I would really like more information about this. Is this 3.8% tax on “unearned income” essentially a capital gains tax or is it a tax on the gross sale price of the house? If it’s the latter, then that will kill the housing market stone cold dead. There are tons of people with negative equity in their house. They consider themselves lucky if they can short sale their house. Now, that would be a curse. If this is indeed the case, I would expect the amount of people walking away from their houses to skyrocket (to borrow a turn of phrase from Buraq).
I have a second home that is about near even or slightly under water. Maybe if I get lucky, I could make a few dollars, literally. If this is the case, I may as well just stop paying for it. (it is on the market now)
I understand it’s a tax on “investment income”...i.e. 401K, IRA’s, ANNUITIES, homes, etc. It is NOT indexed for inflation, and it COULD affect rental income....and it is for those (RIGHT NOW) with incomes over $200K/$250K.