A unanimous Senate vote to extend and expand the homebuyer credit through April 2010, reflects the impact that the program has made to this point. As the bill, which would expand coverage beyond first-time buyers, awaits presidential approval, hopes are high that its effect will go beyond the housing market to stimulate employment and economic recovery as well. For more on this, see the following article from HousingWire.
The Senate voted today to pass an extension of the first-time homebuyer tax credit until April 2010.
In all, 98 Senators voted in favor of H.R. 3548, with zero votes against (two Senators did not vote). H.R. 3548 is a bill is primarily purposed with extending unemployment benefits.
The bill is currently amended to include the extension of an $8,000 tax credit for those buying their first homes as well as an $6,500 tax credit for some borrowers buying a home for a second time.
Claim up to $26,000 per W2 Employee
- Billions of dollars in funding available
- Funds are available to U.S. Businesses NOW
- This is not a loan. These tax credits do not need to be repaid
The move comes as no surprise, as HousingWire reported last week. The bill now requires President Obama’s signature into law.
Business Roundtable, an association of CEOs of leading U.S. companies, with nearly $6trn in annual revenues and more than 12m employees, commended the vote in a statement.
“This critical program has already enabled hundreds of thousands of Americans to become first-time homebuyers,” they report.
“Encouraging additional home purchases will create a cascade effect, not only boosting the housing sector, but also creating jobs and hastening broad recovery of the U.S. economy – more than 20 percent of which is tied to residential real estate and housing-related industries.”
Passed as an amendment, the tax credit can still be removed from the final wording of the bill, if placed under further review. However given recent lobbying efforts in the industry and a feeling of presidential support, this remains unlikely.
This article has been republished from HousingWire. You can also view this article at HousingWire, a mortgage and real estate news site.
