Harris W. Gilbert
Commercial Sales & Leasing
The Keyes Company Commercial Division
2121 SW 3rd Avenue
Miami, FL, 33129
Cell: (786) 371-4431
harrisgilbert@keyes.com
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
One Biscayne Tower Downtown Miami Class A Office Suites FOR LEASE!!! Wood Floors, Bay & City Views!!!
Harris W. Gilbert
Commercial Sales & Leasing
The Keyes Company Commercial Division
2121 SW 3rd Avenue
Miami, FL, 33129
Cell: (786) 371-4431
harrisgilbert@keyes.com
Beginning of the end for the housing market?
Interesting article I received from the FAR. Contact me today at (786) 371-4431 to find your bargain!
Harris W. Gilbert
Another difficult year predicted for housing industry with rebound still months away
WASHINGTON – May 27, 2008 – Like spring flowers, the “For Sale” signs are sprouting in front yards all over the United States. But anxious sellers are facing the most brutal environment in decades, with a slumping economy, falling home prices and rising mortgage foreclosures.
And even the faint promise of better days ahead might not come true, given all the headwinds the housing industry is facing at the moment.
“This is going to be another difficult spring,” said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Economy.com. “I think we are at the beginning of the end of the housing downturn, but it is going to be a long and painful end.”
The devastation is certainly a far cry from the boom years from 2001 to 2005 when sales of new and existing homes were setting records for five straight years. During that time, home prices were soaring, luring thousands of investors into the market, hoping to buy homes and flip them for quick profit.
But since 2006, the country has been mired in a housing bust, which in many ways is the worst since World War II.
Construction is expected to drop to the slowest pace since the 1940s and prices are expected to decline by the largest amount since the Great Depression.
Hardest hit are the states where sales boomed the most: California, Florida, Nevada, Arizona and parts of the Northeast. In the Midwest, the problem is shrinking jobs in the auto industry, making homes hard to sell. But virtually all of the country has felt the aftershocks of the housing slump, either through weaker home sales or the massive drag housing has imposed on the overall economy.
Housing has shaved more than a full percentage point off economic growth, trimming the gross domestic product for the past two quarters to a barely discernible 0.6 percent rate and raising the threat that the country could topple into a full-blown recession.
The National Association of Realtors reported that 46 states saw sales decline in the first three months of this year compared with the same period in 2007. Two-thirds of 149 metropolitan areas saw prices decline during the same period, the largest percentage of cities reporting price drops in the history of the NAR survey, which goes back to 1979.
The state with the biggest sales decline was Maryland, with sales down 38.6 percent in the first three months of this year compared with the same period in 2007. The drop nationwide was 22.2 percent.
The price decline nationally was 7.7 percent in the first quarter, with the biggest plunge a 29.2 percent decline in the Sacramento, California, area.
As the spring sales season got under way, the slump was continuing. The Realtors reported Friday that existing home sales fell 1 percent in April, the eighth drop in the past nine months, with the median home price falling 8 percent compared with a year ago, the second-biggest drop on record.
So just how much worse will things get?
Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the Realtors, sees some hopeful signs. Some parts of the country that have been hammered with sharp declines in sales and prices, such as San Diego, California, and Fort Myers, Florida, are now reporting sales increases, as buyers are being lured back into the market, looking for bargains.
“Lower prices and low interest rates are starting to generate results,” Yun said, noting that 30-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 5.92 percent in April, down from 6.18 percent in April 2007. That reflected an aggressive rate-cutting effort by the Federal Reserve to try to keep the country out of a recession.
Sales should also be helped in coming months, Yun predicted, by the reappearance of more mortgage products as lenders reopen the tap for certain loans. That supply had been closed following the credit crisis that hit last August, triggered by rising defaults in subprime mortgages.
Other economists are not so optimistic, noting that the Realtors’ latest report showed the number of unsold single-family homes jumping to a 23-year high, reflecting, in part, a rising tide of mortgage foreclosures, which are dumping more homes on an already glutted market.
Adding to the foreclosure problem is the weak economy, which has resulted in four straight months of job layoffs, an indication to some analysts that the country has already fallen into a recession.
Rising job layoffs and higher gasoline and food prices have sent consumer confidence plunging – not a great environment to mount a rebound in housing.
And then there is the problem of the huge overhang of unsold homes generating further declines in prices, which seem to be keeping more prospective buyers on the fence.
“Right now a lot of people are staying away because they don’t want to buy an asset that might lose value right away,” said Patrick Newport, an economist at Global Insight.
Newport predicted that prices, which by some measures have fallen by about 15 percent nationwide from their peak two years ago, will decline another 10 percent before bottoming out in the spring of 2009. A 25 percent fall in prices would be the biggest since home prices plunged by about one-third during the Great Depression of the 1930s.
David Seiders, chief economist for the National Association of Home Builders, said he believed sales will bottom out by the middle of this year and then start to move higher by the end of this year.
He said builders, trying to control inventories, will continue slashing production, with housing starts expected to drop by 39 percent this year following a 30 percent decline in 2007. That will push activity to the slowest annual pace since the end of World War II. Seiders predicted a gradual rebound in construction starting next year.
“This is stacking up as the most dramatic housing contraction in the post-World War II period,” he said.
And while sales, construction and prices should all start to recover by next year, the rebound is not expected to be a rapid one. Some analysts are forecasting it will take a couple of years for housing to regain its footing.
“It is going to take some time first to restore confidence that housing is a reasonably OK investment, then to work off this inventory and then for the financial system to revive,” Zandi predicted.
Harris W. Gilbert
Another difficult year predicted for housing industry with rebound still months away
WASHINGTON – May 27, 2008 – Like spring flowers, the “For Sale” signs are sprouting in front yards all over the United States. But anxious sellers are facing the most brutal environment in decades, with a slumping economy, falling home prices and rising mortgage foreclosures.
And even the faint promise of better days ahead might not come true, given all the headwinds the housing industry is facing at the moment.
“This is going to be another difficult spring,” said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Economy.com. “I think we are at the beginning of the end of the housing downturn, but it is going to be a long and painful end.”
The devastation is certainly a far cry from the boom years from 2001 to 2005 when sales of new and existing homes were setting records for five straight years. During that time, home prices were soaring, luring thousands of investors into the market, hoping to buy homes and flip them for quick profit.
But since 2006, the country has been mired in a housing bust, which in many ways is the worst since World War II.
Construction is expected to drop to the slowest pace since the 1940s and prices are expected to decline by the largest amount since the Great Depression.
Hardest hit are the states where sales boomed the most: California, Florida, Nevada, Arizona and parts of the Northeast. In the Midwest, the problem is shrinking jobs in the auto industry, making homes hard to sell. But virtually all of the country has felt the aftershocks of the housing slump, either through weaker home sales or the massive drag housing has imposed on the overall economy.
Housing has shaved more than a full percentage point off economic growth, trimming the gross domestic product for the past two quarters to a barely discernible 0.6 percent rate and raising the threat that the country could topple into a full-blown recession.
The National Association of Realtors reported that 46 states saw sales decline in the first three months of this year compared with the same period in 2007. Two-thirds of 149 metropolitan areas saw prices decline during the same period, the largest percentage of cities reporting price drops in the history of the NAR survey, which goes back to 1979.
The state with the biggest sales decline was Maryland, with sales down 38.6 percent in the first three months of this year compared with the same period in 2007. The drop nationwide was 22.2 percent.
The price decline nationally was 7.7 percent in the first quarter, with the biggest plunge a 29.2 percent decline in the Sacramento, California, area.
As the spring sales season got under way, the slump was continuing. The Realtors reported Friday that existing home sales fell 1 percent in April, the eighth drop in the past nine months, with the median home price falling 8 percent compared with a year ago, the second-biggest drop on record.
So just how much worse will things get?
Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the Realtors, sees some hopeful signs. Some parts of the country that have been hammered with sharp declines in sales and prices, such as San Diego, California, and Fort Myers, Florida, are now reporting sales increases, as buyers are being lured back into the market, looking for bargains.
“Lower prices and low interest rates are starting to generate results,” Yun said, noting that 30-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 5.92 percent in April, down from 6.18 percent in April 2007. That reflected an aggressive rate-cutting effort by the Federal Reserve to try to keep the country out of a recession.
Sales should also be helped in coming months, Yun predicted, by the reappearance of more mortgage products as lenders reopen the tap for certain loans. That supply had been closed following the credit crisis that hit last August, triggered by rising defaults in subprime mortgages.
Other economists are not so optimistic, noting that the Realtors’ latest report showed the number of unsold single-family homes jumping to a 23-year high, reflecting, in part, a rising tide of mortgage foreclosures, which are dumping more homes on an already glutted market.
Adding to the foreclosure problem is the weak economy, which has resulted in four straight months of job layoffs, an indication to some analysts that the country has already fallen into a recession.
Rising job layoffs and higher gasoline and food prices have sent consumer confidence plunging – not a great environment to mount a rebound in housing.
And then there is the problem of the huge overhang of unsold homes generating further declines in prices, which seem to be keeping more prospective buyers on the fence.
“Right now a lot of people are staying away because they don’t want to buy an asset that might lose value right away,” said Patrick Newport, an economist at Global Insight.
Newport predicted that prices, which by some measures have fallen by about 15 percent nationwide from their peak two years ago, will decline another 10 percent before bottoming out in the spring of 2009. A 25 percent fall in prices would be the biggest since home prices plunged by about one-third during the Great Depression of the 1930s.
David Seiders, chief economist for the National Association of Home Builders, said he believed sales will bottom out by the middle of this year and then start to move higher by the end of this year.
He said builders, trying to control inventories, will continue slashing production, with housing starts expected to drop by 39 percent this year following a 30 percent decline in 2007. That will push activity to the slowest annual pace since the end of World War II. Seiders predicted a gradual rebound in construction starting next year.
“This is stacking up as the most dramatic housing contraction in the post-World War II period,” he said.
And while sales, construction and prices should all start to recover by next year, the rebound is not expected to be a rapid one. Some analysts are forecasting it will take a couple of years for housing to regain its footing.
“It is going to take some time first to restore confidence that housing is a reasonably OK investment, then to work off this inventory and then for the financial system to revive,” Zandi predicted.
Friday, May 9, 2008
White Building REDUCED to $20 per Sq. Ft.!!!
The historic White Building in downtown Miami has available a 5 office suite with large window offices and newly renovated wood floors. The space also includes a kitchen (or additional window office), 2 administrative staff areas, receptionist area, 24 hour access, electricity and other amenities included in the price of rent. The space is approximately 3,000 square feet and is a perfect fit for a professional office such as a law firm or any other mid size professional company. The asking price has just been REDUCED to $20 per square foot, $5,000.00 per month, well below the market value for this class A comparable space.
Contact me today at (786) 371-4431 if you or anyone you know may be interested in this great deal in a fantastic location.
Harris W. Gilbert
--
Harris W. Gilbert
Commercial Sales & Leasing
The Keyes Company Commercial Division
2121 SW 3rd Avenue
Miami, FL, 33129
Direct: (305) 779-1902
Cell: (786) 371-4431
harrisgilbert@keyes.com
http://www.hwgmiamirealestate.com/
http://hwgmiamirealestate.blogspot.com/
http://hwgmiamirealestate.sef.mlxchange.com/
http://hgilbertlaw.com/
Contact me today at (786) 371-4431 if you or anyone you know may be interested in this great deal in a fantastic location.
Harris W. Gilbert
--
Harris W. Gilbert
Commercial Sales & Leasing
The Keyes Company Commercial Division
2121 SW 3rd Avenue
Miami, FL, 33129
Direct: (305) 779-1902
Cell: (786) 371-4431
harrisgilbert@keyes.com
http://www.hwgmiamirealestate.com/
http://hwgmiamirealestate.blogspot.com/
http://hwgmiamirealestate.sef.mlxchange.com/
http://hgilbertlaw.com/
Monday, May 5, 2008
FHA Loans Picking up Subprime Slack
Since the subprime mortgage meltdown, the Federal Government through the FHA has been picking up the slack. Recent homebuyers with suspect credit have been successful obtaining loans through the government organization. The process tends to be lengthier and more paper intensive, such as requiring the buyers to produce tax returns and financial history. While this process tends to take longer, it has stepped in for the subprime mortgages and allows people to buy homes with less money down and easier underwriting criteria than that of current freddie mac and fannie mae packages. The FHA has a history of stepping in during times of crisis, such as during the great depression and world war II, and as recently as the 1980's where the FHA stabilized the market.
If your looking for your dream home, and think that the mortgage meltdown has left you out in the cold thanks to lower credit scores and less money available for a down payment, you may in fact qualify for a FHA loan and be able to purchase that home of your dreams! Contact Harris W. Gilbert today at (786) 371-4431 to find that home and move forward in today's market crunch. The current foreclosure market has left many great opportunities for home owners, it's time to buy in the State of Florida!
Harris W. Gilbert
Commercial Sales & Leasing
The Keyes Company Commercial Division
2121 SW 3rd Avenue
Miami, FL, 33129
Direct: (305) 779-1902
Cell: (786) 371-4431
harrisgilbert@keyes.com
http://www.hwgmiamirealestate.com/
http://hwgmiamirealestate.blogspot.com/
http://hwgmiamirealestate.sef.mlxchange.com/
http://hgilbertlaw.com/
If your looking for your dream home, and think that the mortgage meltdown has left you out in the cold thanks to lower credit scores and less money available for a down payment, you may in fact qualify for a FHA loan and be able to purchase that home of your dreams! Contact Harris W. Gilbert today at (786) 371-4431 to find that home and move forward in today's market crunch. The current foreclosure market has left many great opportunities for home owners, it's time to buy in the State of Florida!
Harris W. Gilbert
Commercial Sales & Leasing
The Keyes Company Commercial Division
2121 SW 3rd Avenue
Miami, FL, 33129
Direct: (305) 779-1902
Cell: (786) 371-4431
harrisgilbert@keyes.com
http://www.hwgmiamirealestate
http://hwgmiamirealestate
http://hwgmiamirealestate.sef
http://hgilbertlaw.com/
Sunday, May 4, 2008
IRS Offers Economic Stimulus Package
Here is the Q and A from the IRS website:
Updated April 29, 2008
Under the Economic Stimulus Act of 2008, more than 130 million American households will receive economic stimulus payments beginning in May. The only way to get one is to file a federal tax return for 2007. This filing requirement also applies to some people who do not normally file, including many low-income people and recipients of Social Security, certain benefits received from the Department of Veterans Affairs and certain Railroad Retirement benefits. The Economic Stimulus Calculator can help you estimate the amount of your payment.
Following are answers to some of the most commonly asked questions regarding the payments. Scroll down the list for the basics or choose one of the following categories:
Taxpayer ID Numbers | When & How | Receiving the Stimulus Payment | Business | Armed Forces | Other Questions
Basic Eligibility
Q. What do I need to do to get an economic stimulus payment?
A. All you need to do is file a federal income tax return for 2007. Even if you are not otherwise required to file a tax return, you must file a 2007 return in order to receive a payment this year. Although some filers, such as high-income filers, will not qualify for a stimulus payment, most will.
In most cases, you will fill out your return, reporting all your income, deductions and credits as you normally would. But even if you are not required to file, you must file a 2007 return to get a stimulus payment this year. Low-income workers, Social Security beneficiaries, certain railroad retirees and those who receive certain benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs who normally don’t file may receive a stimulus payment if they do. The IRS will provide special filing instructions for those who do not otherwise have a filing requirement. The instructions will explain which lines on the tax return the filers need to complete.
You do not need to calculate the amount of the stimulus payment. If you want to estimate the amount of your payment, use the Economic Stimulus Payment Calculator.
If you qualify, the IRS will automatically figure it and send it to you. The IRS will also send you a notice showing the amount of your payment. You do not need to call the IRS or fill out any other special forms.
Q. How do I find out if I am eligible?
A. The easiest way to find out is to use the Economic Stimulus Payment Calculator. Most people with a 2007 net income tax liability will qualify. This includes most people who get tax refunds. Net income tax liability is the amount shown on Form 1040, Line 57 plus the amount on Line 52. For 1040A filers, it is the amount on Line 35 plus the amount on Line 32. For Form 1040EZ filers, it is the amount on Line 10.
Families with children under 17 generally will qualify for an additional payment. Some people with no tax liability also will qualify. This includes Social Security and Railroad Retirement beneficiaries, recipients of certain veterans’ payments, low-income workers with earned income and/or benefits of at least $3,000 and individuals who have combined income of at least $3,000 from any combination of these sources.
Some higher-income taxpayers will not receive a stimulus payment or will receive a reduced payment.
Q: I normally don't need to file a tax return. How do I know if I'm one of those people who may be eligible to receive an economic stimulus payment?
A: This group includes some recipients of Social Security, Railroad Retirement or veterans' benefits as well as taxpayers who do not make enough money to normally have to file a 2007 tax return. For example, this can include low-income workers, those who receive Social Security benefits or veterans’ disability compensation, pension or survivors’ benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs in 2007. These people will be eligible to receive a payment of $300 ($600 on a joint return) if they had at least $3,000 of qualifying income.
Qualifying income includes Social Security benefits, certain Railroad Retirement benefits, certain veterans’ benefits and earned income, such as income from wages, salaries, tips and self-employment. For people filing joint tax returns, only a total of $3,000 of qualifying income from both spouses is required to be eligible for a payment.
Q: I normally don't have to file a tax return but have enough in qualifying income to receive a stimulus payment. How do I find out more about how to file a tax return?
More information is available in Fact Sheet 2008-16. If you qualify, all you need to do is fill out Form 1040A in a few places. A sample version of Form 1040A illustrates which lines to fill out.
Q. If I'm filing a tax return this year just to get a stimulus payment, by when do I have to file?
A. The IRS encourages everyone to file by the normal April 15 tax deadline: The sooner you file the sooner you can receive your stimulus payment. But if you have obtained a valid six-month extension to file or if you are filing to establish your eligibility for the stimulus payment, filing by Oct. 15 means the IRS can process your return and issue a stimulus payment before the end of the year. [New 3/5/08]
Q. I want to estimate my payment. Please explain how it is figured.
A. Essentially, there are two parts to the stimulus payment: a basic amount based on tax liability, filing status or other qualifying factors if there is no tax liability and an additional amount based on whether a qualifying child is reported on the return.
Basic Amount of Payment: Taxpayers who had a net income tax liability will receive a payment, unless they can be claimed as dependents on someone else’s return, are high-income individuals or do not have a valid Social Security Number. The payment is equal to the taxpayer’s net income tax liability, but no more than $600 for a single person or $1,200 for a married couple filing a joint return. The minimum payment is $300 for a single person or $600 for a married couple filing jointly.
People with no net income tax liability will usually get a minimum payment of $300 for a single person or $600 for a married couple filing jointly, as long as they have qualifying income of at least $3,000. To figure your qualifying income, add together the following amounts:
- Wages that are reported on Form W-2.
- Net self-employment income.
- Social Security benefits reported in box 5 of the 2007 Form 1099-SSA, which would have been received in January 2008. People who do not have a Form 1099-SSA may estimate their annual Social Security benefit by taking their monthly benefit and multiplying it by the number of months during the year they received the benefit.
- Certain Railroad Retirement benefits reported in box 5 of the 2007 Form 1099-RRB, which recipients would have received in January 2008.
- Veterans’ benefits received in 2007, including veterans’ disability compensation and pension or survivors’ benefits received from the Department of Veterans Affairs. People who weren’t required to file a tax return can estimate their annual veterans’ benefits by taking their monthly benefit and multiplying it by the number of months during the year they received the benefit.
- Nontaxable combat pay if the taxpayer elects to include it as earned income.
Extra Money for Qualifying Child: Eligible taxpayers who qualify for a payment may receive an additional $300 for each qualifying child. To qualify a child must be under age 17.
Phase Out: The stimulus payment –– both the basic component and the additional funds for qualifying children –– begins to phase out for individuals with adjusted gross incomes (AGI) over $75,000 and married couples who file a joint return with AGI over $150,000. The combined payment is reduced by 5 percent of the income above the AGI thresholds.
Here are two examples of how the phase out works:
- An individual with AGI of $80,000 and federal income tax liability in excess of $600 would qualify for a basic rebate of $600. Because this individual’s AGI exceeds $75,000, however, her rebate is reduced by $250 (the credit is reduced by multiplying the amount of AGI over $75,000 by 5%). The taxpayer receives an economic stimulus payment of $350.
- A married couple with two children, AGI of $160,000 and federal income tax liability before the child tax credit exceeding $1,200 qualifies for a basic rebate of $1,200 and an additional qualifying child credit of $600 for a total rebate of $1,800. But because the couple’s AGI exceeds $150,000, their rebate is reduced by $500 (the amount of AGI over $150,000 multiplied by 5%). The couple receives an economic stimulus payment of $1,300.
Use the Economic Stimulus Payment Calculator to determine your eligibility and estimate the amount of your payment.
Q. I am filling out the special Form 1040A to report my qualifying income. Which Social Security benefits should I report on Line 14a?
A. The economic stimulus law refers to the same definition of Social Security and Railroad Retirement benefits used in IRS Publication 915. Thus, Social Security monthly retirement, survivor and disability benefits, or the Tier 1 Railroad Retirement benefits equivalent to those SS benefits, all count. This is the amount reported to you by the Social Security Administration as “Net Benefits for 2007” in Box 5 of Form SSA-1099 or by the Railroad Retirement Board in Box 5 of Form RRB-1099. Report this amount on Line 14a, Form 1040A. Determine the amount of your Veterans' benefits by multiplying your monthly benefit by the number of months during 2007 that you received the benefit. Supplemental security income (SSI) payments are not considered Social Security benefits and thus cannot be included. Because SSI is not taxable, it is not reported to you on Form SSA-1099. [New 2/27/2008]
Q. Does my supplemental security income (SSI) qualify as Social Security benefits for the purpose of the Economic Stimulus Payment?
A. No, supplemental security income (SSI) payments are not considered Social Security benefits and thus cannot be included. Because SSI is not taxable, it is not reported to you on Form SSA-1099. Only the amount shown in Box 5 of Form SSA-1099 is consider to qualify as Social Security benefits for purposes of the Economic Stimulus Payments. [New 4/22/2008]
Q. Does rental income qualify as qualifying income?
A. Rental real estate income is not earned income for purposes of the economic stimulus payment, unless it is net earnings from self-employment, as is certain farm rent or income received in the business as a real estate dealer. [New 4/11/08]
Q. My child just turned 17 in December 2007. Do I still get the extra child payment?
A. Not in this case. Eligible taxpayers who qualify for a payment may receive an additional $300 for each qualifying child. But to qualify, a child must be under age 17 as of Dec. 31, 2007. In other words, if a child was 16 or younger at the end of 2007 and meets the other eligibility requirements, then the child will qualify for the $300 stimulus payment.
Q. Will receiving an economic stimulus payment in any way affect my eligibility for other federal benefits, such as temporary assistance for needy families, food stamps or Social Security? Will it count as income for purposes of my Social Security benefits?
A: No. The stimulus payments will not have any effect on eligibility for federal benefits.
Q: I know some people won’t get a stimulus payment. How do I know if I’m one of them?
A: You won’t get a stimulus payment in 2008, if any of the following apply to you:
- You don’t file a 2007 tax return.
- Your net income tax liability is zero and your qualifying income is less than $3,000. To determine your qualifying income, add together your wages, net self-employment income, nontaxable combat pay, Social Security benefits, certain Railroad Retirement benefits and certain veterans’ payments.
- You can be claimed as a dependent on someone else’s return (whether or not you actually are claimed as a dependent on someone else's return). For example, this would include a child or student who can be claimed on a parent’s return. [Updated 4/15/08]
- You do not have a valid Social Security Number.
- You are a nonresident alien.
- You file Form 1040NR or Form 1040NR-EZ, Form 1040PR or Form 1040SS for 2007.
Q: What if I already filed my return but have additional income to report that would make me eligible for a stimulus payment?
A: If you have additional qualifying income for Social Security, Veterans Affairs or Railroad Retirement benefits that you would like to report, you can file an amended return using Form 1040X, but allow 8-12 weeks of processing time before making any inquiries about your payment. [New 4/17/08]
Q. If an individual dies, what happens to his or her direct deposit or stimulus check?
A. Stimulus payments will be issued in the name of the individual eligible for payment on a filed 2007 income tax return or to the account designated by the individual on that return. This includes situations where a person dies after filing a return or where the final 2007 income tax return was filed by a personal representative or surviving spouse. Any issues or concerns involving a decedent's filed return or the related stimulus payment should be addressed by the legal representative of the decedent's estate. See Publication 559 for more useful information for survivors and personal representatives. [Updated 3/17/08]
Q. Is pension income from employers considered income for the Economic Stimulus Package?
A. No, pension income is not included in eligible income. [New 4/11/08]
Q. Was a special form created for people who would not normally file but are filing only to request their stimulus payments?
A. A special mailout was sent to this group of people, providing specific details on how to request the payment. It included a Form 1040A that requires only a few lines to be completed. [New 4/11/08]
Q. How will members of the armed forces receive their stimulus payments?
A. Members of the armed forces will need to file a 2007 income tax return to receive the stimulus payment. [New 4/11/08]
Q. Will military personnel stationed in a combat zone get an automatic extension to file?
A. Combat zone personnel are allotted an automatic extension to file their returns. However, if they wish to receive the economic stimulus payments, they must file their 2007 income tax returns in time for the IRS to process them before the end of the year. To ensure that a stimulus payment can be made this year, the return should be filed no later than Oct. 15. [New 4/11/08]
Related Items:
Economic Stimulus Payments Information Center
Tax Package 1040A-3 with sample Form 1040A
Other economic stimulus FAQs:
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