Realtors Lead the Charge to Retain the American Dream (of Home Ownership)

No matter what political philosophy is subscribed to, most Americans seem to favor some degree of tax reform. Perhaps we should be careful what we wish for; time will tell.

According to the Ohio Association of Realtors July 10, 2013, “Daily Buzz" (http://ohiorealtors.org/oardailybuzz ), however, the time may be sooner than we think. Carol O’Donnell, Ohio Representative of the REALTOR Party Member Involvement Committee reported that the U.S. Senate has already launched a comprehensive review of the U.S. Tax Code and that senators have been given until July 26, 2013 to chime in on what tax credits/incentives should stay and what should go. Unfortunately, nothing is “off the table”, including the potential elimination of the mortgage interest deduction (“Mortgage Interest Deduction”), and the capital gain exception on the sale of a primary residence (“Capital Gain Exception”).

While the overall effect of tax reform on the economy is debatable, there is no mystery as to what could happen to the American dream of homeownership and the real estate economy in Ohio and elsewhere in the nation (if the Mortgage Interest Deduction and Capital Gain Exception are eliminated). Simply, the dream could end, and the residential real estate industry could be severely affected.

In an attempt to avoid the possibility of killing the American dream, and potential jobs resulting therefrom, the National Association of Realtors (“NAR”) and Ohio Association of Realtors (“OAR”) have issued a “call for action” to urge our lawmakers to preserve the Mortgage Interest Deduction and Capital Gain Exception.

For more information, and to access a scripted plea to Senators Rob Portman and Sherrod Brown from Ohio to “retain the American dream”, click on the following link to OAR’s website: http://ohiorealtors.org/oardailybuzz/?tag=politics .