Eastern Connecticut

“Last night, Congress took another small but important step towards helping those affected by this crisis,” said Congressman Courtney. “Specifically, two amendments that Congressman John Larson and I authored on this issue were included in the spending bill we passed to end the partial government shutdown. While these amendments alone will not solve the crumbling foundations crisis, the unanimous support our proposals received on the House floor in July - and their inclusion in this funding package in the opening hours of the new Congress – provides strong backing to our ongoing efforts to marshal resources on the federal level to help.

“We want to get the word out that IRS will be holding a free webinar that tax preparers and homeowners can learn more about recent development on tax deductions for foundation repairs,” said Courtney and Larson. “Last week, we announced that the IRS has made it clear that homeowners can “carry forward” or “carry back” a net operating loss under the casualty loss deduction for crumbling foundations repairs. This clarification means that even if the net loss suffered by a homeowner exceeds their annual tax liability, they can carry forward the loss for up to 20 years and can carry back for two years. This development will provide significant help for middle-class homeowners, and we want to get the word out about how they can start using this deduction when they go to file next spring.”

Third-quarter data released by the Eastern Connecticut Association of Realtors last week shows that single-family home sales in New London and Windham counties are up over last year, which CEO Susy Hurlbert takes as a sign of increased buyer confidence.

"There is no real fear of a recession over the next 12 months at least, so I think there's confidence in the housing market because of that," she said.