Amerifirst Site Manager

Its tax time again folks, but this year homebuyers are feeling a little more anxious to lay down their cash for a new home. Like Cinderella at the ball, your homebuyer tax credit will go “poof” at the stroke of midnight on April 30th.

Buyers have been lapping up one of the many benefits of purchasing a home. In addition to historically low rates and discounted prices, established buyers have been enjoying a $6,500 tax credit for buying a more expensive home and first time homebuyers have raked in as much as an $8,000 tax credit.

As the deadline nears, the market may become flooded with buyers interested in cashing in before their tax benefit is history, however the experts at Money Magazine say not so fast.

Take into consideration whether home prices have bottomed out in your area.  If you want to buy in a neighborhood that hasn’t bottomed out, you may want to reconsider jumping into anything. A substantial price drop would certainly more than offset what you will receive from Uncle Sam’s tax credit.

Also, if you already own a home and are coming late to the game you may not be able to get out of your current home in time.  It’s certainly not worth it to carry two mortgages just to receive that $6,500 tax credit, especially since the average home sits on the market for approximately 110 days before being sold.

Sure, you can play chicken with the market and hope that with the uptick of buyers wanting homes, yours could be one that sells fast.  But do you want to gamble in hopes that your home sells in harmony with your purchase?   If you want to know how long homes are taking to sell, check out http://www.zillow.com and click on market reports to get the lowdown on what’s selling and how long it’s taking to sell.

But before you do anything, call one of our mortgage professionals at AmeriFirst. Because you need to act fast, you should get pre-approved for a mortgage before you make an offer on a home.  Being pre-approved will not only start the mortgage process faster but will put you in a more positive light in the seller’s eyes. 

We know you are ready to get pre-approved. That’s why we made it so easy!  Click here to complete our online application or we can do this the old fashioned way and you can simply call us at 800-466-5626 today. Either way, we look forward to hearing from you soon!

Tags: