$8000 Tax Credit for First Time Home Buyers – Expires Soon

I’ve talked about it a little in my Tucson real estate market reports, but for those that don’t know – there’s an $8000 tax credit for first time buyers that expires December 1, 2009. 

The home buyer tax credit is only for first time buyers, according to the IRS.  And those are people who have not owned a home in the last 3 years.  Excluded from the credit are first time home buyers who file taxes separately and whose income exceeds $95,000, those who file jointly and whose income exceeds $170,000.

There are a few other guidelines – mortgage guru Dan covers them well in this article.

BUT – you have to close on your home on or before December 1, 2009.

Given a typical escrow is 30-45 days in Tucson – let’s use 45 days just to play safe – if we count backwards, that means you need to have a home under contract by October 16th.  Throw in a couple of days for negotiating, and you need to be making offers probably by October 10th, at the absolute latest.

Which is in 46 days. 

If you think you may qualify for this program and want to take advantage of it, it’s time to get moving.  Get thee to a lender to get pre-approved, and get thee home shopping.

If you’ve got questions, send me an email.  Happy to help where I can.

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Equal Housing Opportunity Realtor