Community

All of us at Oregon Opportunities wish you and your loved ones a joyous Holiday Season and prosperous New Year!  To allow us to spend time with our families for the holidays, our office will close at noon on Friday December 23rd through Monday December 26th.  We will also close at noon on December 30th through January 2nd.

Happy Holidays

In the last 20 some years, there have been many changes in real estate.   Most notably is the way Listings are advertised and how property details get retrieved and delivered.

There was a time when the compilation of relevant listing information took virtually a week to assemble, then called the "MLS Book".  Now, all that information and generally much more can be gathered electronically in the morning and uploaded to a virtual MLS Book that only exists in the "Cloud" by the afternoon.  The electronic progression continues with the introduction of QR Codes into the real estate realm.

Quick Response (QR) Codes are square bar codes that enable smart phone users with the proper app support to snap a scan of the code and be taken directly to the product listing, listing broker, or listing company that the user is interested in.  Users can also quickly add "business card" information into their contacts.

One will find us using QR Codes with greater frequency.   Listing flyers and flyer boxes will have an associated code attached as well as company signs, business cards and other promotional materials will have codes directing to our company and our brokers.  We know we are only scratching the surface of utilizing QR Code technology, we do recognize their importance in helping us to propagate information to a greater number of people and in a media that is user driven.

How can we make QR codes fit your needs?

Recently, I read an article relating to national commercial real estate conditions and the 2009
Stimulus Act. Many real estate owners and developers are negotiating with their lenders to modify
existing debt and the Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 provides some beneficial tax relief.
With tight finance, increased vacancies, downward pressure on rents, owners are looking for relief.
The move to negotiate with lenders for debt relief, including forgiveness, has become a popular
means of capital preservation. However, debt restructuring can result in cancellation of debt
(COD) income for tax purposes, especially when the loan is reduced or the owner pays off the
loan at a discount. Most often, the cancellation is taxed as income at the borrower’s ordinary rate.
Let’s say an owner owes $500,000 on a mortgage and the lender agrees to reduce the principal to
$350,000. Unless there is an exception that applies, the owner will recognize $150,000 of ordinary
income.
The Stimulus Act gives owners an alternative. The new provision allows them to defer COD
resulting from 2009 and 2010 transactions until 2014. The owner must recognize 20% of the COD
in 2014, and in each of the next four years. The new alternative is simpler and has fewer
restrictions.
Applying this new rule to our example, if the principal of a $500,000 mortgage were reduced to
$350,000, instead of immediately paying tax on $150,000 of income, the owner can now defer the
income until 2014 and recognize $30,000 in each year from 2014 until 2018.
Secured and unsecured debts are eligible. Property value isn't considered. The basis of an owner's
property isn't reduced, and he continues to depreciate 100% of his original cost. The property
must be used in the owner's “trade or business”.
Many commercial property owners are now asking their lenders for debt relief. The 2009 Stimulus
Act alternative will allow them to restructure debt on their troubled assets without the punitive
tax consequence as before.
Information gathered from sources deemed reliable, but not guaranteed. It is recommended that
individuals check with all appropriate professionals for legal, accounting, and development advice
Curt Johnson, SIOR

Staging a house for sale is a concept foreign to many home sellers.  But it has been immensely popular in the San Francisco Bay area where sellers have reaped huge benefits from their efforts.  In a recent Inman News article, they said the sellers don't have to fix up their home before selling if the home is priced right.  There are basically two reasons why sellers should prepare their home for sale, a sales price closer to the listed price and a quicker sale.  A few quick and easy cosmetic improvements ideas that can really make a difference: remove old window coverings and leave them off, remove some furniture, change out olders light fixtures, paint outdated cabinets and change cabinet knobs, and even think about painting the walls a trendy decorator color.  The goal of fixing up a ahouse for sale is to get it into move-in ready condition.  Fixer-uppers appeal only to certain buyers who usually want a break on the price to compensate for the condition of the property.  By sprucing the property up for sale, you appeal to a much broader audience.