Don't plan on selling your home after 2012

Remember during the debate about Obamacare when we were all shocked at the 2,000 plus page bill that none of the legislators ever read? And remember some of the stupid comments from some of the Senators who actually said the bill was too big to read before voting on?  Or how about when Nancy Pelosi told us that it is best to get it passed now and then work out the details later?

Well, I think it is now “later” and here is one of those “details” that you may find very interesting….I mean irritating! 

If you sell your house after 2012 you will pay a 3.8% sales tax on the sale.  That means after you pay your Realtor and possibly your buyers closing costs you will pay Uncle Sam….I mean Uncle Obama….wait a minute, hopefully we will have retired him by then.  Anyway, there will still be a big bloated US Government with trillions in debt and that big debt monster will gladly take your money.

Let me break it down with some real numbers.  Let’s say that you sell your house for $200,000 and you pay a 6% sales commission.  That comes to $12,000.  And then you pay your buyers closing costs of about 3% that comes to $6,000.  Then you get to pay 3.8% of your sales price into the ObamaCare plan which comes to $7,600.  It just cost you $25,600 to sell your home! But look on the bright side of this, you will help pay for the cost of FREE health care for everybody, including those who don’t own a home or even have a job and pay no income taxes.

Now guess who this will impact the most?  How about the seniors who are retiring and downsizing?  Yep!  They will get hit the hardest, which seems so strange since the Democrats say that it is the Republicans who want to starve the seniors and take away their Medicare. 

I understand the National Association of REALTORS is fighting to get this changed.  It couldn’t hurt for you to call your Senators and Congressmen as well and tell them that you don’t want to see the entire US housing market decline in 2013 because it will be too costly for people to sell their homes. This is definitely “Change you can believe in” but pocket change won’t buy another home or put food on the table.