In his first State of the Union address, President Obama proposed a temporary tax credit that can fuel job growth through small business hiring, and this may prove to be a great incentive for local San Diego businesses that have been thinking about bringing on another employee. The Wall Street Journal’s Elizabeth Williamson reports on more of the details of the President’s plan, as revealed a few days after delivering the State of the Union address. As things stand now, the Small Business Jobs and Wages Tax Cut, one of the White House’s main small business proposals, will provide businesses a $5,000 tax credit for each net new employees hired in 2010, and start-up businesses can receive half the tax credit, all subject to a cap of $500,000 as a way to make sure that most of this tax credit is used by small businesses. (more…)
Archive for the ‘Current Events’ Category
President Obama Proposes Small Business Tax Incentives for Hiring: The Legal Issues You Can’t Ignore if Your San Diego Business Hires New Employees
Tuesday, February 9th, 2010
Eminent Domain: Your Rights When the Government Wants Your San Diego Property
Thursday, January 7th, 2010The government doesn’t always need a for-sale sign to be posted in front of your San Diego property. Not only that, you may have to give up your property despite the fact that you’ve outright rejected the government’s unsolicited offers to buy your home or other property. Why? Because our property rights are limited by the federal, state, and local government’s sovereign right to take property through “eminent domain” (also known as condemnation). The power of eminent domain comes from the government’s right under the 5th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and under our California Constitution to take private property for a “public use” in exchange for “just compensation,” e.g. the fair market value of the property. Both willing and unwilling sellers who find themselves in this situation have to act quickly to challenge the government’s actions or unfair offers of compensation. This often starts by recognizing that there are limits to the government’s right to condemn property through eminent domain, and you have your own property rights that you must be ready to immediately act upon. (more…)
Prospective First Time California Home Buyers in a Rush to Beat the Clock
Tuesday, September 29th, 2009Many Californians who will be first time home buyers have their eyes on December 1, 2009, the deadline to purchase a home and get the tax credit created by the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008. “First time” covers more than you would think, since it’s defined to include taxpayers who haven’t owned another principal residence during the last three years before the current purchase date. You won’t be able to qualify for the tax credit if you’re buying a rental property, since the home must be used as your main personal residence. If you buy the home in 2009 (and close by November 30), (more…)
Buying San Diego Real Estate: How Much Do You Really Know About Title Insurance?
Friday, August 7th, 2009True or false? Title insurance will protect you if you buy a home and later find out there are title problems. Answer…it depends. Of the many details involved when buying a home here in San Diego, one that’s often overlooked is the role of title insurance. (more…)
You’ve Decided to Sell Your San Diego Business. Now Take the Right Steps to Find a Buyer During the Recession
Monday, July 13th, 2009You may be ready to retire or be looking to move on to a new business venture. Whatever your motivation for selling your San Diego business, are you worried about finding buyers during the recession? Even now, there’s still potential for a profitable exit, but it’s all the more important for you to make sure your business is in order since buyers may be more cautious now. (more…)
Recession or Not, Californians Are Still Inspired to Remodel Their Homes
Friday, June 12th, 2009Is it really the warm California weather that’s motivating homeowners to remodel? A posting on Earthtimes.org speculates that our climate may be keeping California’s home improvement industry relatively strong during the recession, since warmer months tend to boost home remodeling projects and California has a long warm weather season. Jason Larson, president of Lars Construction, a top San Diego remodeling company and San Diego Law Firm client, recently noted in an interview with Professional Remodeler that even during the current recession they’ve been scheduling more appointments than average. Weather theories aside, people may be remodeling to help make their homes more competitive on the market. If you’re planning on improving your home, you may want to think about how you can green your house in the process. (more…)
Down with the Costs! The Upside to Starting a Business in San Diego During the Recession
Friday, May 15th, 2009If you’ve had an interest in starting your own business in San Diego, you may think your start-up will have to wait out the recession, but there are those who believe that the time to act is now. At first glance it may seem that there aren’t any advantages to starting a business now, but consider whether you can benefit from recession-created incentives and opportunities like those discussed in Entrepreneur and USA Today. For example, with a larger employment pool, you can hire qualified people at reasonable rates. You can also keep costs down thanks to cheaper office space, equipment, and goods. (more…)
