Voters in St. Louis County will head to the polls Tuesday for a special election that will determine the fate of the St. Louis County School District. The district will ask area voters to approve a yearly property tax hike. This would increase a resident’s property tax by approximately $250, for home with a value of $150,000. The monies generated, which would be approximately $80 million, would primarily be used for new construction and repairs to the aged district facilities. 

St. Louis County School District is the state’s largest district and encompasses acreage comparable to the State of Connecticut.  There are currently seven schools in the district, located in the communities of Cook, Orr, Babbitt, Tower, Cherry, Cotton, and Albrook. Overall, the district has lost approximately 800 students in the past decade. The area has been plagued with declining enrollment, that couple with the fact that students in the district have transferred to neighboring districts, has left the County district nearly insolvent.  A new course is necessary.

The question is whether this referendum would achieve overall long-term stability. Are new County schools or buildings really the answer? Perhaps, the look of education in northern Minnesota needs to change. Not only is the County district struggling, but area independent school districts are struggling as well. Clearly, our overall educational system is under immense financial pressure and a band aid won’t correct this problem.  If the vote fails, it is critical that the 19 districts bordering the St. Louis County district, work together to revitalize our areas schools.  This is a tremendous opportunity for the area. One that should be viewed with optimism and hope.  

When you sit down to prepare your will, what will be on your mind? In the past 20 years, there has been a continuous increase in contested estates. We have all seen or heard stories where brothers and sisters are wrestling to control the assets of their deceased parents. Perhaps, we are generally a more litigious society, nevertheless there has been an increase in the volume of wealth transfers, i.e. there is more to fight over.

Your number one goal will likely be to keep your family intact, avoid damaging the relationships between your children. Here are some steps to minimize the chance that your will might trigger a family legal dispute:

1.       Pick the right executor and trustees. Anticipate family friction and make sure you don’t appoint to key positions relatives who can’t get along.

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The $8,000 for new home buyers will be extended. Since January the US Government has been offering a $8,000 tax credit for new home buyers.  The credit is  set to expire at the end of this month.  If appears likely that the Congress will decided to lengthen and extend the credit to even non-first time home buyers. The House will vote on the bill on Thursday.

Buyers who have owned a home for under 5 years may be eligible for the credit, up to $6,500, or the full amount. New home buyers (or anyone who purchased within the past three years) may be eligible for the $8,000 dollar credit. “This is probably the last extension,” said Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-Ga.  Roughly 1.4 million have qualified for the first-time homeowner credit through the month of August.

The credit is available on homes under $800,000, and vacation homes do qualify. Another stipulation of the credit is that individual incomes above $125,000 will be phased out. Another good note for military personal serving overseas, the credit is extended for more than a year, until June 30th of 2011.

• Extends 8000 first time buyer credit to June 30th, 2010.
• 6500 for buyers who owned their home at least 5 years.
• Income cap is raised to $250,000 for joint incomes.

The debate over whether Minnesota will allow copper nickel mining has intensified this week. On Wednesday, the state’s Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers released the long-awaited environmental review of the proposed PolyMet copper mine project. Let’s recap how the project got started, the scope of the project, and the governmental process.

In 2005, Polymet Corporation purchased assets of the bankrupt iron-ore LTV mining Corporation, which was located near Hoyt Lakes in northeastern Minnesota. The land and facility is part of the Duluth complex, which contains the world’s largest undeveloped deposits of non-ferrous metals. The deposits, which were discovered in the 1940’s, are now economically viable. In the 1990’s, a hydrometallurgical process for recovering copper, nickel, cobalt, platinum, palladium, and gold from rock became commercially viable.  These metals are typically used in construction, plumbing, electrical wiring, batteries, cell phones, aircraft engines, medical treatments, electronics and more.

In 2005, Polymet began the process to receive the required permits to mine copper nickel. The Minnesota Environmental Policy Act (MEPA) requires that an environmental impact statement (EIS) be conducted for all new mining operations. The DNR is usually the responsible government unit for producing the statement; however, the federal government can also be involved depending on the specific conditions of the proposed project (land ownership, wetland, etc.). The proposed Polymet project raises several different environmental concerns then projects associated with taconite or ferrous mining. This has increased the complexity of the environmental review process.

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Property values across the U.S., including Minnesota (and Minnesota lakeshore) have been declining.  So, of course, one would expect their property taxes will decrease next year as well.  Sadly, a decrease in your property taxes is unlikely to happen.  In order to understand why, we have to take a look at how the property tax system in Minnesota works.

Unlike income and sales taxes, which are rate-based taxes, Minnesota's property tax does not work this way.  Rather, property tax is a levy based tax.  This means that taxing districts, such as cities, counties, school districts and special taxing districts, determine how much money they will need to raise in property taxes in order to balance their budget.  The “levy” amount is then used to determine the tax rate which is to be applied to local property.  Therefore, a change in the value of local taxable property will affect the distribution of what each property’s share is, but will not likely affect total revenues generated by the state. 

Given this levy-based system, there are three basic factors that will determine an individual parcel’s property tax liability: (1) your local levy, the rate your local taxing district(s) decide to impose on property, (2) your parcel’s share to total property tax base, this valuation includes estimated market values, the portion of the value which is taxable, and the class rate (statutorily set), and (3) applicable tax credits, credit amounts which are subtracted from the tax liability.

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  It is the end of another long week of meetings, traffic, deadlines, and stress.  You leave work and set off into the night.  The closer you get to your private hideaway, the faster your troubles seem to fade away.  There is no better medicine for your worries. 

The weekend is filled with laughter, relaxation, and family fun. The hideaway has become a multigenerational meeting place where grandparents, adult children and their spouses, and grandchildren come to play.   Perhaps it is a cabin located on Lake Vermilion, Burntside, or Pokegama.  No matter where your destination is, there sense peace and happiness.

Your goal is to pass this property on to your family. Perhaps, for both nostalgic and financial reasons, you want to keep this vacation home in the family for future generations.  However, passing on a cabin without a proper succession plan can cause unintended consequences.  For example, consider if your three children inherit your cabin outright, all three are listed on the deed.  As life often does, it may throw in a curve ball.  Perhaps, one child loses her job, can't afford her share of maintenance costs and want to sell out her share.  But, the other children are not financially in a position to buy her out.  Therefore, the distressed daughter is forced to ask the court to "partition" the cabin.  Other words, sell the family hideaway.

This is just a small example of the undesirable outcomes of inheriting or passing on property outright to your children.  This outright transfer creates "tenants in common," which refers to arrangements under which two or more people co-own a parcel of real estate without a right of survivorship. This type of co-ownership allows each co-owner to choose who will inherit his/her ownership interest upon death.    In addition, each owner can also individually sell their interest in the property. 

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This story was published by Minnesota Public Radio.  http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2009/09/19/capone-hideout/

Al Capone's Wisconsin hideout for sale

Wasau, Wis. (AP) — The buyer of a scenic property in northern Wisconsin will get more than just its bar and restaurant: They'll have a former hideout of Chicago mobster Al Capone.

The 407-acre wooded site, complete with guard towers and a stone house with 18-inch-thick walls, will soon go on the auction block at a starting bid of $2.6 million.

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Basic Estate Plans include:

Will
Everyone needs a will. A will is a legal document that allows you to transfer your property at your death. A will is a simple way to ensure that your money, property, and personal belongings will be distributed as you wish after your death. If you die intestate (without a will), Minnesota's state laws of distribution will determine who receives your property by default, that law may or may not reflect your actual wishes.

Durable Power of Attorney
A durable power of attorney is a document authorizing someone to act "legally" on your behalf. You determine how much power the person will have over your affairs. A general power of attorney authorizes your agent to conduct your entire business and affairs (buy & sell your property, pay taxes, invest your money in stocks, bonds, etc.). A limited or special power of attorney authorizes your agent to conduct specified business or make only certain decisions on your behalf. A power of attorney is considered "durable" when it remains valid even if you become incompetent or incapacitated.

Healthcare Directive
A healthcare directive written document that informs others of your healthcare wishes. During your life time, it allows you to name a person or agent to make decisions for you if you are unable to do so. A healthcare directive is useful if you become unable to adequately communicate your healthcare wishes.