Alfano Law Office, PLLC

Alfano Law Office, PLLC
Phone: (603) 856-8411 • Fax (603) 290-5521
4 Park Street, Concord, NH 03301
  • Home
  • Real Estate Law
    • Road Law
    • Commercial Real Estate Law
    • Tax Abatements
    • Business Law
  • Estate Planning
  • About Us
    • Paul J. Alfano, Real Estate Attorney
    • John F. Hayes, Attorney
    • Terrie Harman, Attorney
    • Jim Soucy, Attorney
    • Marissa Schuetz, Attorney
    • Michael D. Cameron, Attorney
    • Privacy Policy
  • Articles
  • Contact Us
    • Directions
  • Road Law Guide
  • NH Tax Abatement
    • Tax Abatement Team
    • Grounds for Abatement
    • Municipal Application
    • Owners of Properties Outside New Hampshire
    • Transfer Tax Allocation
    • Recent Laws and Rulings
  • Resources and Links
    • Allobar Strategies
    • Calendar and Key Dates
    • Equalization Ratio
    • NAPTA
  • Covid-19 Updates
You are here: Home / General / October 2015 NH Property Tax Alert – Homestead Exemption; Fines for Zoning Violations; Ski Injury Litigation; NH Tax Amnesty

October 2015 NH Property Tax Alert – Homestead Exemption; Fines for Zoning Violations; Ski Injury Litigation; NH Tax Amnesty

New Hampshire Homestead Exemption Will Rise to $120,000 Beginning January 1, 2016

  what-is-a-homestead-exemption
The New Hampshire Homestead Protection Act allows property owners to declare a portion of their property a “homestead” and thus off limits to unsecured creditors, in cases of financial hardship, bankruptcy, or upon death of a spouse or loved one. The exemption is available for your primary residence only, and allows protections from creditors, who may not seize it to satisfy debts.  While some states do not offer a homestead exemption, New Hampshire offers homeowners a homestead exemption. The homestead exemption amount in New Hampshire is $100,000, and will rise to   $120,000.00 beginning January 1, 2016.

Notice Requirements in Ski Injury Litigation

skiing-1140x767As the ski season approaches, the New Hampshire Supreme Court recently issued clarification on the notice requirement of ski injury lawsuits in New Hampshire in Hogan v. Pat’s Peak Skiing, LLC, Merrimack No. 2014-420 (July 2015). In this case, the plaintiffs fell from a chair lift while skiing at Pat’s Peak. Medical evaluations and incident reports were completed same day. The incident occurred on February 4, 2012; the plaintiffs sent a letter of notice of their intent to sue defendants on May 3, 2012; the letter arrived at the Henniker post office on May 5, 2012; and the letter was delivered to the defendant on May 10, 2012.  New Hampshire requires plaintiffs to provide notice to defendants within ninety days from the date of injury of intent to recover. RSA 225-A: 25, IV. The defendants in this case moved to dismiss because the plaintiffs did not provide notice by May 4, 2012, the ninety day cutoff. Upon de novo review, the New Hampshire Supreme Court determined notice of intent to recover in a skiing injury action “is effective upon mailing,” and therefore New Hampshire “narrowly appl[ies] the common law mailbox rule” to notice in ski injury cases.4. Therefore, defendants need not know about the potential suit within the ninety days, but rather plaintiffs need only mail the notice by the ninety day cutoff.

Amazing but True …

A $344,025 Penalty for Building Without a Permit?

building-permits-2A $344,025 penalty for making renovations without a building permit?  Yup.  In the recent case of Town of Bartlett v. Edward C. Furlong (September 22, 2015), the New Hampshire Supreme Court upheld a $344,025 penalty against a property owner for continuing renovations on his property without a building permit.  The fine was imposed under RSA 675:16, which permits fines of $275 for the first day of the violation, and $550 for each day thereafter.

 

Yes Virginia, there is an Amnesty: For New Hampshire State Taxes, but it won’t last long.
No PenaltiesAs part of the State Budget bill, New Hampshire adopted a temporary amnesty program for taxpayers who are under-reported or failed to pay state taxes.  This is a great opportunity for taxpayers who are behind in the payment or reporting the taxes to obtain relief from significant penalties and interest.  Under the program, if taxpayers pay 100% of the outstanding taxes that are due during the period of the amnesty (December 1, 2015 until February 15, 2016), the Department of Revenue Administration (DRA) will waive 100% of the penalties and 50% of the interest that would have been due.  The Amnesty applies to all taxes administered by the DRA:  the Business Profits, Business Enterprise, Interest & Dividends, Meals and Rooms (Rentals), Communication Services, Utility Property, Tobacco, Electricity Consumption, Medicaid Enhancement and Railroad Tax.  As an additional incentive for taxpayers to participate in the program, after March 15, 2016, the DRA will not have the authority to waive penalties and interest attributable to taxes that were due during the period of the Amnesty.

Also of note…. 

Eviction Trap

EvictionIn a rare 3-2 decision, the New Hampshire Supreme Court ruled in August that an agreement entered into with a delinquent tenant who has had judgment entered against him or her must be limited to the arrearage and not pull in future rent payments that are not yet due.  Those future rent payments are subject to the ordinary eviction procedures of RSA 540.  One solution may be to make clear in the agreement that there are two streams of payment: one for the arrearage, and one for the future rent, and that the first payments shall be applied to current rent.  That way, if the tenant is short, the landlord can claim the arrearage was not paid and seek an immediately writ of possession, or whatever the terms of the agreement dictate.  Mountain View Park, LLC v. Robson (August 11, 2015).

 

Filed Under: General, New Hampshire Property Tax Alerts, Property Tax Law, Real Estate Law

The above information is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.

Important Registry Updates
Important Court Updates

Subscribe to the Alfano Law Property Rights Alert

Sign Up Now

For Email Newsletters you can trust.
Allobar Strategies

NH Tax Abatement

  • Road Law Guide
  • NH Tax Abatement
    • Tax Abatement Team
    • Grounds for Abatement
    • Municipal Application
    • Owners of Properties Outside New Hampshire
    • Transfer Tax Allocation
    • Recent Laws and Rulings
  • Resources and Links
    • Allobar Strategies
    • Calendar and Key Dates
    • Equalization Ratio
    • NAPTA
  • Covid-19 Updates

NH Real Estate Law Articles

  • Court Updates
  • Covid-19
  • Estate Planning
  • General
  • Legislation
  • New Hampshire Property Tax Alerts
  • Property Investments
  • Property Tax Law
  • Real Estate Law
  • Road Law
  • Taxes

Recent News Letters

March 2020

December 2019

November 2019

October 2019

August 2019

July 2019

May 2019

Recent Articles

NH Supreme Court Holds that Tenants’ Right of First Offer to Purchase Rented Property can be Triggered by the Owners’ Intent to Sell.

It is common for residential leases to include options … [Read More...]

March 1 is the Deadline to Request a Refund of New Hampshire Property Taxes

March 1, 2021 is the deadline to challenge your 2020 real … [Read More...]

NHPVRTA SUBMITS DRAFT OF NEW BILL ON PRIVATE ROADS TO THE NH SENATE

New Hampshire Private Road Taxpayers Alliance (NHPVRTA) is a … [Read More...]

Understanding Commercial Site Planning in New Hampshire

Obtaining a rezoning of property to a commercial zoning … [Read More...]

Article Archives

  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • October 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • June 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • June 2013
  • February 2012
  • December 2011
  • May 2011
  • July 2010
  • December 2005
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter

Alfano Law Office, PLLC, 4 Park Street, Concord, NH 03301 USA | Phone: (603) 856-8411
Copyright © 2021 · Alfano Law Office, PLLC. All Rights Reserved · Website design by InterActive Synergy, LLC

Sign up to receive our FREE Road Law Guide

Everything you need to know about navigating public and private road laws in New Hampshire.

    This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.