You can thank the Democrats for getting it done. My two Republican Senators said NO.

I just spoke with the IRS and was told I could not claim the tax credit because I am a owner builder. Has anyone else who is acting as the contractor ran into this same issue? On the form 5045 it does ask, did you having a binding contract before April 30. It would be a shame to not be able to benefit from this tax credit because I did not use a general contractor.

mgabriel, we are in the same situation that you are in. We are building (DIY) and will be moving in before the September deadline. I had originally heard that you must have a COO by April 30th to qualify if you did not have a binding contract for the purchase. Supposedly this information was obtained from an IRS employee.

But, the IRS employees don't have a clue! I'm not sure how we will know but I intend to give it my best shot when it comes time to file. They can only reject your return and it is worth a try.

Don't count on it happening. Nothing is certain yet.

The tax credit has not been extended yet. The whole bill still has to pass the Senate. If it does, the tax credit extension has to survive the reconciliation process, which may not happen, especially because of the way it is funded by denying business tax write-offs of punitive damage awards.

Sheesh, then how come the news says "Senate approves"? They shouldn't put out the news like that, making it sound official if there's still the chance it won't work out.

Incompetently written and blatantly false headlines and news reporting are epidemic these days. Much of it gets repeated verbatim via the blogosphere. You really have to read news stories carefully, and if it's something you care about, verify it by checking multiple trusted sources.

Journalism is in a sad state at the moment.

"Sheesh, then how come the news says "Senate approves"? They shouldn't put out the news like that, making it sound official if there's still the chance it won't work out."

The Senate is only one-half of Congress.

A Bill has to pass both the Senate and the House and be signed by the President before it becomes law.

It's not bad journalism.

It's bad reading...

A little of both, perhaps. Typically, reporting on bills and/or amendments would include indicators of the legislation's progress toward enactment, such as, "The provision is not included in the House version, so final passage of the amendment is uncertain." That information was omitted by the AP.

But yes, far too many people lack a fundamental understanding of how our government works. Perhaps that's why we get so many bad legislators.

You can thank the Democrats for getting it done. My two Republican Senators said NO.

Maybe you should thank them.

These programs at best do nothing for the economy and, more likely, end up retarding it down the line.

Look at the result of any such program and you will see the only effect is a front-loading of demand; the vast majority of people who get the benefit would have taken the same action regardless. What exactly is being incentivised then?

To pay for these boondoggles, the country has to either borrow or print money, both of which have significant negative implications in the medium to long term.

Spending money we don't have is, at the root of it, what got us into this mess. Doing more of the same will not get us out.

As I said, "front-loading".

Linky
"The Commerce Department said sales dropped a record 32.7 percent to a 300,000 unit annual rate, the lowest level since record keeping started in 1963, from a downwardly revised 446,000 units in April. The fall unwound two months of gains, which had been inspired by a government tax credit for home buyers."

A $15B+ IOU just bought the country two things: "jack" and "squat".

......a new bill  H.R 5623  was introduced and approved by the House (409-5) to extend the home buyer credit for new and existing home buyers. The bill has now passed in the Senate without amendment by unanimous consent. It now goes to the President, who is expected to sign the bill into law in the next few days.

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WASHINGTON (Dow Jones)--The Senate Wednesday approved more time for homebuyers seeking to claim a federal tax credit, but tabled a six-month extension of jobless benefits.

The homebuyer measure would help only those that entered into binding contracts before April 30. It would give such homebuyers until Sept. 30 to close the sale. Under current law, they would have had to close by today to be eligible for tax credits.

It passed the Senate by unanimous voice vote. President Barack Obama is expected to sign the homebuyer measure, which the House passed earlier this week.

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WASHINGTON (Reuters) Â The Congress on Wednesday approved a bill extending the closing deadline for homebuyers trying to take advantage of a popular tax credit.

Homebuyers with contracts signed by April 30 who failed to go to closing by the June 30 deadline will now have until September 30 to complete their purchases. The House of Representatives on Tuesday approved the bill and it now goes to President Barack Obama for his signature..........

......Real estate agents said thousands of homebuyers would miss the June 30 deadline because banks and settlement offices were struggling to deal with the volume of people rushing to close on their deals.

any updates on this? we are expecting to finish in july and this would be a great help.

No, just that Obama is expected to sign it in the next few days. I guess he's busy with other things too :-)

President Approves Extension Of Closing Deadline For Home Tax Credit
by JACOB GAFFNEY

Homebuyers will have an extra three months to qualify for the tax credit on transactions already under contract, with passage of an extension that also covers deals that just missed the June 30 deadline. In addition to first-time buyers, homeowners with at least five years in their current home are eligible for the credit on purchase of a new residence. See the following article from HousingWire for more on this.

President Barack Obama this morning signed HR 5623, the "Homebuyers Assistance and Improvement Act of 2010," a three-month extension on the closing deadline for first-time home buyers to receive the tax credit.

Potential homeowners with offers currently under contract now have until September 30 to close the deal, instead of the original June 30 deadline.

The tax credit remains at a maximum $8,000.

The Senate approved the bill late Wednesday evening, a day after it passed the House of Representatives.

A copy of the HR 5623 can be downloaded here.

The bill is worded to retroactively include properties that closed in the last two days.

According to the Internal Revenue Service , besides providing a tax benefit to first-time homebuyers and purchasers who havenÂt owned homes in recent years, the law also allows a long-time resident of the same main home to claim the credit if they purchase a new principal residence.

To qualify, eligible taxpayers must show that they lived in their old homes for a five-consecutive-year period during the eight-year period ending on the purchase date of the new home.