Tax Overhaul = New Housing Bubble Burst?

[Ex-California]

What are call options?

[Ex-California]

My county's on the 10 richest list, so average here is high at approximately $103,000. That's median, though, so it doesn't have a lot of meaning as far as it takes retirees, kids, etc., into account. It is difficult to live a middle class lifestyle here on less than $150,000 (if you have kids) unless you bought a house a long time ago and have refinanced with a low interest rate. Most homes pay $10,000 or more in yearly property taxes. Cost of living is very high here in general.

Taxes for a House here is between 3k to 15k for “average” houses depending on where you live.

Cambridge MA is more akin to your standard of living. Houses there cost between 600k to 2million on average. But travel 30 miles and you can get the same house for ½ the cost.

I've never been but it's on my list to visit. Is it anything like Andover/North Andover? That is a pretty town.

$600,000 would buy a beautiful house here, but the taxes would be $20,000 a year.

Holy shit. $600k here is a $5k tax bill. Maybe our real estate prices aren't as inflated as I thought they are

Then again, I pay $10k in CA Income Tax and am nickel and dimed to death on sales tax, gas tax, etc.

[Martin Hash]

What are call options?

A bet.

You bet the price of a stock is going up and you pay a small fee. 3 months later it does. You get to buy the stock at the price it was 3 months ago.

[MilSpecs]

$600,000 would buy a beautiful house here, but the taxes would be $20,000 a year.

Holy shit. $600k here is a $5k tax bill. Maybe our real estate prices aren't as inflated as I thought they are

Then again, I pay $10k in CA Income Tax and am nickel and dimed to death on sales tax, gas tax, etc.

Our income tax is approx. 6.3%.

Re: how the property taxes affect us, my dream retirement city is old town Alexandria in VA. A one bedroom condo there is over $600000. My husband wouldn’t spend that much on a small condo but the bottom line would be the same as a home here. The entire tri-state area is filled with stories about people who moved and can’t believe the difference lifting the property tax burden makes.

[The Conservative]

Taxes for a House here is between 3k to 15k for “average” houses depending on where you live.

Cambridge MA is more akin to your standard of living. Houses there cost between 600k to 2million on average. But travel 30 miles and you can get the same house for ½ the cost.

I've never been but it's on my list to visit. Is it anything like Andover/North Andover? That is a pretty town.

$600,000 would buy a beautiful house here, but the taxes would be $20,000 a year.

Holy shit. $600k here is a $5k tax bill. Maybe our real estate prices aren't as inflated as I thought they are

Then again, I pay $10k in CA Income Tax and am nickel and dimed to death on sales tax, gas tax, etc.

Your housing is also different. Your excise tax doesn’t increase or fluctuate after purchasing a house either. It’s set at whatever it was upon purchase. Hence why it’s better to buy low and sell high in CA.

[Ex-California]

What are call options?

A bet.

You bet the price of a stock is going up and you pay a small fee. 3 months later it does. You get to buy the stock at the price it was 3 months ago.

Wow, literal gambling. Good to know, thanks

[K@th]

We just paid our year two taxes on our house. The first year, taxes were $7K. This year, down to $5K - this is due to Florida Homestead Act. If it's your primary residence, you get a huge discount on property taxes.

Snowbirds and a cute mouse are the reason there are no state income taxes in Florida. Lots of flaws, here, but also some really good things.

Our house has appreciated about $20K since we moved here in Feb, 2016, so the taxes reflect that increase. If there's another housing bubble burst, we're set. Good interest rate, fixed, and not a chance in hell we'll take out an equity loan. I plan to die in this house; it's value at sale time is the kid's problem.

[SilverEagle]

What are call options?

A bet.

You bet the price of a stock is going up and you pay a small fee. 3 months later it does. You get to buy the stock at the price it was 3 months ago.

Wow, literal gambling. Good to know, thanks

It can also be used for a hedge bet. Each Option contract, call or put, is for 100 shares of stock. So if you have 100 shares of GE stock and you think the price will go down you can write a call option for say $21 and the current price is $20. You sell that contract for $0.75. You get $0.75x100 = $75.00. Now the person that bought the call expects the stock to go up past $21.75 (break even price). If it does not go above that you get to keep your stock plus you made $75.00. However if you the stock goes up to say $22.00, your position gets called away at the price of $21. So you would end up with $2,100 plus the $75.00 for the contract. $2,175 total vs if you did not write the call and just sold it at $22 for $2,200. So yes it is gambling and you can lose your ass if you sell uncovered calls, meaning you don't have the stock to back up the option contract.

[SuburbanFarmer]

What are call options?

A bet.

You bet the price of a stock is going up and you pay a small fee. 3 months later it does. You get to buy the stock at the price it was 3 months ago.

Wow, literal gambling. Good to know, thanks

The entire stock market is gambling. That's what 2007 was all about.

[SilverEagle]

A bet.

You bet the price of a stock is going up and you pay a small fee. 3 months later it does. You get to buy the stock at the price it was 3 months ago.

Wow, literal gambling. Good to know, thanks

The entire stock market is gambling. That's what 2007 was all about.

Well if you want to go down that road, life is a gamble, hording cash is a gamble, buy silver and gold is a gamble. Shall I continue?