It was pretty much a forgone conclusion, but the first time home buyer and repeat home buyer tax credit closing date extension was made official when President Obama signed it into law after passing through Congress as a stand-alone measure last week.
Originally, the tax credit was available to those who entered into a purchase agreement prior to April 30th and who closed on their home before June 30th. Due to the large number of distressed home sales as well as a huge spike in sales volume prior to April 30th, many borrowers had difficulty closing on their homes prior to the deadline. The extension gives those that entered into a purchase agreement before April 30th until September 30th to close on their homes.
It will likely be a while before we can accurately assess the impact and the cost of the first time home buyer tax credit. I am of the opinion that it was likely not the best use of taxpayer dollars, and that it likely prolonged many of the problems that we are seeing in the housing market today. Despite this, I think that extending the closing date was good policy, as many that entered into agreements prior to April 30th did so expecting to receive the tax credit, and it seems equitable to me that they have the opportunity to claim the credit.
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Jeff Ragan
July 6, 2010 @ 10:19 pm
This is a very good news to everyone, especially for those first time home buyer who haven’t finish their requirements yet. Great!
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