Saturday, 19 October 2013

IRS has tax lien on your home -- now what?

If you are past due on your federal income taxes, the IRS can file a tax lien against your house. A lien can make difficult selling the home and make it tricky to refinance the mortgage.
You're topic to an Internal Revenue Service lien whenever you're past due on your taxes, says E. Martin Davidoff, a tax attorney and certified public accountant in Dayton, N.J. An IRS tax lien on a home isn't official until you get a notice of federal tax lien, which means that the IRS has made a lawful claim to your assets as safety for a tax liability.
"You typically require owing $5,000 or more before an IRS tax lien is triggered," Davidoff says.
Elizabeth Gonsalves, a tax attorney in Encino, Calif., says, "IRS tax liens on homes are usually triggered whenever the IRS perceives it will be hard to gather the full amount you owe within the statute of limitations for the payment of Internal Revenue Service debt, which is 10 years."
Tax authority must follow procedures
An IRS tax lien can be filed only after a legal responsibility is assessed, a notice and demand for payment is served on you, and you fail to pay the debt within ten days of that notification, Gonsalves says.
Even if you have an IRS tax lien on your assets, this doesn't mean the IRS can power you to sell your home or that the government has taken over your assets. On the other hand, if you want to sell the home, the IRS has a right to take the proceeds from the sale to convince your tax bill. If you want to refinance, the federal government may be willing to subordinate the lien, mainly if you use home equity to pay your taxes.
Regrettably, an IRS tax lien may make it difficult for you to qualify for a refinance.

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