Feb.
22, 2003
Senior citizens can blunt property tax bite
Allan Norwood
Here's a reminder for senior homeowners who've
been warily eyeing all the ominous news about Mecklenburg County's
property revaluation: The state's homestead exemption, which allows
qualifying seniors to exempt portions of their property from taxes, became
more generous last year. Income and exemption limits are up.
THE DETAILS
• You qualify if you are at least 65 or
permanently disabled and make no more than $18,500 a year. The income
limit will rise annually, based on cost-of-living increases. Before the
change, the limit was $15,000.
• If you qualify, you can exclude $20,000 or
half the value of your home, whichever is greater. That's potentially a
huge tax savings if you're on limited income but living in a home whose
valuation shot up. For purposes of the exemption, your home can include up
to one acre of land.
• You need to apply to your county tax office
by June to get a reduction on property tax bills that go out in September.
In Mecklenburg, call (704) 336-4600 to request an application. If you
applied for and received North Carolina's exemption last year, you don't
have to reapply.
• South Carolina has a similar homestead
exemption. It allows all residents 65 or older, blind or disabled to
exempt the first $50,000 of their home's value from property taxes.
year or so, I write a column for do-it-yourself
home sellers - a column sure to raise the hackles of real estate agents
everywhere.
No doubt there are many fine agents who can help
sellers get the best price fast. I've dealt with some good ones myself
over the years. But, as a buyer, I've also met some who were little more
than glorified chauffeurs - the ones who can't tell you much about the
schools, or how long it will take you to drive to work, the ones who urge
you to buy a home that's too expensive.
With the multiple listing system, which enables
agents to sell just about any house on the market, it's not at all
uncommon for an agent to try to sell a house she's never seen before
opening a lock box for a house hunter. That agent isn't in a position to
make much of a sales pitch, but will still pick up a nice commission if
the buyer bites.
With commissions typically running at 6 percent
of the sales price, the seller should get a lot of service. A $12,000
commission on a $200,000 home should be enough to buy the seller 15 weeks
of full-time effort, assuming that an agent makes $20 an hour. Think
you'll get that? Don't hold your breath.
The fact is, it's not terribly difficult to sell
your own house and save a good part of that cost. I've done it several
times.
The toughest part of the job, such as making sure
the title is clear and paperwork is right, is done by the title company,
not the agent. Title fees are state-regulated, and the firm can provide
documents such as the standard sales contract used in your area. You can
find one in the Yellow Pages under "title companies."
Traditionally, one of the agent's most important
services has been to help the seller set an asking price. But now, the
main tool used for this - recent sales prices of comparable homes in the
area - is available free on the Internet. Take a look at the HomeGain site
at
.
Type your street address and zip code. The site
will list nearby sales for the last year or two, including each property's
age, square footage, and number of bedrooms. Cruise the neighborhood to
see which homes are really comparable to yours, then use them to calculate
a cost per square foot you can apply to your own home.
Next, double-check your figures by looking at the
prices of homes for sale in the area. The Multiple Listing Service used by
agents is available for free on the Web site of the National Association
of Realtors at
.
Should all sellers go the do-it-yourself route?
No. You have to be willing to hear people criticize your home to your
face. You have to set aside a lot of time to show it, especially on
weekends, and you have to be patient with all the tire kickers who aren't
really serious.
And you have to be willing to haggle. It's best
to decide ahead of time the lowest price you'll take, and to think about
sweeteners you might offer to close a deal, such as leaving the
appliances, doing some fix-ups, or providing a warranty.
Because most buyers use agents, you will be
handicapped if you refuse to deal with agents at all. So you might offer a
1, 2 or 3 percent commission if an agent can produce a buyer. Three
percent is what he would get if buyer and seller have different agents, as
they usually do.
You also will be handicapped if your home is not
listed in the Multiple Listing Service used by agents and buyers. So you
might consider paying a fee, typically $400 to $600, to a service that can
get you on the MLS. One is MLS-FSBO Inc., at
