Alpharetta Cumming Lake Lanier Real Estate Blog

(AP) — WASHINGTON - The Senate has approved a plan to give homebuyers an extra three months to finish qualifying for federal tax incentives that boosted home sales this spring.

The move by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid would give buyers until Sept. 30 to complete their purchases and qualify for tax credits of up to $8,000. Under the current terms, buyers had until April 30 to get a signed sales contract and until June 30 to complete the sale.

The proposal would only allow people who already have signed contracts to finish at the later date. About 180,000 homebuyers who already signed purchase agreements would otherwise miss the deadline.

The Nevada Democrat added the proposal to a bill extending jobless benefits through the end of November.

Labels: 8000, extension, first time, home buyer, tax credit

The Worker, Homeownership, and Business Assistance Act of 2009 was extended through April 30, 2010. This tax credit of up to $8,000 is for qualified first-time home buyers purchasing a principal residence. The tax credit applies to sales occurring on or after January 1, 2009 and on or before April 30, 2010. However, in cases where a binding sales contract is signed by April 30, 2010, a home purchase completed by June 30, 2010 will qualify.

For sales occurring after November 6, 2009, the Act establishes income limits of $125,000 for single taxpayers and $225,000 for married couples filing joint returns. The income limits for sales occurring on or after January 1, 2009 and on or before November 6, 2009, are $75,000 for single taxpayers and $150,000 for married taxpayers filing joint returns.

Click here for questions and answers that will provide basic information about the tax credit. If you have more specific questions, we strongly encourage you to consult a qualified tax advisor or legal professional about your unique situation.

If you qualify and would like to take advantage of the tax credit at a time when mortgage rates and home prices are low, contact us today. It's a fantastic time to buy a home in the Cumming, Alpharetta and Lake Lanier area. Visit our website at www.VanderhoffRealEstate.com and search all available listings in the area. We'd love to help you find your next home.

Labels: 8000, buyer, first time, home buyer, tax credit

The Worker, Homeownership, and Business Assistance Act of 2009 was extended through April 30, 2010. This tax credit of up to $8,000 is for qualified first-time home buyers purchasing a principal residence. The tax credit applies to sales occurring on or after January 1, 2009 and on or before April 30, 2010. However, in cases where a binding sales contract is signed by April 30, 2010, a home purchase completed by June 30, 2010 will qualify.

For sales occurring after November 6, 2009, the Act establishes income limits of $125,000 for single taxpayers and $225,000 for married couples filing joint returns. The income limits for sales occurring on or after January 1, 2009 and on or before November 6, 2009, are $75,000 for single taxpayers and $150,000 for married taxpayers filing joint returns.

Click here for questions and answers that will provide basic information about the tax credit. If you have more specific questions, we strongly encourage you to consult a qualified tax advisor or legal professional about your unique situation.

If you qualify and would like to take advantage of the tax credit at a time when mortgage rates and home prices are low, contact us today. It's a fantastic time to buy a home in the Cumming, Alpharetta and Lake Lanier area. Visit our website at www.VanderhoffRealEstate.com and search all available listings in the area. We'd love to help you find your next home.

Labels: 2010, 8000, Alpharetta, april, cumming, federal, lake lanier, real estate, tax credit, vanderhoff

Labels: 2010, 6500, 8000, extended, home buyer, NAHB, national association of home builders, tax credit

The House voted 403-12 today to expand a popular tax credit for homebuyers. The bill, H.R. 3548, which also extends unemployment benefits and expands a tax break for money-losing businesses, will now go to the President, who plans to sign it on Friday.

First-time homebuyers have been getting tax credits of up to $8,000 since January as part of the economic stimulus package. But with that housing program scheduled to expire at the end of November, the House voted to extend it into the spring — and to expand it to many people who already own homes.

Buyers who have owned their current homes at least five years would be eligible, subject to income limits, for tax credits of up to $6,500. First-time homebuyers — or people who haven't owned homes in the previous three years — could get up to $8,000. To qualify, buyers have to sign purchase agreements before May 1 and close before July 1.

The credit is available for the purchase of principal homes costing $800,000 or less, meaning vacation homes are ineligible. The credit would be phased out for individuals with annual incomes above $125,000 and for joint filers with incomes above $225,000.

Labels: 2009, 3548, 6500, 8000, first time, home buyer, housing, tax credit

Senate negotiators reached a tentative deal to extend a tax credit for first-time home buyers, however, it still faces votes in the House & Senate. If passed, the agreement would extend the existing credit for first-time home buyers, worth up to $8,000, while offering a new credit of up to $6,500 for some existing homeowners. The reduced credit would be available to all home buyers who have been in their current residence for a consecutive five-year period in the past eight years.

The new provisions are aimed at broadening availability of the credit beyond first-time buyers and giving the weakened real-estate market a bigger boost while preventing real-estate investors from benefiting.

The credit would be extended from its current expiration date of Dec. 1 to all contracts entered into by April 30, and closed before July 1. It is expected that income limits on people claiming the credit would be increased to $125,000 for singles and $250,000 for couples, from the current $75,000 and $150,000. The credit phases out for people making more than those amounts.

While Senate lawmakers appear to have reached a deal on the substance of the tax credit, they are still at odds over how it would be brought to the Senate floor. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D., Nev.) hopes to add it to a bill currently on the Senate floor to extend federal unemployment insurance benefits. But agreement on that hasn't been finalized.

While Senate Republicans are likely to support the measure, House Democrats have raised concerns that it carries a high cost to the government. The Internal Revenue Service is examining the program for alleged abuse.

Labels: 8000, first time, home buyer, house, senate, tax credit, vote

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Congress is considering proposals to greatly expand a soon-to-expire $8,000 tax credit for first-time homebuyers -- potentially applying it to all but the wealthiest homebuyers.

Supporters say doing so would further boost home sales, stabilize housing prices and generate jobs. Opponents say extending and expanding the credit would be a waste of moneyand only temporarily stave off further price declines.

The credit now can be claimed by anyone buying a home who has not owned one for three years and who closes the deal by Nov. 30.

Beyond extending that deadline, some lawmakers want to make the credit available to all homebuyers who meet income eligibility requirements. And some want to increase the amount of the credit from $8,000 to $15,000.

Currently the first-time home buyer credit is available in full to those buying their primary residence who make $75,000 or less ($150,000 for joint filers). A partial credit is available to those making between $75,000 and $95,000 ($150,000 to $170,000 for joint filers).

Labels: 2009, 8000, deadline, first time home buyer, november, tax credit

Confused about whether or not you can apply the 2009 home buyer tax credit (up to $8000) to the down payment on your FHA loan? It seems many, including lenders, were unclear at first. The 2009 First Time Homebuyer's Tax Credit lets those buying their first primary residence to get a tax break up to $8000.

For FHA lenders and borrowers alike, May was a very confusing month, but the FHA seems to have sorted out the mess. The rules are clear now--bridge loans are permitted, but the FHA's required down payment must still come from the borrower's own funds. According to the Department of Housing and Urban Development's official site, FHA guidelines are designed to allow people interested in an FHA mortgage to cut their up front costs while requiring the borrower to have a personal investment in the property bought with an FHA home loan.

Click here to read more.

Labels: 8000, buyer, down payment, FHA, first time, Home, HUD, loan, tax credit