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Blog Posts
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Expanded Tax Credit Helps St. Augustine Families
Posted By:
Marjorie Taylor
on
12/17/2009
As I’m sure you heard, President Obama signed legislation to extend and expand the $8,000 first-time homebuyer tax credit. These tax credit changes are included in the Worker, Homeownership and Business Assistance Act of 2009, which also extends unemployment benefits to people who have been jobless for more than one year. This will help so many of the people of our community here in St. Augustine.
The new legislation extends the deadline for the first-time homebuyer tax credit to include home purchase contracts entered into by April 30, 2010 and closed by June 30, 2010. Great news for buyers of homes in St. Augustine, the tax credit was also expanded to include a new $6,500 credit for owners of existing homes who are purchasing a new principal residence. Qualified move-up buyers must have lived in their current residence for at least five consecutive years of the past eight years.
Homebuyers looking to take advantage of either tax credit are subject to income eligibility limits of $125,000 for individuals and $225,000 for married couples, up from the limits of $75,000 and $150,000 included in the previous law. The home purchased must cost less than $800,000 to qualify the homebuyer for the tax credit. And to help guard against fraud, buyers are required to attach documentation of the home purchase to their tax return.
After signing the bill into law, President Obama said "the rebound in the housing market was one of the big factors that contributed to the growth of the economy last quarter, and brought hundreds of thousands of families into the housing market. We want to give even more families the chance to own their own home."
The National Association of REALTORS reports that their economists estimate that the current tax credit has contributed approximately $22 billion to the general economy, and that approximately 2 million people will take advantage of the tax credit this year.
“The substantial rise in home sales we’ve seen over the past few months proves that the tax credit is working and is being used by buyers who were waiting for the right opportunity to get into the market,” says NAR President Charles McMillan. “This important incentive is helping to stabilize the housing market, stimulate the economy and create new jobs in communities all across our great nation. Extending and expanding the home buyer tax credit will enable even more families to take advantage of current low interest rates and affordable prices to invest in their future through homeownership.”
Marjorie Taylor, Realtor and Broker-Associate for Watson Realty Corp St. Augustine Beach reports an increase in sales of Homes in St. Augustine. “We’ve seen a 3% increase of sales of single family homes in the month of October. I believe that is directly related to the tax credit. Short sales and foreclosures have made up a large portion of these sales. Now with the expanded credit opportunity, our numbers should continue to grow. This should been seen not only in the first-time homebuyer property purchases, but the move up market as well.”
Below are some Tax Credit Resource links from National Association of REALTORS: These links may also be found on my website www.MarjorieTaylor.net.
Details on Homebuyer Tax Credit Changes
Frequently Asked Questions on the Expanded Homebuyer Tax Credit
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