The focus of our practice is civil and criminal taxpayer representation, as well as assisting taxpayers with foreign bank account issues, and we see many taxpayers in Stamford, Connecticut who are dealing with reporting foreign bank accounts and their failure to file United States Tax returns while living abroad.   Part I of this series discussed the new streamlined compliance procedures for U.S. taxpayers living abroad have failed to timely file U.S. federal income tax returns or Reports of Foreign Bank Account Reports (FBARs), Form TD F 90-22.1, but have recently become aware of their filing obligations and now seek to come into compliance with the law.  Part II of this series elaborated on the procedure to take advantage of the new streamlined compliance program.  Part III reviewed t... 01/17/2014

The focus of our practice is civil and criminal taxpayer representation, as well as assisting taxpayers with foreign bank account issues, and we see many taxpayers in Stamford, Connecticut who are dealing with reporting foreign bank accounts and their failure to file United States Tax returns while living abroad.  Part I of this series discussed the new streamlined compliance procedures for U.S. taxpayers living abroad have failed to timely file U.S. federal income tax returns or Reports of Foreign Bank Account Reports (FBARs), Form TD F 90-22.1, but have recently become aware of their filing obligations and now seek to come into compliance with the law.  Part II of this series elaborated on the procedure to take advantage of the new streamlined compliance program.  This portion will re... 01/17/2014

The focus of our practice is civil and criminal taxpayer representation, as well as assisting taxpayers with foreign bank account issues, and we see many taxpayers in Stamford, Connecticut who are dealing with reporting foreign bank accounts and their failure to file United States Tax returns while living abroad.   Part I of this series discussed the new streamlined compliance procedures for U.S. taxpayers living abroad have failed to timely file U.S. federal income tax returns or Reports of Foreign Bank Account Reports (FBARs), Form TD F 90-22.1, but have recently become aware of their filing obligations and now seek to come into compliance with the law. Taxpayers utilizing this new streamlined procedure will be required to file delinquent tax returns, with appropriate related informat... 01/17/2014

The focus of our practice is civil and criminal taxpayer representation, as well as assisting taxpayers with foreign bank account issues, and we see many taxpayers in Stamford, Connecticut who are dealing with reporting foreign bank accounts and their failure to file United States Tax returns while living abroad.  These new streamlined filing compliance procedures for non-resident U.S. taxpayers are being implemented in recognition that some U.S. taxpayers living abroad have failed to timely file U.S. federal income tax returns or Reports of Foreign Bank Account Reports (FBARs), Form TD F 90-22.1, but have recently become aware of their filing obligations and now seek to come into compliance with the law. These new procedures are for non-residents including, but not limited to, dual cit... 01/17/2014

Thinking of buying a home this year in Stamford, CT?  Well, you're at the right place.  Bring your questions, a pen and paper, to my next homeownership workshop and get the answers.  It's a perfect time to buy with the changing market.  Don't get left behind! The Stamford real estate market is changing and we are experiencing multiple offers and bidding wars!  This benefits the sellers - not the buyers.  So your time is now to buy a home in Stamford!   Join us for a free seminar that will assist you in learning exactly how to begin your home search, and give you a clear vision of how the home buying process comes together. This class will save you money, time and effort, even if you’ve owned a home before, you might pick up some tips and helpful hints. Presenters include: Attorney James... 01/16/2014

Cove Island Beach and Park, Stamford, CT. One of the best secrets for Stamford residents is Cove Beach and Park that is made up of 83 acres surrounded by Long Island Sound and Holly Pond. The park has two sandy beaches, a small salt marsh estuarine, BBQ and picnic tables. Other facilities include a Nature Center. Food Concession (seasonal) 1 mile walking loop Children’s play area. Parking permits from Town Hall are required from May 1st through to September 30th. Terry Conner’s Ice Rink is also located at the park, 1125 Cove Road. For more information of public skating, hockey and lessons go to www.tcrink.com An early morning winter walk at Cove Beach.     David Popoff is a license Connecticut Real Estate Broker at DMK Real Estate in lower Fairfield County , Connecticut.   DMK Property ... 01/15/2014

The 5 Types of Values of Your Home. Depending on whom you talk to and in what context you home can have up to FIVE different dollar amounts assigned to it. Here is a brief explanation of them. Appraised Value ~ Usually done by a trained and state licensed Appraiser who will develop a non-bias opinion of value through 3 different analyses…. The sales comparison approach, the cost approach and/or the income approach. Assessor’s Value ~ A value placed on a property for the purpose of taxes. Market Value ~ The true value of a property, this value is what a willing and able buyer would offer to a willing and able seller. Insured Value ~ The value that an insurance company places on the property. This value does not include land and only the amount of money it would take to remove debris and ... 01/13/2014

Before hiring an electrician in Stamford, CT, there are at least five things to ask about.   Are they Licensed? The first question to ask is if the person doing the work has an electrical license.  In Stamford, CT, an electrical license requires 8,000 hours of on-the-job training, and 720 hours of classroom work.  If the person has gone through the process, they will be more than willing to show their license to you.  If you are unsure, please visit the website of the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection and you can verify a license here: https://www.elicense.ct.gov/ . Are they properly insured? Ask any electrical contractor working in your home for proof of general liability insurance before any work starts.  If the electrician hesitates or asks why you need it, find another c... 01/12/2014

2 Simple Business Plans for 2014 Realtors.   1-3-5 BUSINESS PLAN FOR REAL ESTATE AGENTS.   Real Estate agent here is an easy to use Business Plan to help you reach your 2014 goals. November & December are the best times to start your New Years Business Plan, get ahead of the crowd and yet it is not to late to get the ball rolling with the New Year. This easy to use system is called the 1 – 3 – 5 Business Plan and can be used for any business and/or personal achievements goals to be reached. A user friendly, easy to change plan that will help you set your goals and lead you in the right direction on what to do for the next twelve months. This business plan guide line is made up of three components: 1.    OBJECTIVE ~ What is your goal. Pick one goal 2.    TARGETS ~ What should you focus b... 01/09/2014

Real Estate Market Statistics* for Stamford CT 06902 Week Ending 1-4-2014 *This data is obtained from the Greater Fairfield County Consolidated Multiple Listing Service Single Family Homes in Stamford CT 06902 For Sale/ Available Single family homes – 246 properties Contingent/Pending/Under Contract - 85 Inventory -     3.5 months of supply (This number represents the amount of time it would take for each of the available single family homes to sell at the rate single family homes in Stamford were sold in the previous month) Short Sale – 21 properties (These are properties where the owner is attempting to sell without equity in the property.  Short sale properties are often listed for less than the mortgage lender is owed and the property value.  As such short sale transactions need the... 01/07/2014

A circuit breaker is a device that’s specifically designed to prevent dangerous electrical situations from happening. Those dangerous situations include a short, which means that the hot and the ground or the neutral are touching before getting to the light bulb or load on that circuit. And it can produce a lot of heat and it can eventually lead to fires. That’s why we use breakers that trip to prevent that kind of situation. Besides that they also trip when there is an overload. An overloaded circuit typically happens when you’re using several devices that require a lot of electricity on the same circuit at the same time. In general devices that either get really hot or really cold draw a lot of power. So those devices include hair dryers, freezers, refrigerators and air-conditioning a... 01/06/2014

The focus of our practice is civil and criminal taxpayer representation and bankruptcy, and see many taxpayers in Stamford, Connecticut struggling with back tax debt.  In addition, as someone who trains other tax practitioners to handle IRS collection issues, I am shocked at the low rate of acceptance for filed IRS Offers in Compromise. The reality is that if you understand the rules taxpayers should know if their offer-in-compromise will be accepted before they ever ship their forms into the IRS. An IRS Offer-in-Compromise is a formula called “Reasonable Collection Potential.”  That formula consists of net equity in assets and future income.  There are wrinkles to calculating these numbers, but if your tax practitioner understands the rules this should be fairly straightforward.  Nobod... 11/27/2013

The focus of our practice is civil and criminal taxpayer representation, and see many taxpayers in Stamford, Connecticut referred to the IRS Criminal Investigation division because of shoddy bookkeeping.  It is critical that taxpayers maintain good records or face serious tax bills, or even criminal tax prosecution. Many IRS criminal tax cases begin as routine civil IRS examinations and, when the examiner is confronted with either a lack of records or bookkeeping records that cannot be easily reconciled to the federal IRS tax return, thoughts of a referral to the criminal investigation division begin to grow. The goals for any taxpayer and practitioner when handling an IRS exam include: ·         Preparation – making sure you have the documentation to back-up the numbers on the tax retu... 11/27/2013

It happened again.  I love it when this happens.   Last night's customer from Stamford CT found me online.  And, when he got on my website, he recognized me.  How did that happen?  Well, it turns out we live in the same building in White Plains (a large condo).  I first met him at the gym many years ago, before I started this business.  Then, he saw me 3 ago on the elevator with samples and asked for my card as he was thinking about doing carpet in his place.    He decided to hold off on that, and now lo and behold, he has bought a new house, needs to sand & refinish the hardwood and add carpet to 2 rooms.  He, of course, lost my card (as so many do), as it was many years ago.   It's good to be found in multiple places.  And, as it turns out, I know his realtor.  So that provided even m... 11/22/2013

Property Managers "It's All About Reading Between the Lines". Keeping an eye open to tenant warning signals makes a good landlord, property manager or rental real estate agent worth their weight in gold. You can tell a lot about a new tenant on how they dress, the condition of their car and how they present themselves. But you cannot refuse a tenant on these grounds, you need to go the rental application and verify the information, get a credit report, check finances and references. That being said there are certain warning signals that landlords, property managers and rental real estate agents can look out for. Rental Application needs to be Filled Out Completely. ~ missing information be it no rental history, credit history, references or anything else is a red flag that must be addre... 11/18/2013

  Why a Multifamily Home for First Time Home Buyers in Stamford CT     Are you a first time homebuyer thinking of getting into the profitable Stamford CT multifamily market?    You may want to consider the advantages of leveraging your money through purchasing a multifamily home.    This can be a very appealing approach to homebuying for young families or busy couples or singles.     Here are some benefits of investing in a multifamily home purchase:   By living in one unit and renting out the other(s), you will begin collecting investment income and able to cover some of your own mortgage payments. With tenants paying you a rent and the luxury of having someone help you pay your mortgage, you will have the opportunity to save money for your next home downpayment. You will acquire valua... 11/11/2013

Wondering what the value of your Stamford CT 06902 home is worth? Receive a custom evaluation for your Stamford CT 06902 home, including comparisons to other Stamford homes available for sale that have recently sold or are currently on the market. We promise to send you the most accurate information and comparable properties available at no cost to you. Click the picture below, complete the form and find out what your Stamford home may be worth in this Seller's market.            Our inventory is low and prices are beginning to rise.  What are you waiting for? Click here for a no-obligation, no cost home value analysis of your property. Find out your Stamford CT Real Estate Home Value today!!!    Click here for Stamford CT available homes for sale?   Interested in learning more about St... 09/02/2013

Labor Day Weekend Events Stamford, Norwalk, Westport Connecticut. Lots of fun events going on this Labor Day Weekend in Lower Fairfield County, Connecticut. Stamford which is known for its many great restaurants is holding its Tables Summer Restaurant Week through the long weekend, a treat and opportunity to go and try something new or visit an old favorite.   Westport’s 6th Annual Blues Views & BBQ Festival is on August 31 and Sept 1st with an impressive lineup of live music and delicious BBQ and crafted beers.   Norwalk ~ Labor Day weekend usually marks the end of the summer beach concerts and at two locations this year: Max Creek at Bayley Beach Sunday September 1 Calf Pasture Beach Summer Concerts. The Doobie Brothers Tribute on August 28th/rain date August 29th The Final Car Show B... 08/30/2013

Local Real Estate Groups on MeetUp.Com ~ Fairfield County, Ct. Wanting to find like-minded people who are interested in your local real estate market, buying/selling, investment, property management and more? MeetUp.com has such groups and many more to join. MeetUp is a nationally wide website organization that creates local groups with for people with similar interests and it is FREE. To check out the Fairfield County Real Estate Group at MeetUp.com click here. It is easy to find your local group by using your municipality and state at the MeetUp.com website. For the Real Estate Groups they are usually under the “Career & Business” group on the search button otherwise you might end up scrolling through many many other groups. There are hundreds of local groups from wine tasting to newc... 08/19/2013

Stamford, Ct Apartment Building Sells for $98.8 Million. July 31, 2013 via Newstimes.com New York City based Clarion Partners a global real estate investor has purchased the newly built 22 story deluxe apartment building at Harbor Point, Stamford. Known as Infinity Apartments, it was built by local developer Building & Land Technology in 2012 containing 242 units with more than 95% of it rented out. The sale follows another sale by BLT of a six story, 329 unity complex called The LockWorks last December to Wafra Investment Advisory Group at a cost of $130 million. BLT still has an additional two more apartment buildings under construction (110 Town Street & 301-401 Park) plus a newly open one at 111 Harbor Point. BLT has plans to build 4,000 units at Harbor Point, a project with an esti... 08/05/2013