Nov
5
2009
Congress has approved the extension and expansion of the home buyer tax credit into 2010. It is on its way to President Obama and is expected to be signed as early as tomorrow. Buyers who have a sales contract in place by April 30, 2010 and close by June 30th will be able to receive the $8,000 credit. Active military who are deployed overseas in 2008 or 2009 can claim the tax credit until April 30, 2011. The tax credit has been extended to allow home buyers who already own a home to receive a $6,500 credit when buying a new primary residence. See our previous blog post for more information.
According to the NAHB (National Association of Home Builders) they estimate “that the extended and expanded home buyer tax credit will create 211,000 jobs and generate 180,000 additional home sales in the coming year. It is also expected to generate $9.6 billion in wage income and $6.9 billion in federal, state and local taxes.”
Tags: home buyer, sales contract, tax credit
Posted in Blog, Buying a Home, Corporate, Financing a Home, Selling a Home
Nov
3
2009
An extension of the $8,000 first-time home buyer tax credit seems to be gaining momentum through the Senate. The Obama administration called upon Congress to give home buyers the ability to claim the tax credit until April 30, 2010.
Qualified first time home buyers will be able to claim $8,000 for house purchases under $800,000. To be able to qualify couples must make under $225,000 and single buyers under $125,000, which is up from the previous $150,000 for couples and $75,000 for individuals. The bill was expanded to include current homeowners as long as the house they are vacating has been their primary residence for a minimum of 5 consecutive years of the past 8. They can claim $6,500 when purchasing a “move up” home. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: chief economist, congress, current home owners, economy, first time home buyer tax credit, first time home buyers, mark zandi
Posted in Blog, Buying a Home, Corporate, Financing a Home, Selling a Home
Oct
13
2009
The housing market is slowly stabilizing, and you’ve decided to list your home. But what, if any, improvements should you tackle before selling? Should you just leave it all to the new homeowner?
There are two ways to look at pre-sale home improvements. You can either improve the curb appeal or the home’s outward appearance with quick and often low-cost improvements, or you can make some higher-dollar changes with the goal of adding value to the home and increasing your asking price. The reality is that all houses benefit from a little “spiffing up” before being shown to buyers, and smart home sellers will take the time and effort to do so. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: home improvements, home sellers, Homes.com, prepare to sell
Posted in Blog, Selling a Home, Whitepapers