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        <title>Denver Real Estate Blog</title>
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        <description>Denver real estate topics including local metro Denver community news and events.</description>
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            <guid>http://www.denversrealestate.com/blog/keeping-family-real-estate-in-the-family.html</guid>
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            <author>bruce@bruceswedal.com (Bruce Swedal)</author>
            <title>Keeping Family Real Estate in the Family</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
In challenging economic times, many families find out too late that the family home has been &quot;lost&quot; through poor financial planning. There are options that can preserve that investment for the next generation. However, many of those options require planning ahead.

Simply deeding the home to another family member can have serious tax consequences, as well as a loss of control for the parent. Furthermore, if the parent requires Medicaid assistance within a given time period (commonly a minimum of five years after the transfer), the family may still be required by the state to sell the home for medical expenses. Or the family member entrusted with title to the home may mortgage it, sell it, or even lose it in a bitter divorce.&nbsp;

One common solution is to deed the home to a living trust. This may also be subject to a &quot;looking back&quot; period in the event of Medicaid issues, but proper planning and record-keeping combined with detailed records of family assistance to keep the elderly parent in the home as long as possible can avoid that problem. Furthermore, the living trust allows the parent to retain control as trustee as long as he wishes. Discuss these options with a qualified estate planning attorney.&nbsp;

Reverse mortgages and deferred property taxes may improve cash flow for the elderly parent, but can also lead to a big problem at the parent's death. For example, the state of Florida allows some elderly homeowners to defer property taxes. But all those deferred taxes become due upon the homeowner's death. Likewise, reverse mortgages pay out equity in the home. If the money can't be repaid, the home may need to be sold.&nbsp;

Another source of problems can be medical bills. Aggressive collectors may suggest tapping into home equity to pay outstanding medical debts, placing the home at risk when the homeowner can't afford to repay the loan.&nbsp;

Finally, many elderly homeowners have been scammed by itinerant home &quot;repair&quot; contractors. Typically, these scam artists target elderly consumers, point out the need for &quot;emergency&quot; repairs, and offer &quot;easy financing&quot; for bargain priced &quot;repairs&quot;. The fine print in the &quot;easy financing&quot; paperwork adds additional fees and charges far above the value of any repairs, and often leads to foreclosure for the victim.

It's not always easy for families to discuss financial planning issues. Elderly parents may be reluctant to admit financial problems, and adult children may be reluctant to suggest financial planning for fear of being seen as greedy. But discussing these matters now can save thousands of dollars in the end. It may even save the family home.
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            <pubDate>Tue, 23 Nov 2010 14:40:05 -0700</pubDate>
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            <guid>http://www.denversrealestate.com/blog/measures-to-ensure-a-safe-home-for-you-and-your-family.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.denversrealestate.com/blog/measures-to-ensure-a-safe-home-for-you-and-your-family.html</link>
            <author>bruce@bruceswedal.com (Bruce Swedal)</author>
            <title>Measures to Ensure a Safe Home for You and Your Family</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
It may be a matter of conjecture whether the world is gradually becoming more dangerous or not but what cannot be doubted is the fact that the safety of ones family should be the prime concern for everyone. You may have been a victim of burglary and so may be wary and skeptical or you may be very worried for your kids who are alone at home for the most part of the day. Whatever be the case, you can do many things to bolster the security of your house. Though nothing can be termed as one hundred percent safe or completely fool proof, bringing about few changes can act as major deterrences to potential miscreants and offer you the much needed sense of relief.

Hedges and shrubs should be trimmed in order to keep the walkways, doors and windows clear and do not allow hiding spaces that attract intruders. This also keeps the paths visible at all times thereby enabling you to notice immediately if anything is amiss. Installing lights with motion detection capabilities will automatically illuminate an area if any motion is detected.

Fit your front door with a peephole that covers a wider angle so that you and your family members can be sure of the visitor before opening the door and letting him/her in. Your main door must be of superior quality. Using a door made of solid wood and investing in a high quality frame and a good lock are the best ways to ensure your familys safety. Make sure that you use good door braces and window braces for all possible points of entry in your home.

You may want to get yourself and your family a good dog. Although dogs will not be able to stop all intruders, they can alert your neighbors or even be able to scare away some of the intruders. Everyone knows about signboards that tell people to exercise caution as there is a dog at home. Such signs may act as deterrents even if you may not actually own a dog.&nbsp; You may also consider installing an alarm system that can be monitored regularly to ward off potentials threats. Posting warning signs to declare that your house is equipped with such an alarm even if you dont have one installed may help keep intruders at bay.

Try to change your daily schedule frequently. Such constant changes would act as a deterrent to thieves who might be observing your home. You may also consider employing timers to switch lights off and on to give an impression to potential thieves that the house is not empty. Such timers would come to your aid when you leave home for vacations. Using timers to control radio and television would also help you give an impression that some one is present.

In case you happen to take a vacation, ensure to cancel the delivery of the daily newspaper and request a trustworthy friend to take care of any letters that may arrive. If you plan to go on a vacation during the winter season, ensure that the snow gets cleared regularly in your absence. In case you are far from home during the summer season, ask someone to mow the lawn. Never tell unknown people about your travel plans; however inform your neighbors so that they keep a watch on your house while you are away. Cultivating warm relationships with your neighbors goes a long way towards ensuring security of your place when you are away. When you know your neighbors well enough, it helps you track any suspicious activity in the vicinity of your home or in your area. You may also keep an extra key in you neighbors place instead of keeping it in your property.

Whenever you purchase any home appliances or electronic items, make sure that you dont leave the cartons and packages in full view for all to see. Such inadvertent exhibitions of newly acquired possessions are a sure way of enticing thieves. You should destroy all the evidence that give out inviting signals to potential thieves and burglars and recycle the packaging cases.

Ensure that you store your valuable items where no one can see instead of keeping them out in the open. Keeping your mountain bikes and tools in the yard may attract the attention of thieves who may be encouraged to probe further to see what other valuables you possess.

Make sure that you have a secure place inside your home where you can safely hide your valuables without them getting detected easily. Using boxes that are fire proof may save your items from fire; however you ought to keep in mind that quite a number of locks can be broken with ease. A good way to build safes is to build them inside a wall, thus ensuring that they are out of sight and securely locked. It is a very good practice to make a list of all the possessions and take photographs of all the items listed in order to maintain a record for use by your insurance provider. If you become a victim of burglary or theft, the list and the photographs would simplify the process of your claim.

Oh, Remember&hellip;&nbsp; When you encounter friends or relatives who are considering buying or selling a home and would appreciate the services I offer, I would love to help them.&nbsp; As these people come to mind, just call me with their name and business number.&nbsp; I will follow up and ensure they receive excellent service.
 ]]> </description>
            <pubDate>Wed, 07 Oct 2009 15:02:10 -0600</pubDate>
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