Katrina Math

September 29, 2007

Larry Kudlow (CNBC host), made an interesting observation – you and I, as well as all other taxpayers have spent (invested?) over $127 billion for Katrina damages and recovery. Larry said “We should have just divided this amount in the number of recipients – each person would have received about $425,000. In New Orleans, a family of four would have received some $1.7 million.”

Isn’t this amazing – the government is the most inefficient organization possible.

Filed Under Politics

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Property Taxes – Q & A

September 28, 2007

Q: How do property taxes work?
A: Property taxes are what most homeowners in the United States pay for the privilege of owning a piece of real estate, on average 1.75 percent of the property’s current market value. These annual local assessments by county or local authorities help pay for public services and are calculated using a variety of formulas.

Q: Are property taxes deductible?
A: Property taxes on all real estate, including those levied by state and local governments and school districts are usually fully deductible against current income taxes. Check with your tax professional.

Q: Where can I learn more about appealing my property taxes?
A: Contact your local tax assessor’s office to see what procedures to follow to appeal your property tax assessment. You may be able to appeal your assessment informally. Mostly likely, however, you will have to go through a formal tax-appeal process, which begins with an appeal filed with the appropriate assessment appeals board.

Q: How is a home’s value determined?
A: You have several ways to determine the value of a home.
An appraisal is a professional estimate of a property’s market value, based on recent sales of comparable properties, location, square footage and construction quality. This service varies in cost depending on the price of the home. On average, an appraisal costs about $300 for a $250,000 house.

A comparative market analysis is an informal estimate of market value performed by a real estate agent based on similar sales and property attributes. Most agents offer free analyses in the hopes of winning your business.

You also can get a comparable sales report for a fee from private companies that specialize in real estate data. You also can find comparable sales information available on various real estate Internet sites.

Q: Are taxes on second homes deductible?
A: Interest and property taxes may be deductible on a second home if you itemize. Check with your accountant or tax adviser for specifics.

Q: What is an impound account?
A: An impound account is a trust account established by the lender to hold money to pay for real estate taxes, and mortgage and homeowners insurance premiums as they are received each month.

Q: Do all loans require impound accounts?
A: If you are taking out a FHA or VA loan, the lender can require an impound account to pay real estate taxes and hazard insurance premiums, as with a standard loan. Most conventional loans do not require an impound account.

Filed Under Real Estate

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Dads get ready to rumble

September 22, 2007

Fight For Kisses //// www.ffk-wilkinson.com

Filed Under Randomness

Political Videos

September 21, 2007

A couple troubling political videos came out this week. This first one is on Jack Murtha who accused the Haditha Marines of murder “in cold blood.” Murtha is a Democratic senator trying to turn the Iraq war into a PC police mission. Most of the charges in that trial have been dropped.

The second is the one University of Florida student tasered arrested for questioning John Kerry at an auditorium. I don’t understand why he’s not allowed to ask his question. Are we in communist America already? I do agree that once the police stepped in he should have been arrested. The student was wrong for that. Why in the world was he tasered? There was like 5 cops on 1 student. They couldn’t carry him outside? That is just crazy.

***warning profanity and disturbing footage at the end***

More thoughts…

This video just cracks me up. The guy on the right is sooo funny. Enjoy.

Filed Under Politics

The 750K Idoit

September 20, 2007

Barry Bonds said the man who bought his 756th home run ball and announced plans to let the public decide its fate is an “idiot.”

Fashion designer Marc Ecko had the winning bid Saturday in the online auction for the ball that Bonds hit last month to break Hank Aaron’s record of 755 home runs. The final selling price was $752,467, well above most predictions.

Ecko, 35, has set up a Web site that lets visitors vote on three options for the ball: give it to the National Baseball Hall of Fame, brand it with an asterisk before sending it to Cooperstown or blast it into space on a rocket ship.

The asterisk would suggest that Bonds’ record is tainted by alleged steroid use. The Giants slugger has denied knowingly using performance-enhancing drugs.

“All of those options don’t weigh anything,” Bonds told the San Francisco Chronicle on Tuesday night in Phoenix. “In baseball, that number (756) stands.”

Bonds said Ecko could have found a better way to spend three-quarters of a million dollars.

“He’s stupid. He’s an idiot,” Bonds said. “He spent $750,000 on the ball and that’s what he’s doing with it? What he’s doing is stupid.”

Ecko did not directly respond to Bonds’ comments Wednesday, but said in a statement he would make Bonds a custom T-shirt that says, “Marc Ecko paid $752,467 for my ball, and all I got was this ’stupid’ T-shirt.”‘

Ecko plans to announce what he will do with No. 756 after voting ends Sept. 25.

Ben Padnos, the California entrepreneur who submitted the $186,750 winning bid on Bonds’ record-tying 755th home run ball, said Tuesday he also plans to have the public vote on what to do with it.

Source

I voted to brand an asterisk on the ball. Destroying the ball is an option but I think having it branded forever is the best option.

VOTE

Filed Under Sports

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