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Editors Note: Our blog will not be published during the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day so that our staff may enjoy that time with their families. Be assured we will be keeping abreast of the housing market and will be back on January 2, 2018.
Happy Holidays from all of us at LoanLogics.
Maybe it’s the holiday spirit. Maybe it’s something in the air or maybe common sense prevailed. Maybe we’ll never know.
As you know Congress passed historical tax reform on Wednesday. There was much debate over the reform’s pluses and minuses. Who will benefit and who may lose. Everybody has their point of view; some good; some bad. Only time will tell.
Initially, there were major objections coming from the housing industry on the eliminations of the deductions for state and local taxes (SALT) and mortgage interest.
Industry Trade groups said these would cripple housing and lending. But, some adjustments were made and now it appears the industry is on board with the new tax rules. Peace on earth…
In general, tax reform is seen as a big win for commercial real estate. Due to the adjustments to the SALT, mortgage interest deductions, the prospects for greater economic growth, and lower taxes on business, the industry trade groups seem to have tempered their position. Goodwill toward men…
Politics makes for strange bedfellows and alliances. It’s said that it is the art of compromise.
Maybe, the housing industry trade groups are making the best of a bad situation or maybe they see that the new tax reforms may actually help more than they may hurt.
Large lobbying groups, such as the National Association of Home Builders and the Mortgage Bankers Association, which were initially skeptical of the GOP tax-reform plans, both issued statements on Tuesday in support of the tax bill.
The American Bankers Association and other bank trade groups have been supporters of the bill from the beginning.
Maybe, it’s due to the season of goodwill. Hopefully, that spirit will carry on through the next year and far into the future.
Could it be that our elected officials will learn to work together for everyone’s peace and joy? Could the lamb lay down with the lion (without being eaten)?
Another year older, another year over, and a new one to begin. Think of what you’ve accomplished and what still needs to be done.
Take some satisfaction in things done well, learn from mistakes and get ready to fight the good fight in 2018.
That’s the great thing about a New Year. It’s like a new beginning, a chance for some do-overs, to right some wrongs and improve on what’s already being done right.
Christmas is the season of joy. It’s a time for remembering the past and hoping for the future. A time for peace on earth and goodwill toward all.
Regardless of how, or what, you celebrate during this season, may this message fill you with peace, love, understanding, and joy.
From all of us at Loanlogics we wish you the happiest of Holidays, a very Merry Christmas and a wonderful, healthy and prosperous New Year.
