Is the Department of Revenue Looking to Stick it to Sellers?

Written by: rebecca and filed Under Blog, Sellers |

I just read an interesting email from the Washington Association of Realtors, a professional organization of which I am a member. The update was sent out to inform Realtors, that the Washington State Department of Revenue has a very interesting take on excise tax.

For those of you who don’t know what excise tax is, it is the tax that a seller pays when selling real property in Washington. The amount paid is a percentage of the sales price; or so we thought. The Department of Revenue believes that in the case of a short sale, excise tax should also be paid on any debt that is forgiven.

The Washington Association of Realtors believes that this position is incorrect and is currently encouraging the Department of Revenue to reconsider its interpretation. The Department of Revenue has indicated that it will take this issue under advisement. Until then, be sure to speak with your tax advisor regarding any questions/concerns you have about this if you find that you are in a short sale situation.

I will keep you posted with further updates as they are communicated to the Realtor community.