All Forum Posts by: Nicholas Aiola

I'm in the same boat (good thing she doesn't have a BP account!). I don't agree with the responders saying you should "ditch her"; I'm sure she has goals of her own that don't align with yours. It's okay to be different people. With that said, it's definitely a good idea to have a conversation about your personal and financial goals, why real estate will help you get there, and how it will benefit both of you in the long run. I took my girlfriend for a drive around a really nice neighborhood near where we live. To no one's surprise, she loved the houses. I explained how my real estate investing plan could get us into one of those houses in a couple of years, or even less. After that, future real-estate-related conversations were a little more well-received... We were talking about how expensive it will be when we have kids and it's time for them to go to college. I explained the idea of buying them each a property when they're born, renting it out for 18 years while letting the home appreciate and the debt dwindle away, and refinancing when it's time for college to pay for most, if not all, of the costs. That one got an eyebrow raise or two. She even came to see a property with me a few weeks ago. I guess the point is, baby steps :)

Hi, Tonette Whitted ! Welcome to the BP community and good luck to you getting started :)

Welcome, Aamir Shah ! You certainly came to the right place. Happy hunting!

Jack B. Yes, that would still qualify you for the exemption but, as the others have said, the new tax proposal plans to change it to 5 out of the last 8 years.

Megan Clancy I agree with the others that having a real-estate-savvy CPA as part of your team is important. What I find my clients appreciate the most is quick response time, honesty, transparency, and ability to communicate results/strategies. Above all, you have to find a CPA with whom you feel comfortable and who works best with YOU. Good luck on your search :)

Wow, that certainly is a first for me... I can't "duck"ing believe it ;)

Welcome, David Krainert ! Happy to see another accountant/investor on here :)

Brian Chase Since it is your primary residence and the property is not yet advertised/available for rent, the cost of the survey would not be deductible...currently. That's the bad news. The good news is, it's not lost - it will be added to your basis. But wait...there's more (read in a Billy Mays voice)... Once you convert the property to a full or partial rental, you will be able to deduct all or part of that cost over time via depreciation since it will have been added to your basis.

Welcome, Dan Stark ! You are definitely in the right place to soak in as much knowledge as possible. Good luck investing!

Will Foster , Brian Eastman is correct in saying you can withdraw money from your IRA penalty-free to purchase a home, but there are 2 key points to understand: 1. You must be a first-time home buyer. "First-time" is considered to include those who haven't owned a home in the past 2 years. So, if you owned a home 5 years ago, sold it, and haven't owned one since, you're considered a "first-time" buyer. 2. You're only allowed to withdraw up to $10,000 penalty-free... for life. So, if you use it once, it's gone. Keep in mind...although it's penalty-free, it's still taxable. This is all assuming you have a Traditional IRA. The rules are very different for a Roth IRA: contributions are allowed to be withdrawn at any time, in any amount, penalty- and tax-free since you already paid tax on that money. If you wanted to withdraw more than your contributions, you can pull from your earnings, in which case the above exception will apply (again, up to $10,000).