THE REVISED HOME BUYER TAX CREDIT
WHO CAN CLAIM THE CREDIT
First time home buyers who purchase homes between November 7, 2009 and April 30, 2010 are eligible for the credit. To qualify as a “first-time home buyer,†the purchased or his/her spouse may not have owned a resident during the three years prior to the purchase.
For current homeowners purchasing a home during the same time frame, they are also eligible for a tax credit, so long as the home being sold or vacated was their principal residence for five consecutive years within the last either. To elaborate, it must be the same home; it is not enough that they have been homeowners for five consecutive years; they must have been in the same home for five consecutive years.
Read more
California $10K Home Buyers Credit Proposed
Sacramento, California
Today Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger announced that the California budget was 21 BILLION in the red. One would think that with this horrible news, the state would look at ways to reduce or in the very least, cap spending. Maybe I’m just being too logical, because practically in his next breath, Schwarzenegger proposed the adoption of a new home buyer tax credit for California taxpayers.
Last year California had a $8,000 new home buyers credit. Now with a much larger deficit, the Governator has upped the credit to $10,000! Read more
Home Mortgage Interest Deductions To Be Reduced
Obama vs. real estate
With “hope and change,†Obama is whipping out new programs, rescue packages, bailouts, etc. Unquestionably, he thinks all these expenditures will produce a healthier economy or at least provide help where needed. Huge budget deficits are burgeoning and the Obama administration is forced to seek new revenue sources. Obama’s current budget will reduce home mortgage interest deductions and funnel money towards helping these building deficits.
The initial steps will affect the higher earners, but once the door is open, what will stop the earning caps from being reduced until the final elimination? Am I stretching the truth on this topic?
The idea that elimination of the home mortgage deduction will not affect home ownership is already being discussed. Those in favor of reducing/removing the home mortgage deduction mention the fact that Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia do not provide mortgage interest rate deductions but still have roughly similar homeownership rates as the United States.  Another added perk is the advancement of Obama’s stated goal for wealth re-distribution. Read more
California Gives New Home Buyers $100 Million
Are our Californian politicians screwed up or what? Can you believe that just days after passing a budget, the California legislature passed and Gov. Schwarzenegger signed, on February 20, 2009, a tax credit bill (Senate Bill 15) for taxpayers who purchase a principal residence any time after March 1, 2009, and before March 1, 2010. The allowed credit is for 5% of the purchase price or $10,000, whichever is less. The state of California allocated $100 million for this credit.
Although obviously well-intentioned, personally I cannot see how after raising the sales tax for the entire state, the state income tax, and the car registration fees, the state can turn around in just a few days and give away $100 million. In San Diego alone, $100 million had to be cut from the City school budget. Perhaps not giving away this new home buyer’s credit could have avoided any city school cuts!
As a Realtor, I am happy with any program that will increase sales,. As a California taxpayer I think it's unconscionable that at a time of fiscal deficits throughout the state, that this program is being instituted.
Recent Related Posts:
Home Refinance and Loan Modification Plan
The Mortgage Cramdown – A Very Bad Idea For Homeowners
New Mortgage Help for Homeowners