The deadline for first time home buyers to receive their 8000 credit is fast approaching. If nothing changes November 30th of this year will be the last day to claim your tax rebate.
As the date draws near many potential buyers are finding themselves in a touch position, should they cancel their lease early and buy a home? Or should they wait it out and hope that the tax credit is extended? To help ease potential buyers minds we bring to you 10 reasons that the home buyers credit will be extended.
Reason #1: The NAR. The National Association of Realtors is 1.2 million strong and they are spending time and money mounting unusually intense grassroots lobbying campaigns to make the case for extending the credit, and maybe even expanding it. The effort is targeted at the districts of members of congress.
Reason #2: The Hard Economic Facts. Lawmakers are aware of “the hard economic facts” and constituents are showing their representatives the numbers of houses that are sold in each district because of the 8000 tax credit. the economic ripple effects on local businesses, manufacturers and service industries; new jobs and income; plus the additional tax revenues that all this activity will help produce for local governments.
Reason #3: The NAHB. The National Association of Home Builders like the NAR is lobbying congress hard. They are proposing not only for the extension of the tax credit, but also an expansion. They are calling for the tax credit to be raised from $8,000 to $15, 000, and to make every american eligible, not just first time home buyers.
Reason #4: Stimulus. 300,000 to 350,000 additional sales of houses will be stimulated this year by the credit. Each home sale generates approximately $63,000 in downstream “ripple effects” elsewhere in the economy. According to the NAR – sales of furnishings, appliances, lawn mowers, landscaping, renovation materials, plus moving expenses.
Reason #5: Congress seems to be on board. Bills are already pending in both houses to extend the credit for another year. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., whose state has been among the worst hit by the housing bust, reportedly now favors an extension of the credit. He was quoted to that effect by the Las Vegas Sun, adding, “It’s something we can get done.”
Reaons #6: Jobs. Extending the tax credit would mean creating 350,000 new jobs according to the NAHB with unemployment approaching double digits lawmakers are trying to save and create as many jobs as possible, extending the tax credit is a sure fire way to do that.
Reason #7: Bang for the Buck. The 8000 first time home buyer tax credit has been the fastest acting of all of obamas stimulus spending. Congress wont want to choke off that spending before all the rest of the money gets down the pipes.
Reason #8: Stabilization. The housing market has been stabilizing, but it is still soft. There has been very slight growth over the past two months, Congress will not want to take the risk of destabilizing the sector right before the 2010 elections.
Reason #9: Size. The housing market in the U.S. accounts for more than 15% of Gross Domestic Product. Congress knows it needs to keep this sector strong if it wants the recovery to continue.
Reason #10: A sense of entitlement. The american people have has this program for a year now, they do not want to give it up. Congress knows this, they also know that they want to keep their job.
So there you have it. There is no guarantee that the credit will be extended, nor that it will be expanded. Just know if you are in a lease, or can not purchase in the next two months, there is still hope.
One response
Lets Keep a Good thing Going!
Carlos