Home Buyer Tax Credit Extension Update
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First of all, the credit has not been extended yet despite all the rumors floating around. Here is the latest information from Washington as well as a projected timeline for further action from www.FixHousingFirst.com.
The Status – From www.TheHill.com “…Under the agreement struck by Sens. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) and Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.), the credit will last until the end of April and can be applied to homes worth up to $800,000. Dodd and Isakson said that as many as 70 percent of Americans will be eligible for it.
The home credit’s backers, which include Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), have said that it can help the economy recover and has already led to the jump in home sales seen around the country in recent months.
Isakson called the provision a “once-in-a-lifetime” credit that can “bring the housing market back to some sense of vitality and values.”
Though the previous provision could only be used by individuals making up to $75,000 and couples making up to $150,000, the extended credit can be used by individuals with incomes of up to $125,000 and couples of up to $225,000.
The deal also provides a new $6,500 credit to homebuyers looking to move out of their current homes into more expensive ones….”
The Timeline: From an email from www. FixHousingFirst.com comes this projected schedule:
As you may know, last night the Senate reached a deal on extending and expanding the home buyer tax credit, and they plan on attaching it to the unemployment insurance bill. You can see a copy of the bill here. The tax credit provisions begin on p. 14.
Near as we can tell at this moment, the process from here will go like this:
- There will be a cloture vote at 5 pm on Monday in the Senate on the new Baucus substitute. If it succeeds, it takes 30 hours to “ripen,” i.e., before the bill can be brought to the floor.
- Thirty hours later it’s Tuesday night. There will likely then be a cloture vote on the full unemployment insurance bill, as amended.
- Thirty hours after that, it’s Thursday morning, when the Senate will vote on final passage of the bill.
- The House could take up the bill as early as Thursday afternoon or Friday. They likely will just accept the Senate bill and vote on that. If their bill differs from the Senate bill, then the whole thing has to back through Conference. That’s unlikely at this point – and undesirable.
- The plan/hope is to have the bill on the President’s desk as soon as next weekend.
Obviously, this is all subject to change without notice. This is the Congress, after all.
You can see from the above that it is important to keep weighing in throughout the week – and sending this link to your network of friends, colleagues, family, neighbors, customers, employees, suppliers and urging them to do the same. The amount of emails being sent through the Fix Housing First site has been fantastic – keep it up!”
Summary: So hang in there, be patient, something is coming in the near future. What the final product will be after both Houses get done with it, no one can predict. Keep checking back or subscribe to the RSS feed for updated information as it occurs. peace.
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- The GOP Hits The Brakes (andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com)
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Naperville Representative Biggert Pushes to Extend Homebuyer Tax Credit
More of DC is jumping on the bandwagon to pass legislation to extend the tax credit. Here is Representative Judy Biggert’s press release detailing her efforts.
Rep Judy Biggert’s Press Release (copy below)
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| 10/8/2009 12:00:00 AM | Zachary Cikanek |
| (202) 225-3515 | |
| Biggert Pushes to Extend Homebuyer Tax Credit, Stabilize Housing Market | |
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| Washington, DC – U.S. Representative Judy Biggert (R-IL-13th) today introduced two related measures aimed at promoting economic recovery by strengthening the housing sector, boosting homes sales, and stabilizing property values. Both bills are fully offset to remain budget neutral and would extend or amplify the popular first-time home buyer (FTHB) tax credit, which is set to expire at the end of November.
“As any homeowner will tell you, we have not yet recovered from the housing collapse that precipitated the current economic downturn,” said Biggert, a senior Member of the House Financial Services Committee and former real estate attorney. “Home values remain low, vacant properties continue to blemish neighborhoods, and jobs in every sector of the economy from construction to finance are at risk. The homebuyer tax credit has effectively helped to bring in new buyers and generate greater economic stability, but our recovery is fragile, and much more remains to be done.” Biggert’s first bill would provide a six-month extension – until June 1, 2010 — of the existing FTHB tax credit for the lesser of $8,000 or 10 percent of a home’s value. The current credit, which was established as part of the stimulus package in February, is set to expire on December 1st, but because it requires about two months to close on a home purchase, new buyers entering the market now are already effectively excluded. A companion proposal has been introduced in the Senate by Benjamin L. Cardin (D-MD); however, Biggert’s bill also includes provisions that offset additional costs associated with the credit by reclaiming unspent portions of H.R.1, the economic stimulus. Similarly offset, Biggert’s second bill would extend the credit for a full year, expand it to include additional homebuyers, and strengthen its impact in higher-cost housing markets like suburban Chicago. Similar to a companion measure offered in the Senate by Johnny Isakson (R-GA), the bill would raise the maximum amount of the credit to $15,000, extend it to include non-first time buyers, and eliminate restrictions that exclude individual buyers earning $75,000 or more annually and couples earning above $150,000. It also prevents abuse by speculators and flippers by limiting the credit to principal residences and recapturing the credit on any home sold within two years. Finally, Biggert’s legislation would fix a flaw in the existing credit, ensuring that members of the military who are transferred to a new location or deployed overseas are not required to pay back the credit on their home simply because they’ve been relocated. “This is a highly effective stimulus measure that should not be allowed to lapse just as we are on the verge of recovery,” said Biggert. “But the economic benefits of the credit could be amplified significantly if we extend it beyond just first-time buyers and include growing families looking to trade-up. This expanded credit will ensure that higher-priced suburban communities all around the country are allowed to benefit, yielding stronger job growth and promoting economic stability nationwide. Further, our dedicated men and women in the military should never find themselves facing a tax penalty simply because they’ve been asked to serve in a new location.” ### |
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