Politics would be better with a crude guy like me public speaking.

Like a combo of Ann Coulter and Greg Gutfield, but with the lack of vial disgusting hate like Bill Maher.

 

The Changing TV News Landscape | State of the Media

 

speaking of the vial disgusting Bill Maher:



:50 dat look on Maddow's face...

 

The joke's on us, because American's ASSETS are now taxed for Obamacare. There's a 3.8% asset tax every time you sell your house. It doesn't happen to everyone all at the same time, so there's less chance of a riot. Right?

 

I pay taxes on my cars every year... I'm still trying to figure that one out.

 

You dummy. Those are "fees".

 

they increased taxes on us this year in VA, concidentially my property assesment skyrocketed this year too, so that means: more taxes.

it's always awesome to get a raise that can't cover the new payroll taxes then to have your state **** you as well.

I had a few projects planned that we probably not go to fuition now, that means a bunch of illegal mexicans dont get a paycheck this year. this is because obama is all about the economy, it is his #1 priority. and by economy he means his wallet/clout/vacation time.

 

This is not accurate.

 

More specifically related to the "3.8% asset tax every time you sell your house," here is the reality.

1) Do you have adjusted gross (i.e. "top line") income over $200k as a single filer or $250k as a married filer?

1a) No? Then stop reading and go on about your day. This doesn't apply to you.

1b) Yes? Keep going to 2.


2) Is the house you are selling your primary residence?

2a) No? Okay, you might owe an additional 3.8% capital gains tax on the profit from the home sale.

2b) Yes? Go on to 3.


3) Have you made more than $250k (single filer) or $500k (married filer) in profit on the sale of your primary residence?

3a) No? Then stop reading and go on about your day. This doesn't apply to you.

3b) Yes? Congratulations! When did you buy it, 1993? You will owe an additional 3.8% capital gains tax on the amount of profit above $250k/$500k.

 

living in soviet Chicago must be tough:

For One Chicago Police Officer, The Job Became Too Much « CBS Chicago

 

Correct--this struck a chord with me because my fixed-income parents are selling their house and moving out of Kalifornia--exactly for the reasons you might imagine. They certainly deserve keeping their money more than the government. But then again, so does everyone.

 

Income is taxable.

That's a constant. It's not universal across all of history and geography, but it's how taxation works in western nations of the modern world.

Income from employment? Taxable.

Income from investments? Taxable.

Income from interest and dividends? Taxable.

Income from gambling winnings? Taxable.

Income from real property sales? Taxable.


I don't see why income in the form of profit from the sale of a home should be any less taxable than any other form of income. To be perfectly honest, as someone who recently moved to California and can't afford to buy a home here, I have less than zero sympathy for your parents who probably bought their home sometime during the 70s - 90s, and are now not only cashing out with a huge profit, but have been bilking the rest of us under the shelter of their Prop 13 protection for years. If your folks bought their house for $150k and are now cashing out for a half-million or more, I am appalled that they only have to pay 3.8% tax on the 300% profit that they're walking away with.

 

Wow. They actually haven't lived there that long, and you might have noticed that housing prices tanked the last few years. So don't worry Joe, my parents about broke even. No bilking of your money going on over here...

 

In that case, they fall well below the threshold and will pay no tax.

 

See my flow chart above. Unless your parents are (A) living on a fixed income of over $250k per year AND (B) have MORE THAN $500k in profit from the sale of the house, the additional 3.8% capital gains tax does not affect them.


For example, your parents make $200k AGI, bought the house for $100k and sell it for $500k. Guess how much they owe in capital gains tax. $0.

Your parents make $300k AGI, bought the house for $100k and sell it for $610k. They owe an additional $380.


So few people are likely to be effected by that element of the Obamacare investment income tax that it's almost not worth getting your hackles raised about. More annoying is that the additional 3.8% on high income earners applies to all investment income (like taxable dividends and distributions) as well as capital gains.

 

Thanks Jack,

I understood the flow chart when you first posted it. To no one's surprise on this forum, even though the tax isn't as caustic as first thought, I still don't like it. To paraphrase Thomas Sowell, do we really think Obamacare will bring medical costs down by adding a layer of bureaucracy?

No, the big surprise from this is the reaction from Joe. He seems mad at the people affected by all these Byzantine laws,and not those who made them. What up Joe?

 

I'm not mad at anybody. To a certain extent, I'm attempting to be the objective Devil's Advocate.

I am puzzled by the way that we seem to hold some things to be sacrosanct without any sort of rhyme or reason. For instance, why are profits from the sale of a home NOT generally taxed in the same way as dividends and capital gains? The idea that "a home is an investment" is not a new one by any means, so it seems odd that we get our jimmies rustled when the idea is floated that it might be treated as one for tax purposes.

There are so many tax loopholes associated with home ownership that it just boggles the mind. Real estate has become a sacred cow.

 

i have a good solution:

flat tax, no loopholes. and outlaw the progressive caucus while we are at it.

 

I like the idea of a fair tax. This book is a great read about how it would actually work in practice.

 

Any sane, normal person would WANT a flat/fair tax, and would include housing in that bubble. And Social Security would be privatized so any remaining funds could be inherited, and capital gains would be removed as they're a tax on a tax. I loved that quote by Dr. Ben Carson. I'm paraphrasing, but he said, "a 10% tithe was good enough for Jesus. He didn't ask for a progressive rate...just 10%."

And what we have fighting against this is a ruling class (government) who gets their power by carving out these byzantine rules for their donors, which more and more are uber-powerful government unions. More government spending = more government power. It's a nasty spiral, and you're in the center if you live in California like we do Joe.