Time is ticking for first-time home buyers to take advantage of a federal tax credit good for ten percent of the purchase of a home.
The deadline is November 30, and while that is three months away, it doesn’t leave much time to buyers thinking of new construction.
“We have received many inquiries from potential home buyers asking if a sales contract on a new home by the November 30 deadline will be sufficient to receive the tax credit, “said Chris Corrada president of the Home Builders Association of Richmond, “The answer is that simply signing a sales contract will not qualify the buyer.”
Corrada said the date the home buyer takes occupancy of the house is the purchase date, not when they sign a sales contract.
The maximum credit allowed is $8,000 and is only available only to individuals making less than $95,000 a year or married couples earning $170,000 a year.
Don Atkinson, president of the Richmond Association of Realtors, offers another reason first time home buyers should act quickly.
“It is inevitable that home prices will start going up again. Savvy buyers will do well to buy on the front end of this steadily improving real estate market,” Atkinson said.
For more information on the tax credit, click here.
BizSense will take a closer look at the housing market later this month. Want to weigh in? Send tips to Al@Richmondbizsense.com
