporation Maybe in Jeopardy

If your limited liability corporation is owned by just you, then you may want to ensure that you filed it appropriately.     The limited liability corporation that you formed is still a good options, but as a single owner the way it was filed may cause a challenge if it was not designated at the time you filed.  Let’s examine.   There was a case that challenged the single owner LLC; the case was Littriello vs.  United States.

The primary reason that a business entity is form is to protect the owners, managers, and/or members from personal liability.  However, the business entity must be structured correctly to accomplish that goal.  Mr. Littriello did not classify his company.  For tax purposes, he needed to check a box to declare his company as an association or corporation.   As a results of Mr. Littriello not checking the appropriate box the IRS treated his company as a sole proprietorship for federal tax purposes.  This reclassification resulted in Mr. Littriello being held personal responsible for the employment taxes for the company he formed.

This is not the end of Mr. Littriello’s dilemma.  Mr. Littriello did not operate the company he had a general manager that did the daily operation of the company.  This general manager embezzled money from the company in 2000 and 2001 that created the dilemma that Mr. Littriello faced with the IRS over the employment taxes. 

The actions of Mr. Littriello’s general manager led to the court proceedings true enough, but the fact that Mr. Littriello did not classify his company as a corporation led to him being held personal responsible for the payment of the employment taxes.     Make sure that you check the appropriate box on the LLC documentation, so that you will not be held personal responsible.    The designation of the LLC is very important if you are a single member and/or manager of the LLC.  Consult an attorney or accountant to make sure that your single owned LLC is set up properly.

 

History of Limited Liability Corporation

Wyoming was the first state that created the LLC.  The LLC that Wyoming created had the corporation characteristics, but not the corporation tax structure.  Remember, a corporation’s disadvantage is double taxation.  The creation of the LLC solved that problem.