(04-02-2025, 09:05 AM)Jag149 Wrote:

(04-02-2025, 08:32 AM)Sneakers Wrote: What are you defining as "losses"?

There in lies the rub.  Currently the value of an asset is what someone will pay for it. Under this system it is a "market value" defined by what someone believes it is worth. A very bias way to do things. I like you so your stuff is worth x, I do not like you so yours is worth 2X. Why don't we make this as complicated as possible?

It's more than just a belief. It's a belief that a bank originates a loan based on.
Besides, most of the assets we are talking about are things like stocks and real estate.
There are also assets that are harder to evaluate like artwork, and I suppose an owner may be motivated to go to a bank and ask them to lowball the value so that they can get a tax break. But over time that would be reducing their ability to use loans to create income based on that asset, and would also make the bank liable for some fraud investigations. Most people would play it straight. Every tax system can be gamed, but some can be gamed more than others.

---