Highlights of the 2009 First-Time Homebuyer Tax Credit
April 16, 2009 · · 5 Comments

tax-credit_faqRecently, I have received many questions from prospective homebuyers about the 2009 homebuyer tax credit bill — which provides $8,000 tax credit to first-time homebuyers for the purchase of their principal residence between January 1, 2009 and December 1, 2009.   I wanted to share with you a very informative FAQ (http://tinyurl.com/b8mysm)from National Association of Realtors (NAR) to address many of your questions and concerns about the details of the bill.

Here are some highlights:

  • You must be a “first-time” homebuyer, which is defined as someone who has not owned a home in 3 years prior to the day of your 2009 purchase.
  • The 2009 tax credit is refundable (i.e. IRS will send you a refund check if your tax liability is less the $8,000).
  • The income restriction for a full tax credit is $75,000 for individuals and $150,000 for married couples.
  • You may receive partial credit for income up to $95,000 for individuals and $170,000 for married couples.
  • The home must be your principle residence and owner-occupied.
  • You do not have to repayment 2009 tax credits; However, if you sell the property within 3 years of the purchase, your are required to pay back the full amount of any credit, including any refund you received from it.
  • You can claim your 2009 tax credit when filing your 2008 tax returns by April 15, 2009.
  • Close of escrow must occur on or before Dec. 1, 2009; if the property is under construction when purchased, you must occupy the home before Dec. 1, 2009.
Jean Joh

Mortgage Protection Program for First-Time Homebuyers!!
April 3, 2009 · · 4 Comments

newsGreat news for California home buyers!  As if the $8000 tax credit, historically low interest rates, and affordable home prices were not enough, the California Association of Realtors Housing Affordability Fund (C.A.R.H.A.F.) is making the pot even sweeter by offering a mortgage protection program for first-time home buyers.  Wow!  

Back in January, I posted a blog on my personal blogsite (http://budurl.com/5vpd) about the Hyundai Assurance Program (if you lose your job or have another hardship within 12 months, you can give your new car back) and commented that it would be an interesting idea if we could have the same sort of thing for buying homes.  The basic idea – buy a new home, and if you lose your job, you can give the home back without penalty.  Well, it seems that someone out there was reading my blog…okay, maybe not, but this new program is not too far from the same line of thinking.  So what does it entail exactly?

Read more

Kathy Wall

More Housing Help from the Government
March 3, 2009 · · 4 Comments

 

In previous posts, fellow bloggers, Annie Chang and Michael Monozon,  have talked about the many benefits of the new federal government stimulus package.   Over the weekend, I learned about yet another program that will greatly help potential home buyers and will also help the many home builders who are sinking under the weight of  their new homes not selling . 

At our office meeting this morning, our in house lender, Guarantee Mortgage, filled us in on the details, as follows.   It seems that the State of California has now instituted yet another tax credit.   This one will apply only to people who purchase a brand new home, condo or townhome. Read more

How to Apply “Free Money” Wisely Toward a Home Purchase?
February 22, 2009 · · 5 Comments

In my previous blog, “Stimulus Package – What It Means to Bay Area Homebuyers”, some prospective homebuyers and comments  have expressed that the $8,000 tax credit in the Stimulus Package is “just not enough” to stimulate them to get off the fence.  Understandably, the incentive seems too insignificant when we are talking about an average housing price of $500,000 in the Bay Area. 

On the flip side of the coin, $8,000 is unarguably a substantial amount of money – don’t we all wish to have an extra $8,000 in our bank account?  Since a tax credit is a dollar for dollar reduction in income taxes (e.g. if you have $8,000 tax credit, you will pay $8,000 less tax that year regardless of your tax bracket), it is essentially like “free money”. Therefore, for someone who intends to purchase a home this year, there could be a number of ways in which this money can be wisely applied toward the purchase.  Here are some examples: Read more

STIMULUS PACKAGE – WHAT IT MEANS TO BAY AREA HOMEBUYERS?
February 13, 2009 · · 9 Comments

Our Broker posted a blog yesterday about “STIMULUS PACKAGE, WHAT REAL ESTATE PARTS MEAN?” Since I am currently working with a few prospective first-time homebuyers, I thought I’d picked their brain during my follow-up calls after the blog was posted. In particular, I asked them “if the stimulus package is finalized and homebuyers will get the benefit of the $8K tax credit, is that a good incentive for you to buy a house now?”  Read more