Joel and Kathryn Friedman, both 71, are counting the days until they can sell their home and move into a 55-plus community.
The retired empty-nesters have been ready to downsize for years, but are reluctant to sell their five-bedroom, 5,000-square-foot Southern California house [mansion] in large part because of at least $700,000 in capital gains taxes they estimate they’d have to pay.
Since 1997, home sale profits over $500,000 (for married couples) and $250,000 (for single filers) have been subject to a capital gains tax of up to 20%. That threshold hasn’t changed since 1997, meaning that — between inflation and soaring home prices pushing an ever higher number of houses above that limit — many more home sellers have to pay the tax now than when it was first implemented.
The Friedmans are among a growing number of older homeowners discouraged by the tax from selling their valuable properties. Housing economists say that dynamic has exacerbated a shortage of family-sized homes on the market, especially in expensive places like California.
The Friedmans’ house is too big for them, and maintenance costs are only rising, Joel said. “There are a million reasons why we’d like to move, but we’re not because the tax is just burdensome,” he said.
But that could change — there’s bipartisan support in Congress for raising the federal tax threshold to boost home sales in a stagnant market.
Lol. Yeah sounds like the typical boomer. Never learned what a worry is yet constantly complaining.
Like I always say “I complained to have no shoes until I saw a man with no feet”.
Anyhow. I’m sorry my dutch neighbor. Parents like that are a PITA. Mine were like that too. What a failure i am. Then I became successfully and they both, having no spine at all, couldn’t resist the offer to be employed by me. And after they learned how cool it could’ve been, and what a dream of an employer I was (work whenever wherever you want, but please get the shit somehow done, from cleaning stuff to CEO), I fired them and replaced them with, in their eyes, “horrible failures that only weakens the country!”. Their last month working was showing the news guys the ropes.
It felt great, but, to make a point relative to your story, they didn’t learn shit from it. Even being on welfare didn’t change them. Quite the contrary, now I wasn’t a failure anymore but the epitome of evil incarnated and the sole source of all their woes. You probably either are an arse or you’re not. So fret not, just cut them out of your life. Basic rule of life: remove toxic people from your social circle. No matter if family (blood) or not.
And get whatever money you can from them. No matter what fucknuggets they are. Money isn’t dirty and has no inherent value. Take what’s yours when you can. Here it’s at least 25% if they disowned you, guess it’s not much different in NL.