National Open House Weekend Starts April 10th!!

Greetings All!

Besides everything else that is going on in Friendship Heights and Chevy Chase, this weekend is National Open House Weekend all around the Nation! means that if you ever wanted to visit open houses, this would be the BEST weekend of the year because they will all be open at the same time. This means, you spend your time wisely and the inventory is huge!

The reason this event is being held by State and Local Real Estate Associations is to make sure that all potential buyers know that they can still take advantage of the $8,000 First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit (this is much better than a deduction) and even the new $6,500 Current Home Owner Credit for homeowners looking to purchase a new home (Please speak to your tax advisor about these credits)



Here are a few details taken directly from the website "Saving to Invest"

(http://www.savingtoinvest.com/2009/02/15000-first-home-buyer-tax-credit-in.html)

[Update Jan 2010] Following Congress approval, President Obama has signed off on the bill approving an extension of the $8,000 new home buyer tax credit until April 30th 2010. Also, the new provisions in the extension are NOT retroactive. Here is a summary of the new and updated provisions and their impact on you if you have or are planning to buy a house. New IRS forms and claiming instructions are also provided.

- Qualification Period : First-time home buyers who bought after January 1, 2009 and before April 30th 2010 (with closing to take place by or on June 30, 2010), would get the $8,000 home buyer tax credit. This means you need to have purchased on or before April 30, 2010. However, in cases where a binding sales contract is signed on or by April 30, 2010, a home purchase completed (closing, final inspection etc) by June 30, 2010 will qualify. Make sure you attach a copy of the pages from the signed binding contract to make a purchase showing all parties' names and signatures, the property address, the purchase price and the date of the contract.

- For the purposes of claiming the tax credit, the purchase date is the date when closing occurs and the title to the property transfers to the home owner. If you and your spouse claim the credit on a joint return (both of you must meet the income and past ownership criteria to qualify), each spouse is treated as having been allowed half of the credit for purposes of repaying the credit. So the total amount claimable is still only $8000.

Current Homeowners looking for a replacement primary residence could also qualify for a $6,500 (up to $3,250 for a married individual filing separately) under the new “long-time resident” provision. They must have lived in the same principal residence for any five-consecutive year period during the eight-year period that ended on the date the replacement home is purchased. This new provision also only applies to homes purchased after Nov. 6th 2009. The IRS has stepped up compliance checks involving the home buyer credit for those with past homes and they must provide a mortgage Interest Statement, Property tax records or Homeowner’s insurance records, to prove compliance with past residency criteria.



I will be having at least 5 this weekend myself so if you are looking......visit my website at www.neilbacchus.com



We'll see you soon!