It is finally here! Direct train service from New York City to Atlantic City.  This has been in the works for a while but will be up and running on February 6, 2009.  This is great news for Atlantic City because it will help bring New York City gamblers (and their money) into Atlantic City. The train will also give the casinos the chance to further tap the New York market and woo younger, free-spending gamblers to a city that’s reinventing itself from a low-rolling daytripper town to a more affluent overnight tourist destination.

Trains run Friday, Saturday and Sunday leaving Penn Station and Newark Penn Station multiple times during these days.  The fare for travel is $50 for one way coach and $75 for one way first class travel.  Read the rest of this entry »

The Atlantic City Business and Community Association (ACBCA) is a grassroots merchants group that was formed a couple of months ago to help tackle the debris and overgrown shrubbery along Atlantic Avenue.  Tired of the broken down facades, litter and weeds choking their storefronts, business owners like Audrey Hart (owner of Miss Audrey’s Thrift Shop and Human Connection and leader of the ACBCA) decided to band together to tackle this problem on their own.  Ms. Hart recruited some of the homeless in the area and other volunteers to help clean the sidewalks and bag trash found along the avenue.  At Halloween, the group organized a trick-or-treat event to bring attention to the businesses on Atlantic Avenue as well as interacting with fellow business owners and learning more about each other.  Some of the shops along Atlantic Avenue are also collecting dry and canned food to give to the local soup kitchen (Sister Jean’s).  The group has also reached out to local law enforcement to try to create a relationship between merchants and police officers to help combat the concerns they have over crime and security in the area.  The members of the Atlantic City Business and Community Association understand that by cleaning up the Atlantic Avenue area, they not only help their businesses, but they encourage local residents to take pride in their neighborhood.  This benefits everybody.

New Rules Next Year

Under the existing capital gains exclusion rule, a seller can claim a maximum exemption of $250,000 ($500,000 if filing jointly) if he had resided in the property as his primary residence for at least 2 years.   
 
Effective January 1, 2009, a new formula will apply and will take into account the ratio between the time a seller has lived in the residence over its qualified life.  
 
For Example, an individual sells a property which he had owned for 8 years and used as his primary residence for the last 2 years.  In our example, the seller realizes a gain of $200,000 upon the sale of the property.   This year he can exclude the entire gain from income tax.  Sell the house next year, different story.  Only $50,000 of the $200,000 can be excluded from capital gains tax.  Here is the math:  the 2 years he occupied the residence equals 25% of the total years he owned the property and 25% of the $200,000 gain is $50,000.
 
The IRS hasn’t published its final rules and each situation is different, please consult a tax professional before making any decisions.

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