In reading and trying to stay updated on what details that have been made available on the Economic Stimulus package that has apparently been negotiated and agreed, it appears that the proposed $15,000 Home Buyer Tax Credit was a casualty. Sort of.
The overall cost of this credit would have been $35 billion. In its place, a more modest proposal was negotiated that will increase the credit to $8,000 and will also eliminate the repayment requirement currently in place. In its current format, the $7,500 credit is in effect an interest-free loan that must be repaid within 15 years or when the home is sold, whichever comes first. Though there is a minor possibiilty that things could still change, it appears that now the $8,000 credit will be an actual credit, not a loan like before so you'll not have to repay the credit. So, not all bad news.
One article stated that the credit would be 10% of the home purchase price or $8,000, whichever is less, but haven't seen anything more to validate or dispute this. ( http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/02/13/BUSH15O70T.DTL )
The Stimulus Home Buyer Credit is income qualified and good for First-Time Home Buyers for houses purchased prior to the end of August 2009. A first time home buyer is defined as a person who has not owned or lived in a owned primary residence within the past three years.
The stimulus agreement would also allow taxpayers to deduct the sales tax paid on new car purchases, though not the interest on the new car loan.
President Obama is expected to sign the bill in Denver on Tuesday, February 17th.
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