Tax Credit Extension Hopes

What a blessing if the [tax] extension passes ["First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit Gets Obama Nod," usnews.com]! We will be able to purchase a new home and not feel the pressure to rush into something we only feel half-hearted about. We are raising two grandsons, and it will be so wonderful for them—it will ultimately be theirs! I certainly will not miss this rental house full of mold and water and the landlords worth $2 million but "are just too poor to spend any money on repairs."

Comment by June Podoll of AR

When people purchase homes, they also generally purchase items for the new home—TV, appliances, and furniture. Additionally, the new owners might make improvements to the home. In my opinion, housing led the way down and will lead the way back up—helping to reduce the inventory of homes and giving people a reason to purchase other things is what we need to get the economy growing again.

Comment by John Backer of AZ

For those who still own a home and are not under water yet, the extension should help to stabilize home values as new buyers are able to enter the market. It doesn't make sense to limit the tax break to people who purchased a home five years ago, and somehow managed to continue to make payments, even though their home equity vanished. Instead, the bill should explicitly deny the tax break to anyone who "walked away" from their mortgage or obtained a "loan modification" and left the rest of Americans to pay the price.

Comment by Rena of CA

I've been house hunting since September 22, all because I thought I only had a month to find "the one." Thirty houses later, I just got into a contract for one that we felt was our last option (and it wasn't our best option). All the others had contracts pending, as things are really moving fast on the market. It obviously is working to help houses get sold quickly, but it hasn't helped that we don't know how much time we really have. I feel like if I wait for someone to make a real solid decision, I will find that they decided not to extend it after all and might miss out on the only chance I'll have to buy a home and have something set aside for emergencies (i.e., savings for big-ticket home maintenance). I have lost a lot of sleep and have probably earned some gray hairs out of all this mess. Will someone please just make a decision for crying out loud!

Comment by Shelly of TX

This is a much needed extension. Many buyers that have been diligently looking have been outbid because everyone was trying to get their home before November 30. This will give many more buyers the opportunity to purchase. As well as get many of the vacant homes occupied and help home prices to stabilize instead of the constant decline we have seen.

Comment by G. G. Garcia-Roberts of MD

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