Massive Tax Credit for Buying Your First Home

Posted by Rick Gibson

October 30, 2008

by Rick Gibson

When most markets fail, the government does not do much. The housing market is different. It forms the backbone of modern America. The giant banking bailout is one big sign of its importance, but homebuyers are getting help as well.

The housing market is like the food system in the sea. You need plankton for bigger animals to survive. With real estate, you need first time buyers to fuel the market. They will buy, sell and move up, which fuels the market from the bottom up.

As a long time homeowner, you might scoff at first time buyers. You should not. Without them, you will never sell your home? Why? Well, who is going to buy it? If they people below you cannot sell, they have no money to offer to you. Without first time buyers, this is exactly what happens.

The current market is bereft of first time buyers. Without these buyers, the market is stagnating. While there are all kinds of finance problems contributing to this, the government has acted to motivate first time buyers to get back into the market.

The Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 is the magic pill. It provides a tax credit of 10 percent of the purchase price of the home up to a maximum of $7,500. Only the government would think a $75,000 home can be found, but there you go.

If you hate paying taxes, you should love tax credits. Why? The tax credit is not deducted from your income. It is deducted directly from the amount you are supposed to pay Uncle Sam. Take a minute to think about that.

An example always helps show the power of a tax credit. Assume I can claim a tax credit of $5,000. Assume I owe the IRS four thousand dollars at the end of the year. After applying my tax credit, the IRS now owes me $1,000. Check, please!

It may see dangerous to ask the IRS for more than I actually owe. In general, it is a bad strategy, but not here. This is a fully refundable tax credit, which means it does not matter what I owe. The IRS will be writing checks a lot.

So, is there a catch? Yes and it is very big. This tax credit is a fraud. Why? It must be paid back. Fortunately, you have fifteen years to do it. If you claim the full tax credit, this means paying an additional $500 a year which is not too bad.

The amount of money you make also can be a problem. Couples making more than $150k and non-couples making over $75k face a phase out problem. If you are making this kind of money, however, you probably should already own a home.

Everyone gripes about the loss of tax deductions, but they miss the points. Tax credits are the real golden egg for taxpayers. Claim as many as you can. If you are considering buying a home, this one should help a bunch.

About the Author:

Rick Gibson writes about federal income tax issues. Make sure to read his articles on tax credits and other tax issues before filling out complicated tax forms this year.

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