Extra Tax Rebates Coming Your Way??

[MA-Caver]

Well this is good news... for some of us.

Tax rebates deal announced
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080124/ap_on_go_co/economy_stimulus
By ANDREW TAYLOR, Associated Press Writer 23 minutes ago
WASHINGTON - Congressional leaders announced a deal with the White House Thursday on an economic stimulus package that would give most tax filers refunds of $600 to $1,200, and more if they have children.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Congress would act on the agreement — hammered out in a week of intense negotiations with Republican Leader John A. Boehner and Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson — "at the earliest date, so that those rebate checks will be in the mail."
President Bush praised the agreement in a statement he delivered to reporters at the White House. "This package has the right set of policies and is the right size," he said.
The rebates, which would go to about 116 million families, had appeal for both Democrats and Republicans. Pelosi's staff noted that they would include $28 billion in checks to 35 million working families who wouldn't have been helped by Bush's original proposal. Republicans, for their part, were pleased that the bulk of the rebates — more than 70 percent, according to an analysis by Congress' Joint Tax Committee — would go to individuals who pay taxes.
Individuals who pay income taxes would get up to $600, working couples $1,200 and those with children an additional $300 per child under the agreement. Workers who make at least $3,000 but don't pay taxes would get $300 rebates.
The rebates, expected to go out in June, would cost about $100 billion, aides said. The package also includes close to $50 billion in business tax cuts.

I'm not wholly sure if I even qualify or not being a single individual but $600 ... I'm wondering if that's UP to or extra... hard to read between the lines here.
Makes one wonder what's up with the sudden generosity of the government here? Fear of the forthcoming recession?

 

[terryl965]

Is this free money or a loan against next year tax refund? Like it was a couple years ago.

 

[Andrew Green]

I'm really not much of a economist, but isn't the recession fears largely do to the huge deficit the US is running under, as well as the huge debt? Won't this increase the deficit as the government will have less money after giving a bunch out?

Seems like common sense to me, in order to cut taxes, you need to also cut spending.

 

[CoryKS]

Always happy to get my money back from the government, and it looks like it had support on both sides of the house. Though I see that Comrade Pelosi managed to get a little redistribution into the proposal.

Pelosi, D-Calif., agreed to drop increases in food stamp and unemployment benefits during a Wednesday meeting in exchange for gaining the rebates of at least $300 for almost everyone earning a paycheck, including those who make too little to pay income taxes.

 

[Empty Hands]

I'm really not much of a economist, but isn't the recession fears largely do to the huge deficit the US is running under, as well as the huge debt?

The recession we are currently hurdling towards is mostly based on the decline of the mortgage market. Bundles of subprime loans were marked as highly reliable investments and used to back up other securities. Of course, anyone with a brain knew that those loans were unstable and would eventually crash when we had to raise the interest rates back up. Sure enough, now that the ARM's are adjusting upwards and people are defaulting, those bundled mortgages marked as "highly reliable" are now marked as "pieces of *****", and the backing they provided for other securities is now basically gone. Thus, the fall of the mortgage market ripples out into other sectors of the market.

Even foreign markets are taking the hit, as we've seen over the past few days.

Seems like common sense to me, in order to cut taxes, you need to also cut spending.

Unfortunately, both cutting taxes and spending are highly popular activities and thus highly correlate with a politician's continuing career. Even our supposed party of taxation, the Democrats, are only talking about raising taxes on the "rich", a sufficiently small group of people that Democratic electoral success won't suffer.

 

[CoryKS]

Of course, anyone with a brain knew that those loans were unstable and would eventually crash when we had to raise the interest rates back up.

This is one of those times when my cynical nature pays off. I'd never get a variable rate anything because I always assume the rates will go up.

 

[Empty Hands]

This is one of those times when my cynical nature pays off. I'd never get a variable rate anything because I always assume the rates will go up.

Yeah, me too. Rates won't stay low forever, people should be able to figure that out. My plan is to buy in with a fixed when rates are high and prices low, ride it out for a while, then refi my already cheaper home onto a low rate fixed when rates fall again.

Of course, the government is panicking and trying to stave everything off for a while longer. The Fed just cut rates again, between official meetings even, when they are already extremely low. This move had almost no effect on the market free fall.

 

[michaeledward]

MA-Caver, yes, you qualify. As I understand it, single taxpayers will receive a 600 check, if they pay income taxes, and have income less than $75,000.00.

If you do not earn enough to pay income taxes, but pay into FICA and Medicare, as I understand it, you will receive a $300.00 check.

This is the White House / House of Representatives proposal. The bill needs to move through the Senate before going to the President's desk for a signature.


It seems very counter-intuitive to send checks out, when the country is already over-drawn. And, it seems the government is doing all it can to devalue the dollar. Best I can figure, is this a sneaky way to give more of our tax money to some fat-cats somewhere; even if it looks like an election year ploy.

 

[Makalakumu]

This is probably the worst economic stimulus idea that I can think of. In fact, it smacks of election year politics and that is it. There is no rhyme or reason behind it...

Here's why...

1. The amount of money doesn't even come close to what most americans have in debt. For example, I'm going to take this check and slap in imediately into my student loans. (France, btw, pays for everyone's education)

2. This idea does nothing to stop the devaluation of the dollar. That is one of the real reasons that people are having a hard time right now.

3. This stimulus bill does nothing to address the broken, corrupt, and immoral institutions/corporations that our government has morphed into. These piles of **** were designed to rob you blind and line the pockets of the wealthiest.

What more can a person say? All this bill does is make the problem worse. IMHO, if would make far more sense to pull our troops out of every foreign country, slash the military budget by 75%, give taxpayers back third of their tax money, and use the surplus to make sure we don't have schools with trees growing out of their books.

 

[crushing]

I'm really not much of a economist, but isn't the recession fears largely do to the huge deficit the US is running under, as well as the huge debt? Won't this increase the deficit as the government will have less money after giving a bunch out?

Seems like common sense to me, in order to cut taxes, you need to also cut spending.

That's not the only deficit that will increase. The trade deficit may also grow as the rebate checks are spent on imported plasma TVs. Not to mention the infusion of cash eating away at real savings as it pushes inflation higher.

If one wants a recession, get the media to tell the people we will have a recession. The economy is based on confidence. Maybe it's a bit of the conspiracy theorist, but I have a feeling that some key people were looking to get some stocks on the cheap and the best way to do that is to talk down the economy and the sub-prime loans were just the thing to help make it happen.

With sub-prime loans, both the lenders and borrowers made stupid decisions. Will the taxpayers bail them out for those poor decisions and take away the lesson that will help prevent such mistakes from happening again?

Personally, I thought I would be buying up mutual funds on the cheap for the next several months as the markets struggled, giving up some short term losses for better solid wealth building in the long term.

Well, we've got a bi-partisan solution. Only good can come when Democratics and Republicanistics make nice and agree on policy. . . .right?????

 

[Bob Hubbard]

I'll take the cash. Hell, the SOB's owe me I figure.
They can't be bothered to find out why the oil companies are allowed to get away with gouging us, driving the costs of our food and other necesities sky high, or invest in clean renewable energy sources that don't make corn a rich persons food, I'll take the bandaid.

It'll go towards paying for my heat this winter, and maybe some new socks.

 

[Senjojutsu]

Even our supposed party of taxation, the Democrats, are only talking about raising taxes on the "rich", a sufficiently small group of people that Democratic electoral success won't suffer.

Perhaps they can resurrect the famous Ten Years After song from 1971 at the DNC Convention this summer as a theme song?

"...Tax the rich, feed the poor, till there are no rich no more."

Comrade Pelosi!?

Hail Albania, bastion of the Socialist Revolution!!
Ah, my college days memories.
:wink1:

 

[Marginal]

With sub-prime loans, both the lenders and borrowers made stupid decisions. Will the taxpayers bail them out for those poor decisions and take away the lesson that will help prevent such mistakes from happening again?

You'd think the lenders would've known better well before this all came crashing down. Give people with no money, money and then hammer them with increasingly large payments. How was that a recipe for success?

Lend
???
Profit

 

[theletch1]

You'd think the lenders would've known better well before this all came crashing down. Give people with no money, money and then hammer them with increasingly large payments. How was that a recipe for success?

Lend
???
Profit

Because the lenders and borrowes both had the same mindset that far too many in this country have...I want it NOW!!! Just let me close this deal so I can make my quota/commission and we'll worry about the rest of it later. Well, it's later and all hell is breaking loose. Between somewhat predatory lending practices and people who should have (reasonably) known they shouldn't be buying a house when they could barely keep up with their rent this fiasco was a nightmare waiting to happen. I'm not sure when everyone forgot the old saying "If it seems too good to be true it probably is." but that seems to be what's happening.

As for the rebate check, I'm a little insulted to be honest with you. It's like giving a kid a sucker to shut him up for a couple of minutes. Do something solid with the economy so that I'm stable in the long run and you can keep the check. 'Course we all know that ain't happenin.

 

[CoryKS]

You'd think the lenders would've known better well before this all came crashing down. Give people with no money, money and then hammer them with increasingly large payments. How was that a recipe for success?

Lend
???
Profit

Actually, the lenders probably did profit from the loan. Many loans are sold to other companies, often quite soon after the money has been lent.

 

[FearlessFreep]

Lend
???
Profit

s/???/Government Bailout

 

[Marginal]

Actually, the lenders probably did profit from the loan. Many loans are sold to other companies, often quite soon after the money has been lent.

Yeah, but it's still a case of hogs lining up at an empty trough. Doesn't matter which hogs do it, the trough is still empty. I don't see why buying that debt was any better than creating it in the first place.

 

[terryl965]

Yeah, but it's still a case of hogs lining up at an empty trough. Doesn't matter which hogs do it, the trough is still empty. I don't see why buying that debt was any better than creating it in the first place.

I agree, but one hog lover to another are you a shoulder or butt man, senator are butts.

 

[Makalakumu]

Actually, the lenders probably did profit from the loan. Many loans are sold to other companies, often quite soon after the money has been lent.

Many of these loans were sold as high security investments to firms in Asia. This is why they are taking such a hit right now. And they are pissed. Confidence in US financial markets is at an all time low and people are crying foul all over the world. This is why talk of dumping the US dollar is piping up.

 

[Makalakumu]

Yeah, but it's still a case of hogs lining up at an empty trough. Doesn't matter which hogs do it, the trough is still empty. I don't see why buying that debt was any better than creating it in the first place.

Because once you buy it, you own it. The firms that bought these mortgage backed securities own the risks. The people who made the deals, got the profit.