Thinking about refinancing your home to take advantage of low interest rates? Think about your future home improvement needs before you sign on the dotted line.
Mortgage refinancing may provide an ideal opportunity to pay for a home improvement project, large or small. Whether it’s something you’ve been wanting to do for a long time, or a more recent need, rolling the cost into a refinanced mortgage may be far better than financing separately later.
The key is to look ahead to anticipate the needs of your home in years to come. Will a changing family require changes to your home in the next few years? Are any major components going to need replacing soon? Will energy-efficient improvements pay for themselves in reduced utility bills? Will an improvement make the home more marketable when the time comes to sell it? It only makes sense to consider your longer-term home needs while you’re working out long-term financing.
If you need some preliminary input from experts on the feasibility or cost of a project in order to address it with refinancing, give us a call at Ken Spears Construction. We are more than glad to provide early input into the process.
Monday, June 22, 2009
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Tax credits for energy-efficient home improvements
If you’re interested in improving your home to make it more energy-efficient, you have a rich uncle willing to help pay for it: Uncle Sam.
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (also referred to as the “stimulus package”), signed into law on Feb. 17 of this year, includes Federal tax credits for energy-efficient home improvements such as new windows, doors, insulation, roofing, and heating and air conditioning systems. The credit is for 30 percent of the cost of materials, up to $1,500.
The products installed must meet certain standards of energy efficiency in order to qualify for the credit. There has been some confusion over what products qualify, especially in the case of windows. The Federal government standard for windows has actually changed three times since February.
The “final answer” on windows is, effective June 1, 2009, replacement windows must meet a stringent standard for insulation (U value of .30 or less) and resistance to solar heat gain (coefficient of .30 or less).
A tax credit which was in effect in past years had a lower standard of qualification – that is, that the windows be Energy Star rated. Energy Star is a sort of “seal of approval” by the federal government that says products are “energy efficient.” You may have seen it on household products like appliances and lighting. There is also an Energy Star standard for windows, which many windows meet. But that does not guarantee that they’re good enough to qualify for the tax credit. The Energy Star website puts it this way:
“… not all ENERGY STAR qualified homes and products qualify for a tax credit. These tax credits are available for a number of products at the highest efficiency levels, which typically cost much more than standard products.”
If you find that confusing, you’re not the only one. And the rules for insulation, roofing, and heating/air conditioning systems can be even more confusing. The bottom line is, the tax credit can provide substantial help in paying for home improvements, but “doing it right” requires some guidance from informed professionals.
At Ken Spears Construction, we’re working hard to learn all the details and stay up-to-date on rules that are sometimes changing day-to-day. We aren’t tax advisors, but we can help make sure you get the right products and the right documentation to qualify, as well as being the right product for your home and lifestyle. We can also deliver top-quality installation, so you reap the full energy savings and improved appearance to your home, as well as the tax advantage!
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (also referred to as the “stimulus package”), signed into law on Feb. 17 of this year, includes Federal tax credits for energy-efficient home improvements such as new windows, doors, insulation, roofing, and heating and air conditioning systems. The credit is for 30 percent of the cost of materials, up to $1,500.
The products installed must meet certain standards of energy efficiency in order to qualify for the credit. There has been some confusion over what products qualify, especially in the case of windows. The Federal government standard for windows has actually changed three times since February.
The “final answer” on windows is, effective June 1, 2009, replacement windows must meet a stringent standard for insulation (U value of .30 or less) and resistance to solar heat gain (coefficient of .30 or less).
A tax credit which was in effect in past years had a lower standard of qualification – that is, that the windows be Energy Star rated. Energy Star is a sort of “seal of approval” by the federal government that says products are “energy efficient.” You may have seen it on household products like appliances and lighting. There is also an Energy Star standard for windows, which many windows meet. But that does not guarantee that they’re good enough to qualify for the tax credit. The Energy Star website puts it this way:
“… not all ENERGY STAR qualified homes and products qualify for a tax credit. These tax credits are available for a number of products at the highest efficiency levels, which typically cost much more than standard products.”
If you find that confusing, you’re not the only one. And the rules for insulation, roofing, and heating/air conditioning systems can be even more confusing. The bottom line is, the tax credit can provide substantial help in paying for home improvements, but “doing it right” requires some guidance from informed professionals.
At Ken Spears Construction, we’re working hard to learn all the details and stay up-to-date on rules that are sometimes changing day-to-day. We aren’t tax advisors, but we can help make sure you get the right products and the right documentation to qualify, as well as being the right product for your home and lifestyle. We can also deliver top-quality installation, so you reap the full energy savings and improved appearance to your home, as well as the tax advantage!
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