Selling the Farm
So here's what's going on.
The plan was to stay on the farm until my grandmother passed away. If we sold it before she passed away, we would lose around 30% to capital gains, but that's not all. The deed was in my grandmother's name, but several years back she and my mother put it in my mother's name to protect themselves from a couple of relatives who might have tried pulling some legal shenanigans to get the property for themselves, but my grandmother retained some manner of "lifetime rights" to the farm. Because of this, if we sold the place before she died a large portion of the money would immediately be set aside for her care.
Speaking of her care, she has been at a full-time assisted care facility since 2011 and will need to remain in such facilities until she passes. It is very expensive, but it's paid for by her insurance. That insurance will expire late next year. It appeared that she would not be eligible for Medicaid, so if she survived that long we would *have* to sell the farm to pay for her care. We could bring her back to the farm instead, but that would greatly exacerbate her problems, we couldn't provide the manner and quality of care she needs, and it would certainly be "less than ideal" for us.
So the plan was that we would wait for her to pass away and hope that she did so before her insurance ran out (and it seems very, very likely that she will), while in the meantime I would work on getting the farm ready to put on the market and my mother would focus on her soap business. Once my grandmother passed, we would put the farm up for sale ASAP and try to sell for a reasonable price as soon as we could. There would be some difficulty, though, since the business doesn't make enough to support us *and* pay for all the costs that come with this house and land, and we wouldn't have my grandmother's pension to make up the difference; however, we wouldn't have to pay the large capital gains tax.
Yesterday, I found out my mother had arranged for a realtor to bring a couple to view the farm on Tuesday. The farm was going on the market.
It took me awhile to catch up with everything. I have been very busy these last few days with some personal matters and hadn't really had a chance to catch up with my mother. It turns out that she learned some very important things in a short time and had the wherewithal and the courage to go forward without my involvement. My, how things have changed.
So, it turns out that if we sell the place before she passes, we'll be paying a smaller percentage as capital gains on a smaller portion of the sale. Instead of 30ish% of the total sale, we would have to pay a smaller percentage. Not just that, but the first 250k of the sale, as long as the sale includes the house, isn't taxed. Furthermore, the 25% that's set aside for my grandmother's care will also not be taxed. Wow. That changes things.
Also, my grandmother likely would be eligible for Medicaid, although it would come into play after both her insurance and the money set aside from the sale are exhausted. Even so, as long as we sell the place before her insurance runs out she will be able to continue receiving the care she needs.
Also, we have a realtor. Kind of. We don't have the usual relationship with this guy. We won't be listed, but we'll entertain specific clients he brings. If we sell it to people he brought to us, we pay him 6%. If we sell it to someone else, we pay him nothing.
So, the farm's now on the market. My mother would prefer to sell it after my grandmother passes, but that's no longer a necessity. Once we sell it, I will be heading to the Northeast immediately. She and I both agree that it is best for her to stay in the area until her mother passes, but then afterwards she will move out of the area as well, likely to New England.
So, that's what's up.
Oh, and the couple that's coming out is looking for a new place for their horse farm, and they're tired of looking.
Oh, and now they're coming Monday morning.
The plan was to stay on the farm until my grandmother passed away. If we sold it before she passed away, we would lose around 30% to capital gains, but that's not all. The deed was in my grandmother's name, but several years back she and my mother put it in my mother's name to protect themselves from a couple of relatives who might have tried pulling some legal shenanigans to get the property for themselves, but my grandmother retained some manner of "lifetime rights" to the farm. Because of this, if we sold the place before she died a large portion of the money would immediately be set aside for her care.
Speaking of her care, she has been at a full-time assisted care facility since 2011 and will need to remain in such facilities until she passes. It is very expensive, but it's paid for by her insurance. That insurance will expire late next year. It appeared that she would not be eligible for Medicaid, so if she survived that long we would *have* to sell the farm to pay for her care. We could bring her back to the farm instead, but that would greatly exacerbate her problems, we couldn't provide the manner and quality of care she needs, and it would certainly be "less than ideal" for us.
So the plan was that we would wait for her to pass away and hope that she did so before her insurance ran out (and it seems very, very likely that she will), while in the meantime I would work on getting the farm ready to put on the market and my mother would focus on her soap business. Once my grandmother passed, we would put the farm up for sale ASAP and try to sell for a reasonable price as soon as we could. There would be some difficulty, though, since the business doesn't make enough to support us *and* pay for all the costs that come with this house and land, and we wouldn't have my grandmother's pension to make up the difference; however, we wouldn't have to pay the large capital gains tax.
Yesterday, I found out my mother had arranged for a realtor to bring a couple to view the farm on Tuesday. The farm was going on the market.
It took me awhile to catch up with everything. I have been very busy these last few days with some personal matters and hadn't really had a chance to catch up with my mother. It turns out that she learned some very important things in a short time and had the wherewithal and the courage to go forward without my involvement. My, how things have changed.
So, it turns out that if we sell the place before she passes, we'll be paying a smaller percentage as capital gains on a smaller portion of the sale. Instead of 30ish% of the total sale, we would have to pay a smaller percentage. Not just that, but the first 250k of the sale, as long as the sale includes the house, isn't taxed. Furthermore, the 25% that's set aside for my grandmother's care will also not be taxed. Wow. That changes things.
Also, my grandmother likely would be eligible for Medicaid, although it would come into play after both her insurance and the money set aside from the sale are exhausted. Even so, as long as we sell the place before her insurance runs out she will be able to continue receiving the care she needs.
Also, we have a realtor. Kind of. We don't have the usual relationship with this guy. We won't be listed, but we'll entertain specific clients he brings. If we sell it to people he brought to us, we pay him 6%. If we sell it to someone else, we pay him nothing.
So, the farm's now on the market. My mother would prefer to sell it after my grandmother passes, but that's no longer a necessity. Once we sell it, I will be heading to the Northeast immediately. She and I both agree that it is best for her to stay in the area until her mother passes, but then afterwards she will move out of the area as well, likely to New England.
So, that's what's up.
Oh, and the couple that's coming out is looking for a new place for their horse farm, and they're tired of looking.
Oh, and now they're coming Monday morning.