The U.S. Senate passed an extention on the first-time home buyer's tax credit! It's expected to be approved by the house tomorrow and then off to Pres. Obama to sign. The bill extends the credit through April 2010 and adds a $6,500 tax credit for repeat buyers if they've lived in their home for five of the past eight years. Home prices are capped at $800,000. It's going to be a hot time to buy & sell!

Congress is telling us there's a chance....that the first-time home buyer tax credit will be extended to April 2010. The credit, which gives first-time home buyers up to an $8,000 credit on the purchase of a home, expires at the end of the month. The program has been instrumental in the slow, but positive turn in the housing market in Iowa and across the nation.

According to a report this week from the National Association of Realtors (NAR), key Senators have agreed to not only extending the existing credit, but also offering a new $6,500 credit for existing homeowners who have lived in their current residence for a consecutive five-year period in the past eight years.  Under the terms of the new extension, home buyers must be under contract by April 30, 2010, and close before July 1.

It's not a done deal yet, though. The extension reportedly has support from President Obama, but according to the NAR report, "House Democrats have expressed concern about the cost of the tax credit for government, and allegations of abuse have resulted in an IRS probe of the program."

According to a report out today from the National Association of Realtors (NAR), existing home sales (single family homes, townhomes, condos and coops) jumped more than 9 percent higher than September 2008 and was the highest activity level in more than two years.

As you might except, we have first time home buyers to thank. With the tax credit, low interest rates and undervalued homes, first-time home buyers accounted for more than 45 percent of home sales nationally during the past year. And, distressed homes accounted for nearly 30 percent of transactions in September.

Realtors, home buyers and sellers alike are hoping that the government extends the first-time buyer tax credit, which has been the key in the slow housing market recovery we are beginning to see.

Another positive stat reported today from the NAR is that the total housing inventory fell 7.5 percent at the end of September to 3.63 million existing homes for sale, which represents a 7.8-month supply at the current sales pace, down from a 9.3-month supply in August. And, unsold inventory totals are down 15 percent from a year ago. Lower inventory means home prices will begin to return to normal, modest appreciation patterns next year.

Here's the region-by-region picture from the NAR:

• Northeast: Existing-home sales increased 4.4 percent to an annual level of 950,000 in September, and are 11.8 percent higher than September 2008. The median price was $234,700, down 7.0 percent from a year ago.
• Midwest: Existing-home sales jumped 9.6 percent in September to a pace of 1.25 million and are 7.8 percent above a year ago. The median price was $147,600, which is 1.0 percent below September 2008.
• South: Existing-home sales rose 9.0 percent to an annual level of 2.06 million in September and are 10.8 percent higher than September 2008. The median price was $153,500, down 7.6 percent from a year ago.
• West: Existing-home sales surged 13.0 percent to an annual rate of 1.30 million in September and are 5.7 percent above a year ago. The median price in the West was $219,000, which is 15.0 percent below September 2008.

There are a million mortgage calculators available on the web, but this one from Realtor.com is especially useful. It doesn't just calculate your payments based on  home price and interest rate. This calculator has several other variable options to help you determine what you can afford and gives you a sneak peak at what size of loan you are likely to qualify for. Check it out:  http://www.realtor.com/home-finance/financial-calculators/home-affordability-calculator.aspx

With the improving economy, banks nationwide are becoming more reluctant to engage in short sales, according to a report from BusinessWeek last Friday. A year ago, many banks looked at short sales as the best way to get the most money back on bad mortgage loans. But according to the report, many banks have already written off the losses and are reluctant to negotiate a short sale, forcing homeowners to pay more at closing or requiring a promissory note on the remainder of the loan.

Short sales became widely popular with the real estate crisis of the past couple years. A short sale can happen when the home owner's mortgage meets or exceeds the current value of the property. In a short sale, the lender agrees to take a discount on the mortgage. The home owner sells the mortgaged property for less than the outstanding balance on the loan and turns over the proceeds of the sale to the lender. The lender has the right to approve or disapprove the sale. Short sales are generally used as a way to prevent a home foreclosure, but the decision to proceed with a short sale is determined by the bank which is looking for the best way to recover the amount owed on the property.

According to First American CoreLogic, one-third of borrowers owe more on their mortgages than their properties are worth.