A REAL Home Buyer Tax Credit!
A homebuyer tax credit is one of 10 key provisions of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act signed into law Feb. 17, 2009. This is different from the previous tax credit, primarily because it does not require repayment unless someone sells their home within 3 years. Although I doubt that this would be the sole reason for someone to go out and purchase a home, it’s still a great incentive for those who are still somewhat “on the fence.” This tax credit can be applied to 2008 or 2009 taxes, and the purchase must be completed before December 1, 2009. In addition, the maximum is $8000 (if your income qualifies) or up to 10% of the purchase price, which means that you can get the full $8000 credit as long as your home costs $80,000 or more. For those of us here in the SF Bay Area, that’s not a problem at all! So, if you needed another reason to buy, besides the fact that home prices and interest rates are low, here it is!
Be sure to talk to a tax professional to make sure that this tax credit would be a good option for you. For a chart detailing the main features of this credit, go to: http://tinyurl.com/aw4fye.
