EDITORIAL THE ELUSIVE DREAM PROPOSED TAX CHANGE COULD MAKE IT EVEN HARDER FOR CALIFORNIANS TO OWN HOMES.IN this uncertain world, there's very little average working Americans can count on. There's little job security anymore, with workers and employers considering each other disposable. Pensions are fast becoming a relic of the 20th century. Even 401(k) accounts are not reliable, as Wall Street has proven from time to time. What's left is the gold standard, the piece of the American dream American dream also American Dream n. An American ideal of a happy and successful life to which all may aspire: that has not yet let us down: Owning a home. But that's becoming ever more elusive for Californians, many of whom are finding homeownership beyond their financial reach, despite low interest rates. And many of those who do manage to buy find themselves stretching their resources as thin as possible just to get in before the median home price rises again above the current $568,000 for California. One of the tools that has helped many, particularly younger buyers, to get in the market is the home-mortgage deduction deduction, in logic, form of inference such that the conclusion must be true if the premises are true. For example, if we know that all men have two legs and that John is a man, it is then logical to deduce that John has two legs. , which allows them to write off the interest paid on the home loan. For Californians, that can equal several hundred dollars a month and can mean the difference between homeownership and remaining a renter indefinitely in·def·i·nite adj. Not definite, especially: a. Unclear; vague. b. Lacking precise limits: an indefinite leave of absence. c. . Unfortunately, President George W. Bush's Advisory Panel and Tax Reform recently recommended as part of its tax-simplification report that the deduction be replaced with a credit equal to up to 15 percent of the interest paid on a home - with a regional limit set at just $312,989. This would virtually wipe out wipe tr.v. wiped, wip·ing, wipes 1. a. To subject to light rubbing or friction, as with a cloth or paper, in order to clean or dry. b. the deduction. And for many, it would mean they could no longer afford their home. Surely, reform of the complicated and unfair federal tax code is something that most Americans could get behind. But exchanging it with a system that could so curtail cur·tail tr.v. cur·tailed, cur·tail·ing, cur·tails To cut short or reduce. See Synonyms at shorten. [Middle English curtailen, to restrict families' ability to procure To cause something to happen; to find and obtain something or someone. Procure refers to commencing a proceeding; bringing about a result; persuading, inducing, or causing a person to do a particular act; obtaining possession or control over an item; or making a person their piece of the American dream would be catastrophic. Hopefully, Bush will reject this recommendation to avoid being remembered as the president who shattered shat·ter v. shat·tered, shat·ter·ing, shat·ters v.tr. 1. To cause to break or burst suddenly into pieces, as with a violent blow. 2. a. the American dreams of so many. |
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