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With the legislation passed that extends the homebuyer tax credit until April 30th, 2010, you have a great opportunity to get into a new home this year. If you sign a purchase agreement before April 30th and close the transaction by July 1st, you can get up to $8,000 as a credit on your tax return and even put it towards the down payment on an FHA-insured home.

If you’ve been thinking about purchasing a new home, now is the best time to get the ball rolling. Don’t delay it any further; this is not an opportunity you want to pass on by.

Following are the statistics for the month of January, 2010: 

• Actively listed properties: 207

             Almost the same as it was in December 2009 (208) 

• Homes that went “Pending Sale” for the last week of January:  34

             This is just a bit lower than it was for the same period in December (27)

• Number of homes “Sold” in the month of December: 92

              This is a significant drop compared to the previous month when

              the number of sold home was 148 

• The Average Days on the market of the Sold Properties: 46

             In December last year this number was 62.  

• Average Listing Price: $296,75 
• Average Sale Price: $244,573

 The charts below reflecting these numbers as well:

If you would like to have detailed statistics for other areas of the Central Valley, please feel free to call or email me – I would be glad to provide it for you.

Homeowners win big with extension and expansion of federal tax credit

The U.S. House of Representatives today voted 403 to 12 to extend and expand the home buyer tax credit.  The bill passed the U.S. Senate late yesterday and now will go to President Obama for his signature, where it is expected to be signed this week.

The tax credit will be extended through April 30, 2010, with a 60-day extension if a binding contract is in place prior to the deadline.  First-time home buyers will continue to receive a tax credit of up to $8,000, while existing homeowners will receive a credit of up to $6,500.  Existing homeowners will be eligible for the $6,500 if they have lived in their current residences for at least five years.  The bill also will increase the qualifying income limits from $75,000 for single tax filers and $150,000 for joint filers to $125,000 and $225,000, respectively.  The purchase price of the home is capped at $800,000.

Under additional provisions in the bill, taxpayers can claim the credit on purchases completed in 2010 on their 2009 income tax returns. The bill maintains the provision that home buyers do not have to repay the credit, provided the home remains their primary residence for 36 months after purchase, and waives this requirement for active duty military personnel who move due to a military order.

 For weeks, the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS (C.A.R and its members have urged Congress and the U.S. Senate to extend and expand this crucial piece of legislation.

 Nationwide, more than 1.4 million first-time home buyers were given the opportunity to become homeowners as a result of the Federal Tax Credit for First-time Home Buyers.  According to C.A.R. research, nearly 40 percent of first-time home buyers surveyed said they would not have purchased a home without the federal tax credit, and approximately 70 percent said the tax credit was “the most important” or a “very important” factor in their decision to buy a home. 

To read stories about the extension and expansion of this valuable home-buying incentive, please visit the following:

Aid for jobless, homebuyers clears Congress
To read the full story, please click here. 

 Congress Extends Jobless Benefits, Home-Buyer Credit
To read the full story, please click here. 

Congress passes bill extending unemployment insurance, home buyer tax credit
To read the full story, please click here.