Many 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), Read the rest of this entry »
Watching Out For Your San Diego Business When You Negotiate a Commercial Lease
September 29th, 2009If you’re a San Diego business owner, then you know that when looking for commercial space, the last thing you want to do is blindly sign the lease being offered to you, because a commercial lease always needs to be negotiated. Looking at the Chargers’ lease of Qualcomm Stadium with the City of San Diego, the San Diego Union Tribune reports that the agreement expires in 2020. Before then, the lease provides that the Chargers have a month-long window every year to notify the city of its intent to leave, with penalties at $54.6 million if the team moves next year, but dropping to less than half that amount in 2011 (an amount which some say could be a penalty the team is willing to pay). At least according to Chargers’ special counsel Mark Fabiani, quoted in a Voiceofsandiego.org article, the city got a “bad deal” considering the limited revenue generated by Qualcomm. Read the rest of this entry »
Protect Yourself From Personal Liability: You’ve Filed as a California LLC or Corporation, but is that Enough?
August 7th, 2009Many San Diego businesses choose to incorporate or set up an LLC (a limited liability company) to take advantage of the benefits offered by these business structures, including protection of your personal assets from company debts and lawsuits. California courts take the division between a corporation or LLC and its shareholders, members, officers, and directors seriously-and recognize that protection from personal liability is a legitimate reason to form a corporation or LLC. Even if courts generally don’t “pierce the corporate veil,” it can happen, but there are things you can do to help prevent putting your personal assets at risk. Read the rest of this entry »
When Unmarried Couples Buy California Real Estate: Protect Your Investment When Living Together
August 7th, 2009As we all know, it’s still a buyers market here in California, and you and your partner may be thinking about pooling your resources and buying a home together. This can be a great investment, but it can also turn out to be a costly mistake if you don’t take the right steps. Consider the story of a woman and her boyfriend who bought a townhouse together, as told in a Christian Science Monitor article by Marilyn Gardner. She had contributed a smaller portion of the down payment, and had been paying part of the mortgage, but the home was titled in her boyfriend’s name only. When they broke up, he kept the home and the equity, and she lost all the money she had put in. Read the rest of this entry »
Buying San Diego Real Estate: How Much Do You Really Know About Title Insurance?
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. Read the rest of this entry »
Don’t Let Property Boundary Problems Tie Up Your San Diego Real Estate
July 13th, 2009As you drive through San Diego neighborhoods and see homes for sale, it seems there may be more and more St. Joseph statuettes buried beneath for-sale signs. Why, you ask? The Los Angeles Times reports that many desperate home sellers are burying the statuette in hopes that it will help sell the home faster. In the article, Father Lee of Chicago’s St. Joseph Catholic Church calls the practice “ridiculous.” If he’s right and burying statuettes won’t help, what should you do instead to increase your home’s marketability? In stressful economic times, it’s important to resolve boundary line disputes. That way, if you find you need to sell your property quickly, legal problems won’t stand in the way. Fences, driveways, trees, and other encroachments can all create boundary problems that may interfere with your property rights. Read the rest of this entry »
Trademarks Matter – What Has Your California Business Done to Protect its Brand?
July 13th, 2009Over the years, Woody Allen has protected the use of his image, such as in his recent case against American Apparel, the California clothing company that, as the New York Daily News recently explained, used Woody’s image on billboards without his permission. Now the famed director is suing for $10 million. As Woody Allen continues on with his efforts to protect his “brand,” have you thought about what you should be doing to protect your San Diego trademark? It’s important to create and register trademarks for products and servicemarks for services. Registration will set your business apart from the competition and protect your brand, something that’s especially important in today’s economy. Read the rest of this entry »
You’ve Decided to Sell Your San Diego Business. Now Take the Right Steps to Find a Buyer During the Recession
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. Read the rest of this entry »
Are You Making the Most of Your Assets? Dealing with Disagreements over Co-Owned Real Estate in California
June 12th, 2009Co-ownership of California real estate is common, whether you purchased property with a friend or business partner, or you just happened to inherit property with someone else. While co-ownership can have its advantages, it’s not always the best investment for you. What do you do if you can’t agree with co-owners on the best use for the property, on whether to sell, or when someone isn’t living up to his or her obligations? If things can’t be settled, California law generally allows a co-owner to force a sale of the real estate through what’s known as a partition action, allowing you to receive proceeds from the sale based on your share. You and the other co-owners may even agree to a buy-out. Read the rest of this entry »
Recession or Not, Californians Are Still Inspired to Remodel Their Homes
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. Read the rest of this entry »
