Live From New York, it's ... Alan Greenspan

A couple of nights ago, I had the privilege of attending a live interactive interview of Alan Greenspan, the recently retired Chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank. In my case, "interactive" meant that he was in New York and I was watching it on a large screen in Cleveland.

His length of service as chairman is impressive in that it lasted more than 18 years, during which time there were four presidents, not all of the same party. He talked about his working relationships with them.

He was interviewed by Andrea Mitchell, the journalist, who is also his wife. She was very professional in asking tough questions, but there was the occasional exchange between spouses that caused them and the audience to laugh.

The event had been scheduled a while ago, but it happened just as his book was released, and coincidentally, occurred on the evening of the day during which his successor, Ben Bernanke, cut the federal interest rate by 50 basis points. He's making appearances on TV because of the book, but the interview I saw lasted for an hour and a half, during which time so many subjects were discussed.

His life, prior to becoming interested in economics, is fascinating. Once he gave up being a professional musician, however, he established himself over the years to eventually advise Presidents Nixon and Ford. Hearing him describe the personalities of these men as an insider provided information not generally known about them. All of that was before taking over the Federal Reserve Bank.

The topics of discussion were of particular interest when talking about why decisions were made and whether he thought that they stood the test of time. One topic of current interest is the problem resulting from subprime mortgages and how it has disrupted the real estate market. He explained that what the Fed decided didn't cause the abuses that lead to many of the problems with these loans. These problems were caused by others.

He gave an opinion on the war. He also discussed the future, including his serious concerns about the ability of the government to keep it's promises to the large numbers who will be retiring in the coming decades, particularly Social Security and Medicare.

www.wddcpa.com for your real estate investor tax preparation and accounting needs

Ohio Homestead Exemption

Governor Ted Strickland signed into law a new Homestead Exemption for Ohio homeowners and eliminates the old exemption rules. The new exemption will allow homeowners to shelter the first $25,000 of market value, not taxable value, from real estate taxation.

An application must be filed with the county auditor before October 1st in order to reduce the taxes due in 2008. To be eligible the homeowner must live in the home as their primary residence and be 65 years old or will be 65 in 2007, or be certified totally and permanently disabled as of January 1, 2007, or be the surviving spouse of a qualified homeowner who was at least 59 years old on the date that the spouse died. If you believe that you qualify, contact your county auditor and request an application form or contact our office for assistance. The application must be filed before October 1, 2007 to receive the exemption in 2008.

Those homeowners who already qualified for the homestead exemption do not have to file an application to qualify for the new homestead exemption.

www.wddcpa.com for your real estate investor tax preparation and accounting needs