Time is right for home buying in Columbia Basin

MOSES LAKE  — If you’ve been thinking about buying home, this could be the best time to do it, according to real estate, accounting and mortgage professionals.

Nearly all buyers may qualify for one of two tax credits offered by the federal government. There is an $8,000 first time home buyer credit and a $6,500 repeat home buyer credit.

“They have made home ownership available for a lot more people,” said Larry Shannon of Guild Mortgage.

If you act expeditiously, you can buy your home this year and claim a credit on your 2009 federal income tax return. In essence, you can be paid by the government this year to buy a home.

“If they buy before May 1, they can take the credit in 2009,” said Chris Hesse of Lemaster & Daniels Accounting. “They have to commit to buy by April 30 and close by June 30.”

If you are building a home, Hesse added, you must have your certificate of occupancy before July 1.

“If you don’t have the deal completed and closed by June 30, you miss the window,” said Mark Fancher of Coldwell Banker Real Estate.

Hesse said that if you’re not able to claim the credit by the April 15 tax return deadline, you can file an extension and then make the claim when you file the return. Or you can file an amended return after you’ve filed your original return and claim the credit that way.

According to Hesse, if you qualify for either of the credits and you don’t owe taxes for 2009, you will receive a check for the amount of the credit. If you owe some tax, it will be paid first, with the remainder of the credit coming to you in the form of a check.

According to the National Association of Home Builders, the credits don’t have to be paid back to the government unless the house is sold or ceases to be the buyer’s principal residence within three years of the purchase.

Fancher refers to repeat buyers as “move-up” or “move-down.” He noted buyers can go to less expensive or more expensive homes and qualify.

There are income limits to qualify for the credits. For either credit, a couple can have an income of $225,000, and single person can have an income of $125,000.

“They’re pretty high limits,” Fancher said.

Homes can be priced as high as $800,000 for this program. The credit is actually 10 percent of the purchase price up to a maximum of $8,000 or $6,500, depending on the program.

The first-time home buyer is not really a first-time buyer, according to the NAHB. You only need to be someone who has not owned a principal residence in the three-year period before the purchase.

Fancher said he had a couple last year who thought they didn’t qualify for a credit when he mentioned the possibility. He matched their financial data to the rules and found out they did.

“They said, ‘Well, let’s get going on this,’” Fancher said. “That’s why we encourage anyone who has a question at all to call a realtor.”

The repeat home buyer credit is for people who have lived in their home for five consecutive years during the last eight years, according to the NAHB.

“Most of the people who are taking advantage of this are moving up,” Shannon said.

However, they don’t have to sell their first home, according to Hayden Homes Mortgage.

According to Hayden, there are other reasons to buy now. Homes today don’t have the inflated equity of five years ago, interest rates remain low, and there is a true buyers’ market for the first time in eight years.

“The sooner you get it in, the safer your are,” Fancher said.