DO NOT be scared off! The truth about the 2012 real estate tax.

Do not be scared off by the flood of inaccurate information floating around about a new real estate sales tax levied in 2012. The truth is yes, there is a new tax and yes it will subsidize health care. However it is not a sales tax, and it will not be applied to every estate sale. The effect is not nearly as wide spread as you might have been led to believe and in fact, most people will not be impacted at all.

The 3.8% assessment is on investment income only. The same $250,000 per person and $500,000 per married couple, that is currently exempt from capital gains, will also be exempt from this tax. That means that a married couple selling their primary residence must realize more than $500,000 in profit, and only the gain ABOVE $500,000 is subject to tax.

And please let me dispell completely, the outright fabrication in alarmist e-mails stating that buyers will be taxed on their real estate purchases. This is NOT TRUE and nothing of the sort is included in the above mentioned tax.