After much speculation within the industry, news out of Washington D.C. this week confirmed that Senate is moving forward on extending the $8,000 first time home buyer tax credit. The Senate still has to approve the measure; however, it appears to have bi-partisan support amongst Republicans and Democrats.
The latest version would offer a slightly lower credit of 10% of the purchase price with a maximum payout of $7,290. As long as the home you are purchasing has a price of $72,900 or higher, you will receive the full credit. That is still a nice credit for buyers to enjoy. The median home price here in the Las Vegas real estate market is around $140,000, so most buyers will qualify for the full credit. The tax credit is limited to individual buyers earning $75,000 or less and married couples who earn less than $150,000 per year. Buyers would have to be in contract to purchase a home no later than April 30th, 2010 and must close on their home no later than June 20th, 2010.
The credit is also being expanded to include current homeowners looking to purchase a new home may also qualify for a credit. They must have been living in their current residence for a minimum of five years. Individuals earning over $125,000 and couples earning over $250,000 per year would not be eligible.
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I see both sided to extending the tax credit. Of course I want them to extend it to make my business busy but I also see the hole we are digging in the budget. At some point there has to be an end!
I would normally agree, Ashlee, but in this case, the money is really going to something tangible. This housing market is one of the fundamental tumors directly threatening our economy. The price wouldn’t be so much of an issue if the government was wasting so many other billions on pork barrel spending projects, political earmarks, and of course ill-conceived stimulus programs such as cash-for-clunkers.