Releases April 1, 2010
Have we got a fish story for you. Oak Island Parks & Recreation Department is offering the second annual fishing program called WAIT! (Women Anglers In Training). The WAIT! program is for women only, and it promises to put participants at ease and develop their potential as anglers.
WAIT has created a stress-free environment where women can ask questions and try their hand at a variety of angling activities. This two-day experience will introduce surf fishing, pier fishing, bottom fishing, tying lures, using bait, casting, maneuvering a boat, and much more. The weekend event concludes with a daylong fishing trip on Sunday.
This year’s WAIT program is May 1-2, and the cost starts at $49. This is the only all-women fishing instruction weekend held in North Carolina.
Day One Activities:
Women will meet in a hands-on classroom setting to cover all aspects of basic fishing techniques. There will be a lunchtime vendors’ session where women will learn about new and exciting fishing products, services, and techniques.
The afternoon session will include more hands-on instruction and end with a session on how to throw a cast net. There will be many door prizes, snacks, and lots of fun.
Day Two Activities:
WAIT Participants will have the opportunity to choose either daylong fishing by pier or charter boat, where they put all that hard work to practice.
For more information, go to www.oakislandnc.com/recreation and click on WAIT Program, or you can call Rebecca Squires at (910) 278-4747.
Recreational boat owners who paid state sales taxes on a boat purchase, or those who secured a loan to finance a boat, may have some tax deductions available when filing their 2009 federal income tax return.
The Sales Tax Deduction
For boat owners who paid substantial state sales taxes on a new or used boat purchase last year, the Tax Extenders Act of 2008 continues to offer a federal tax deduction for state sales taxes. Boaters must choose either the state sales tax deduction or state income tax deduction on their federal tax return—you cannot take both.
In addition, to take the state sales tax deduction, the sales tax on a boat purchase must be applied at the same tax rate as the state’s general sales tax. In order to claim the sales tax deduction, tax returns must be itemized. State sales taxes are entered on IRS form Schedule A, line 5b.
The Boat Loan Deduction
For those owners with a secured boat loan, mortgage interest paid on the loan may be deducted from your federal income taxes. Taxpayers may use the home mortgage interest deduction for one second home in addition to their primary home, and must itemize deductions on their returns. A boat is considered a second home for federal tax purposes if it has a galley, a head, and sleeping berth.
Some boaters may be unaware of this potential tax benefit because not all lending institutions send borrowers an Internal Revenue Service form 1098 which reports the interest paid. Not receiving the form does not preclude taking the deduction. If a 1098 is not available, boaters should contact their lender for the amount of interest paid and should enter it on line 11 on Schedule A along with the lender’s tax ID number. If a form 1098 is sent, boaters should simply enter the amount on line 10 of Schedule A.
Sorry, AMT
For those who fall under the Alternative Minimum Tax, most deductions are unavailable as taxes are calculated differently. Boaters are urged to contact a tax preparer or financial advisor for more information.
For more details on the mortgage deduction, go to www.IRS.gov and download Publication 936 or the Fact Sheets. For state tax deduction information, download Publication 600, which also includes state-by-state tax tables.
Get a line on stripers at an NC Aquarium fishing clinic. A fishing class on Saturday, April 17, at the North Carolina Aquarium at Pine Knoll Shores can help you boat the big striped bass that spring brings to the Neuse and Roanoke rivers.
Experienced fishing guide Greg Voliva shares tips and techniques for landing these prized game fish. Voliva grew up in Craven and Pamlico Counties and runs Four Seasons Guide Service based in Pamlico County.
The fishing clinic is part of a series of Saturday afternoon seminars featuring various aspects of fishing. Also coming up on the schedule for the NC Aquarium at Pine Knoll Shores is Ashley Williams teaching kayak fishing on May 1, and Chesson O’Briant teaching kite fishing on May 22.
Sportfishing clinics are presented in Soundside Hall from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m., and they are free with admission or membership. Registration is not required. Contact Aquarium Educator Todd Spangler at Ext. 288 for more information.
The North Carolina Aquarium at Pine Knoll Shores is five miles west of Atlantic Beach at 1 Roosevelt Blvd., Pine Knoll Shores, NC 28512. The hours are 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. daily. For more information, see www.ncaquariums.com or call (252) 247-4003.
In recreational boating today it’s a buyers market, and used boats represent great value. “Finding your dreamboat is easy,” said BoatU.S. Vice President of Boat Finance Charm Addington, who heads the association’s Settlement Service. “It’s harder, however, to walk away from a boat that pulls at your heart strings—but may have skeletons hiding in the closet such as a cloudy title or other issues. Transactions between private buyers and sellers are where we see the majority of potentially costly paperwork issues,” she added.
By following these simple seven tips, boat buyers can avoid most of the paperwork pitfalls when buying a pre-owned vessel.
The Seven Paperwork Pitfalls to Avoid:
1. Registration: It should be current. Also be aware that a boat that is not located in the state it is registered is one indicator that it may have tax issues that could haunt a new owner.
2. Title: The information on the title should match the registration. A title will also usually list any liens on the vessel, such as a bank loan that will need to be paid off in order to transfer the title. It’s important to include a statement in the purchase agreement that requires the seller to pay off the loan within a very limited amount of time after the sale. Any other liens should be cleared up by the seller before any sale occurs.
3. Hull Trace the HIN: Take a pencil and paper to get a rubbing of the boat’s 12-character serial number known as the HIN (hull identification number) and ensure it matches registration and title. If it does not, the seller should correct the problem.
4. Taxes: It’s advisable to get a statement from the buyer stating that any state or local taxes on the vessel have been paid. This can also be easily included in the purchase agreement.
5. Purchase Agreement: It’s smart—and a widely acceptable practice—to include contingencies for the buyer such as securing financing and receiving an acceptable survey and sea trial.
6. Bill of Sale: Prepare this document with the seller’s name as it appears exactly on the title and registration.
7. Payment: A cashier’s check is the best way to consummate the deal, but the name on the check must match the name on the title and registration.
The BoatU.S. Settlement Service gives buyers and sellers the information and guidance they need so there are no surprises at closing. It coordinates transactions between buyer, seller, or the bank, and can be especially helpful when there is no broker or dealer involved. Services include purchase agreement forms, lien searches, confirming and handling loan payoffs, as well as verification and transfers of ownership. A U.S. Coast Guard Documentation Service is also available through BoatU.S.
For more information on BoatU.S. Settlement Services, Documentation Services, and boat loans, go to www.BoatUS.com/boatloans.
Spring is officially here. That means it’s time to switch over to the spring edition of your Local Catch: North Carolina Seafood Availability wallet cards.
You might be familiar with our state’s abundant vegetables and crops, but North Carolina is also home to a unique and diverse range of fish and shellfish. Local and visiting food lovers can use the spring Local Catch card to explore our state’s spring seafood selection.
To download the Spring Local Catch wallet card (PDF), go to www.seagrant.org, click on “Resource Library,” and then click on “Seafood Science & Technology.” Or the direct web address is www.ncseagrant.org/images/stories/ncsg_pdf/documents/products/guides/localcatch_spring.pdf.
Part of a four-season series, Local Catch listings are based on past commercial fishing landings in the state. These historic availabilities are determined in part by the natural migration and life cycle of each species, as well as ongoing federal and state fishery closures and limits.
So for any given year, your fish market visit might yield fewer or more species than we listed. To find updates on N.C. closures and openings for a certain fishery or fishing gear, visit www.ncfisheries.net/procs.
The Local Catch cards were developed in 2007 in partnership with the North Carolina Aquariums. They are a companion to the North Carolina Seafood Availability Chart produced by Sea Grant, the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries (DMF), and the N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (NCDACS).
The public can order free copies of the Local Catch wallet cards and the seafood availability chart at ncseagrant.org/seafood.
