The Counselor
The 5 things you need to know in the news this week
February 3, 2012
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Trending within the following companies
COUNSELORS TITLE OPENS NEW OFFICE IN DUPONT CIRCLE
August 24, 2011
Christopher Darby, Esq. Announced New Office Manager
Washington, D.C. (August 12, 2011) - Counselors Title announced the opening of its new Dupont Circle office which joins other locations in Friendship Heights, Gaithersburg/Kentlands, Bethesda, Rockville, and Germantown. Counselors Title is an independently owned and operated title and escrow company serving Washington, DC, Maryland, and Virginia. Founded in September 2007 by five former managers of Universal Settlements, among the largest and most well respected title companies in the Washington Metropolitan area, Counselors Title brings over 75 years of combined experience in one of the most active and competitive real estate and mortgage markets in the country. Counselors is proud to announce the opening of its new Dupont office and the new office manager and title industry expert Chris Darby.
Chris Darby has offered clients exceptional, professional, and friendly real estate services since 1998. He is a member of the District of Columbia and Maryland Bar Associations. Chris is an active member of the local real estate community with service to and membership in the D.C. Land Title Association and the Greater Capital Area Association of Realtors ("GCAAR") where he has served on the Contract and Clause Committee since 2001. Chris regularly teaches real estate continuing education courses for local realtors and was honored by GCAAR as its 2007 Affiliate of the Year for his service to the real estate community. Chris is excited to focus on strengthening Counselors' presence in downtown DC and capitalizing on the local market's emerging growth.
"Dupont Circle was the logical step in this company's expansion," says Counselors' attorney Chris Darby. Counselors based its decision on the attraction of Dupont's wide range of style and pricing. Not only has Dupont become one of D.C.'s more stylish neighborhoods, it has maintained its appeal because of its convenient central location near commercial work, dining, shopping, entertainment venues, and historical landmarks. With convenient access to downtown DC, Northern Virginia and Maryland, the Dupont location allows the real estate community another option to service their real estate needs.
For more information regarding Counselors Title, please visit http://www.ctitle.net . For legal advice email and for the latest real estate news, follow The Counselor athttp://counselorstitleblog.blogspot.com/
Contact: Chris Darby
1320 19th Street, NW
Suite 201
Washington, DC 20036
(202) 787-5600 WORK
(202) 296-1729 FAX
Property Tax Ups and Downs
May 2, 2011
The proposed tax assessments for the 2012 tax year in the District of Columbia (October 1, 2011 to September 30, 2012) have recently been released. Many District residents may find that their assessments have decreased but actually see an increase in their real estate tax liability. District residents, you are not alone. This same issue has arisen in Maryland. This seemingly impossible scenario is a direct result of real property tax “caps” put into place in both jurisdictions known as the Owner Occupied Tax Credit in the District and the Homestead Credit in Maryland. While this will not be true for all homeowners, the situation is prevalent and properly illustrates the need for all homeowners to familiarize themselves with their property tax bills.
Assessments
Assessed values establish the value of a property for purposes of determining its real estate tax liability. In Maryland, properties are assessed on three year cycles and increases in the assessed values are phased in on each property over the course of the three year assessment term. Decreases take effect immediately and remain in place for the three year term. The District of Columbia re-assesses every property every year, with the recently released assessments effective for the tax year beginning next October. There are a number of approaches used in each jurisdiction to determine assessed value, including sales and cost approaches. Irrespective of the means through which the valuations are arrived upon, both District and Maryland laws require that the assessments be set at 100% of the estimated market value.
Where the assessment is not in line with market values, homeowners should be ready to appeal their assessments. For current owners, the District allows until April1 for appeals. Maryland owners have forty-five (45) days from the date of their assessment notice to file their appeals. New homeowners in both jurisdictions have the ability to appeal their assessments for a limited time after their purchase. While the timeframes for these post-purchase appeals may be greater than the standard appeal periods, the right to appeal and timeframes for doing so are strictly adhered to. These provisions must be consulted at the time of purchase. For information on the appeals process, owners should consult:
District - otr.cfo.dc.gov/otr/cwp/view,a,1330,q,594359.asp
Maryland - www.dat.state.md.us/sdatweb/appeal.html
Caps
They may have different names, but the effect of the “caps” in the District and Maryland are the same. The history behind the caps is not unique to our jurisdictions. Briefly, as property values increased rapidly in the middle part of the mid-2000s, many long-time residents saw their assessments, and subsequently their tax liability, increase dramatically. The legislatures were appealed to and subsequently enacted legislation that restricted the real property tax liability increases in certain situations. Owner-occupants who have properly filed for the Homestead Deduction/Credit in the District and Maryland now see their property tax liability increase from year to year capped at ten (10) percent over the prior year’s liability.
While assessments over the past decade may have increased by 50, 75 or even over 100%, the effect of the cap makes it such that it could take a number of years before a Homesteader would pay taxes at the full assessed value. Many residents subsequently have been paying property taxes that are a great deal less than the assessments would otherwise dictate. As a result, it is quite possible that a homeowner, even after seeing his/her assessment reduced, will continue to have their actual tax liability increase until the “caps” catch up with the new assessment.
What to Do
First, make sure that tax assessments are accurate. If they are not, be sure to appeal.
Second, if you are entitled to Homestead benefits (or any other tax credits) in your jurisdiction (DC otr.cfo.dc.gov/otr/cwp/view,A,1330,Q,594163.asp and MD www.dat.state.md.us/sdatweb/homestead.html), make certain that you have filed for them. Third, review your tax bills to make sure that they are correct and reflect the benefits for which you have filed and are entitled. You can review your property tax information in the District at www.taxpayerservicecenter.com. In Maryland, assessments can be reviewed at www.dat.state.md.us and the tax information can be seen on the various county/city websites.
Keep in mind that, if your taxes are going up by ten percent per year, that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It means that you are receiving the benefit of the cap and it is preventing your taxes from being even higher. For additional information, please consult your real estate professional or the real estate attorneys at Counselors Title, LLC.
New Title Insurance Rates in the District of Columbia Effective April 1, 2011
April 8, 2011
Effective April 1, 2011, title insurance rates and how those rates are applied in real estate transactions will change in the District of Columbia.
On September 24, 2010, the Mayor signed the Title Insurance Producer Act of 2010. While the Act is still subject to Congressional review, it is anticipated that it will have an effective date of September 30, 2010 when approved. The Act requires for the first time in the District that any title insurance producer for District of Columbia transactions be licensed, provide evidence of Education and Testing, maintain minimum levels of Errors and Omissions and Fidelity Insurance coverage, retain records for a minimum of 3 years and make those records available for inspection by the Department of Insurance, Securities and Banking (“DISB”), and conduct annual audits of their escrow accounts, also subject to DISB review. In addition, rates for Title Insurance must be filed and approved by DISB, which is similar to the present process in Maryland.
While the requirements of the Act became effective on January 1, 2011, the law provided for a transition period for title producers and title insurers to become compliant. The rates have now been filed and approved by DISB with an Effective Date of April 1, 2011. While the rates themselves have only changed slightly, the Act also prohibits any direct or indirect inducement, rebate, discount, credit or reduction of the title insurance premium to any insured or any employee of an insured. What this means is that title producers may no longer “negotiate” rates in DC and provide unilateral reductions in title insurance premiums to buyers and borrowers as was permissible in the District prior to the enactment of the Act. Thus, title insurance rates in the District will become more consistent and potential buyers and borrowers will not be able to “shop” title producers to seek reductions in the title insurance premium. The approved rates do, however, continue to allow for the application of a reissue rate discount to the title insurance premium if the title to the property was previously insured within a specified period of time and evidence is provided that such prior policy was issued within such specified time. Thus, it is important for consumers to inquire about the existence of prior title insurance policies and to work with a title producer that effectively applies the reissue discount.
Since our inception in 2007, Counselors Title has aggressively sought and applied reissue discounts in our transactions, saving our clients hundreds of thousands of dollars in the process. Rather than requiring our buyers and borrowers to provide proof of prior insurance, we actively seek and obtain proof of prior insurance where available in order to apply the discount. In those cases where we have been unable to obtain a reissue discount, we have reduced our fees through our Counselors Minimum Credit Program to replicate the savings that a consumer would receive through a reissue discount. As a result, this change in D.C. law will have little effect on our pricing policies and we will continue to provide consumers with the maximum savings on title insurance permitted by law while maintaining our high level of service.
Counselors Title LLC - Leaders in Title Settlement Services in the District of Columbia, Montgomery County, MD and Northern VA.
Primary service areas include: Georgetown DC 20007 - Cleveland Park DC 20008 - Dupont Circle DC 20009
Connecticut Avenue - Georgia Ave. - Mount Pleasant DC 20010 - Columbia Heights DC 20010 - Washington DC - 16th Street NW 20011
Chevy Chase DC 20015 - Cathedral Heights DC 20016 - American University Park DC 20016 - Bethesda MD 20814, 20816, 20817
Chevy Chase MD 20815 - Gaithersburg MD 20877, 20878 - Kensington MD 20895 - Potomac MD 20854
Rockville MD 20850, 20852 - Silver Spring MD 20910, 20901