Posted on 07/23/2025 2:34:34 PM PDT by JV3MRC
Why pay higher prices in a more competitive housing market when you can just keep paying compulsory taxes on your capital gains? That’s effectively the head-scratching argument CNN tried to make to ding President Trump’s tax-cutting agenda.
Yeah, we couldn’t really make sense of that logic either.
(Excerpt) Read more at newsbusters.org ...
That would only be getting prices back toward the income/purchase ratio of a few decades ago. The big problem is that we goosed the market, yes, with leveraged help from Uncle Sam, such that a house was the best long-term investment—instaed of a more productive business investment. We’ve got massive, fancy kitchens and 5th baths in houses beyond the needs and reach of young purchasers.
WAY LOW, IMO.
SCHOOL TAXES SHOULD BE REMOVED FOR 65 & OLDER
WE ARE WELL PAST THE AGE OF PRODUCING CHILDREN
“Many other factors all around.”
The most common factor is water:
San Francisco, Seattle, Miami, San Diego, LA, Boston, Australian cities, NYC, etc.
Another factor is desert:
Australian cities, Los Angeles, San Diego
People blame zoning, but zoning stabilizes house prices. It allows low percentage downpayment mortgages. I think the FHA requires 3% down. Zoning because popular in the 1920s. In the 1930s, low percentage down payment mortgages were introduced, at first to the more stable (i.e. ‘white’) areas so investors would take the maximally low risk of buying the new-fangled mortgages.
I read that the most valuable street in 19th Century America was Euclid Avenue in Cleveland. In the early 20th Century, car dealers took over the street.
New York City has zoning that allows for about 16 million people, but it still has high housing costs.
My mom wants to eventually sell the building that my grandmother left her when she passed in 2006, she should have tried selling it during covid so yeah she regrets that..the value when it was purchased was 700,000 now its probably worth 1.6 mil, its more of a hassle than its worth, if she could find a buyer that would be great, but it would be great to have the capital gains taxes removed from it
“SCHOOL TAXES SHOULD BE REMOVED FOR 65 & OLDER”
They are on my Florida house. I’m below the $36,500(?) annual income cutoff.
Way below!
Good schools enhance property values.
2025 - $500,000
2026 - $480,000
2027 - $440,000
2028 - $400,000
2029 - $370,000
2030 - $350,000
2031 - $335,000
“That would only be getting prices back toward the income/purchase ratio of a few decades ago.”
There would have been a few million mortgage defaults, with big losses.
The prices may not stop dropping in 2031.
You might not be able to get a mortgage for more than the depreciated cost of the house itself.
depreciated cost of the house ~= comparable new build cost less costs to make it like new
*******
For Rent
Potter Realty
Protective zoning made it safe George Bailey to undercut Mr. Potter.
“We’ve got massive, fancy kitchens and 5th baths in houses beyond the needs and reach of young purchasers.”
Americans will pay more for big.
A house that has twice the square footage has:
1. floors and roof that are twice the size,
2. walls and inside plumbing line lengths only about 40% longer
3. only about 40% more cabinets in the kitchen
4. a sewer line, a plumbing supply line and an electric supply line of the same lengths and about the same cost
5. equal lot clearing, grading costs
6. equal subdivision and road layout costs
“I think the person means that mortgage interest deductions should be limited to a maximum of $200,000 over a lifetime.”
I don’t think so.
“such that a house was the best long-term investment—instead of a more productive business investment”
A bigger house allows more stuff to be stuffed into it.
My buying is mainly constrained by my house size even though I’m low income.
A house may have provided a comfortable living space for decades, and a potential $600,000 profit to boot.
“$200,000” “mortgage interest”
The person might mean that only the interest on the $200,000 should be deductible.
I still think this is what was meant:
“I think the person means that mortgage interest deductions should be limited to a maximum of $200,000 over a lifetime.”
There’s typically no real need to subsidize a home purchase after about ten years.
“The person might mean”
Next time I am confused about someone’s post, I will ask you first ...
**“Lower the mortgage deduction to $200k-one time only. That will lower prices.”**
**Can you rephrase that and explain what you mean?**
It’s simple. The mortgage deduction increases the price of homes. It’s intent is to make homes more affordable-not true. Lower it and who wants to take out a million dollar loan with no deduction? Fewer people.
One time only refers to first time home buyers. No going back to the well.
I don’t think so. 😉
Zoning of course has become problematic in some ways.
Buying that much stuff is also a diversion from more productive investing. Jeesh!
(And 3% or less down also destabilizes the market.)
And the Seattle area. I still haven’t told my wife about our expected CG tax when we sell our home and move to Tennessee. (She is going through a bunch of other stuff at the moment - and we both are taking one day at a time.)
The $500,000 deduction was created in 1997 and was a tax on the super rich. My wife and I are anything but. That $500k is worth over $1 million in 2025 dollars.
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