Let’s finish off our discussion of how the Seattle-area real estate market may be affected next year by the changes to the tax code. In yesterday’s post we discussed the doubling of the standard deduction, and concluded that it is likely to have very little effect. Today let’s look at the other two big changes: The reduction of the mortgage interest deduction cap from $1M to $750k and the capping of local sales, income, and property tax deductions at $10k…
Tag: politics
Will the new tax laws slow Seattle’s housing market? (Part 1: Doubled Standard Deduction)
Now that the big GOP tax plan has passed, let’s have a look at how it may affect the Seattle-area real estate market next year when it goes into effect.
There are two major changes to the tax code that will matter to home buyers and home owners: the doubling of the standard deduction (from $12,700 for a married couple in 2017 to $24,000 in 2018) and the reduction of the mortgage interest deduction cap from $1 million to $750k.
First up let’s look at the doubling of the standard deduction…
Will a No Vote on Prop. 1 “Keep Seattle Affordable”?
This is rich. I spotted the ad at right this morning. I laughed out loud when I read it. Specifically the first word there: “keep.” If you’re not wealthy, Seattle is already unaffordable by nearly any metric. Rents are soaring, home prices are hitting new all-time highs, and inventory of both rentals and for-sale homes…
How Does Seattle City Councilmember Kshama Sawant Plan to “Make Seattle Affordable for All”?
I drove down to Leschi last weekend, and I saw a surprising number of yard signs promoting the re-election of Kshama Sawant to the Seattle City Council. As you can see in the photo at right (taken from her campaign’s Twitter feed), the slogan on these signs implies that Sawant’s main goal is to “Make…
Thousands of Seattle Homes to End Up Literally Underwater
If you followed the news this week, you probably read that the Antarctic ice sheet is has entered an irreversible melting phase, that will eventually lead to its collapse into the ocean and an over ten feet increase in the sea level. Here’s an excerpt from the Seattle Times article about the melting Antarctic ice…