Full Circle Real Estate Group: Athens Real Estate, Sustainable Real Estate

Congress has approved an extension of the home buyers tax credit, sending the bill to the White House for President Barack Obama's signature.

The House voted 403-12 to pass the bill after the Senate unanimously approved the measure Wednesday night. The legislation continues a home buyers' tax credit and a measure allowing businesses to write off some of their losses incurred over the past two years.

House lawmakers voted to approve the measure more than a month after initially agreeing to a more modest extension of unemployment benefits. The home buyers' tax credit and business-tax measure were added in the Senate.

The bill extends an $8,000 first-time home buyers' tax credit that was set to expire at the end of this month. The credit will apply to all house contracts entered into before April 30, 2010, and closed by June 30. It creates a new $6,500 credit for existing property owners looking to sell their home and buy another during the same period of time. Both credits have income restrictions limiting their availability.

In a kind of Cash for Clunkers effect, homebuyers are rushing to take advantage of a federal tax credit that covers 10 percent of the home price, or up to $8,000, for first-time owners. Home sales must be completed by the end of November for buyers to qualify.

Builders and real estate agents are pressing Congress for that credit to be extended. If it isn't, sales could reverse their upward trend. Sales of new U.S. homes surged 9.6 percent in July, another sign the housing market is climbing back from the historic bottom it reached early this year. Driven by falling prices, the fourth-straight monthly increase was greater than expected.

The Commerce Department said Wednesday that sales rose to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 433,000 from an upwardly revised June rate of 395,000. Sales are now up more than 30 percent from the bottom in January, but are still off nearly 70 percent from the frenzied peak four years ago.

The median sales price of $210,100, however, was down slightly from $210,400 in June and was off 11.5 percent from year-ago levels. Prices are still up from March's low of $205,100.

Last month's sales pace was the strongest since September and exceeded the forecasts of economists surveyed by Thomson Reuters, who expected a pace of 390,000 units.

Call a Full Circle Agent at 706-621-4890 for more info on how you can take advantage of these amazing tax credits before it is too late!

Source: www.finance.yahoo.com

HB 261 was signed into law on May 11, 2009 by Governor Sonny Perdue. Unlike the federal tax credit, the Georgia credit is not limited to first-time homebuyers, and there are no applicable income limits. The amount of the credit is 1.2% of the purchase price up to $1,800 spread over three years.  The credit is only available to buyers of eligible single family residences who close between June 1 and November 30 of 2009. Contact a Full Circle Real Estate Group Agent for more information on how you can take advantage of this credit, along with other new credits.

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act is making tax credits available for various home improvements, and allows 30% of all your certified installations up to $1,500. With that in mind, it could be helpful to get in depth on what to look for when considering windows. Click HERE for tons of important information that can help you save money!

When Congress passed the financial bailout bill late last year, it included a range of federal tax credits and cash gifts for businesses — but also a suite of new and renewed tax credits for individuals who want to make energy efficiency and renewable energy improvements to their home or cars.

When President Obama signed the economic stimulus bill in February, the federal government expanded and extended some of those credits.

So what's in it for homeowners and other regular taxpayers? Click HERE for a list of credits that can save you money, including a $1500 Home Tax Credit for Energy Efficiency!