Updated First Time Homebuyers Tax Credit

Here are the latest updated information from the Stimulus Bill.

FIRST-TIME HOMEBUYER TAX CREDIT

As Modified in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act

Major Modifications Shaded

February 2009

FEATURE	CREDIT AS CREATED JULY 2008 APPLIES TO ALL QUALIFIED PURCHASES ON OR AFTER APRIL 9, 2008	REVISED CREDIT – EFFECTIVE FOR PURCHASES ON OR AFTER JANUARY 1, 2009 AND BEFORE DECEMBER 1, 2009
Amount of Credit	Lesser of 10 percent of cost of home or $7500	Maximum credit amount increased to $8000
Eligible Property	Any single family residence (including condos, co-ops, townhouses) that will be used as a principal residence.	No change All principal residences eligible.
Refundable	Yes. Reduces (or can eliminate) income tax liability for the year of purchase. Any unused amount of tax credit refunded to purchaser.	No change Purchasers will continue to receive refund for unused amount when tax return is filed.
Income Limit	Yes. Full amount of credit available for individuals with adjusted gross income of no more than $75,000 ($150,000 on a joint return). Phases out above those caps ($95,000 and $170,000).	No change Same income limits continue to apply.
First-time Homebuyer Only	Yes. Purchaser (and purchaser’s spouse) may not have owned a principal residence in 3 years previous to purchase.	No change Still available for first-time purchasers only. Three-year rule continues to apply.
Revenue Bond Financing	No credit allowed if home financed with state/local bond funding.	Purchasers who utilize revenue bond financing can use credit.
Repayment	Yes. Portion (6.67% of credit or $500) to be repaid each year for 15 years, starting with 2010 tax filing.	No repayment for purchases on or after January 1, 2009 and before December 1, 2009
Recapture	If home sold before 15-year repayment period ends, then outstanding balance of repayment amount recaptured on sale.	If home is sold within three years of purchase, entire amount of credit is recaptured on sale. Applies only to homes purchased in 2009.
Termination	July 1, 2009 (But note program changes for 2009)	December 1, 2009
Effective Date	Purchases on or after April 9, 2008 and before January 1, 2009. Repayment to begin for 2010 tax year.	All revisions are effective as of January 1, 2009

Optimism coming to the housing market

According to the CNNPolitics.com, the final Stimulus bill has some definite winners and losers. The housing market has fallen into the winners category. The Stimulus bill will include $2 billion to be set aside for neighborhood stabilization. It is also said that First time home buyers will be getting an $8,000 tax credit if they purchase within this calendar year. This tax credit does not have to be repaid like the similar bill last year. The estimated cost is $6.63 billion.

Right now is a very good time to buy. Wipe off that pessimism and look at the opportunities. Home prices are down with desperate banks looking to clear themselves of the heavy burden of bad debts. The economy will not begin looking upward until the housing market is demonstrating movement.

So let's stimulate the economy.

For more information on the Winners and losers of the Stimulus bill, visit
http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/02/13/stimulus.winners.losers/

NAR Says Stimulus Bill Will Help Stabilize Housing And Mortgage Markets

The National Association of Realtors® congratulated House Committee on Financial Services Chairman Barney Frank, D-Mass. on his leadership and the U.S. House of Representatives for voting to pass H.R. 3221, The Foreclosure Prevention Act. Their actions will help bring stability to the housing market and stem the rising rate of foreclosures.

NAR has expressed ongoing support for all the major features in the House housing package. “Our Realtor® members appreciate the House’s hard work and bipartisan effort in bringing forth legislation that will go a long way toward helping people become and remain homeowners,” said NAR President Dick Gaylord, a broker with RE/MAX Real Estate Specialists in Long Beach, Calif. “We are pleased with the comprehensive nature of this bill.”

Realtors® have long advocated modernizing Federal Housing Administration programs that will simplify and make FHA-backed mortgages more available, and expanding FHA to allow more homeowners to refinance their mortgages. Additional bill components that NAR has long supported include reform to the government-sponsored enterprises (Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac) and permanent increases to both GSE and FHA loan limits. The proposed tax credit of $7,500 for first-time home buyers would help stimulate a weak housing market, and FHA stabilization should help thousands of families to refinance existing mortgages and keep their homes.

“This is meaningful legislation that can have a major impact. We look forward to working with the House and Senate to finalize an aggressive bill that will ensure that every American who can afford to own a home and aspires to do so will have that opportunity, and that every American who responsibly owns a home is able to keep it,” said Gaylord.

The National Association of Realtors®, “The Voice for Real Estate,” is America’s largest trade association, representing 1.2 million members involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries.

First Time Home Buyers Seminars

For those of you that have forever burning questions about buying your first home, I've got great news! I have started putting together First Time Home Buyers Seminars. Yes, seminars!

I wished that I had gone to a seminar before I bought my first home. I was scared to death, I didn't know whether I was coming or going, and even if my Realtor was right when she said I was going. Truth of the matter was, whether I was coming or going, I didn't have a clue what I was doing. I took unsound advice from my friends who were still living at home (with their parents).

Come on... admit it! We all have taken advice from people who don't have a clue.

Its like taking investing and money advice from someone who doesn't have any. Does that sound right to you?

I want to make sure home buyers are equipped with the knowledge to make educated decisions on the biggest investment they are ever going to make.

So don't wait...

Sign up today!

First Time Home Buyers Seminars

B of A Loan

Happy Wednesday Everyone!

I wanted to share this wonderful loan that a friend of mine brought to my attention.
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• No Appraisal Fee
  
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I really think it would be worth trying out.

http://nofeemortgageplus.bankofamerica.com/

**Remember I'm here for any of your real estate needs and questions**