An Angel Rescues the "Land Poor"

"You know what will happen. She'll ask for schedule after schedule to analyze. Our tax situation is endlessly complicated with trusts, self-employment, capital gains if we sell stocks. It'll cost us a fortune, and the bottom line is Do we sell Procter or do we sell Greenville at fire-sale price. Why pay the thousands she will charge?"

You live your life in a niche. You worry about those things that you think are relevant. You disgard those that appear as not. You think you "know" the basics of the tax law.

You do not bug your wife too much for having all her stocks in Procter & Gamble while you are "land poor" as well with two residential houses (in this horrible real estate market -- one you live in and one for sale.)

You do not push perhaps, things that you should push, to change the risk profile, or if you push you are resisted because,a after all, you are the husband.

"I'll never sell the Procter. That's all I have."

"I'll hang in my office and supply schedules as needed. But you talk to her without me."

Perforce, the time comes. Five munutes into the interview: "Bruce, did you hear that?"

I walk into the dining room. She's beautiful and the rest is in order, from credentials (CPA, CFA) to her toes, so to speak.

"There is no favorable (i.e. no-tax) treatment on your house for sale unless you have lived in it for two out the the last five years." (We're going into the third year of the house being on the market, and vacant) "The old rule about being over 65, etc. went out about eight years ago."

Bling! Valuable Idea number one! One that our two realtors never said anything about. (What do realtors "Do?" -- not that they "should" do tax advice.) So we've got to sell for sure by June 2009, or move back (two blocks away).

I can't avoid the initial instinctive trial lawyer's "jab:" "Can you give me the code reference?" I immediately regret this.

"I'll fax it to you when I get back to my office."

But my main idea here is that with all my cynicism about Wall Street and the hustlers, here, and for a initial and free consultation, was someone who simply brought us good ideas -- and they flowed and flowed thereafter for the next 40 minutes.

For once I am in love with financial planners, CFA's and CPA's, and the world.

"Bruce, I'm selling half my Procter; I want to lower the price on Greenville by $25,000; we're going to pay off our mortgage and your business loans."