"New" First Time Home Buyers Credit

[JohnH]

JB:

You could also point out the them that had they waited until 2009 to buy the same home, they may have paid $10- $20K less for the same property and obtained a more favorable interest rate. That may not seem right either, but that's just the way it is.

Allowing for the giveaway attitude in Washington, there's a pretty good chance they will eventually remove the repayment provision anyhow for those affected. (Gotta '"spread it around" a little).

[David1980]

Wow.....so my client that purchased their first home in 2008, will have their $7500 recaptured...but had they waited 5 months and purchaed in 2009, they would have received $8000 with no re-capture?!

That doesn't seem right at all

Instead of focusing on what they missed out on, perhaps focus on what they got? Had they bought their home 4 months earlier they wouldn't have gotten even the $7500.

[Daune/CA]

Appears to be a yes, but reduced by 50%.

http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f5405.pdf

So even though she's the only owner it still is maxxed out at $4,000 for 2009 or $3,750 for 2008.

Thank you to all, those resources (especially the reference to FAQs) were very helpful.

[mcb39]

BUT,,,,,,I am working on one right now who closed on 2/19/2008 and missed qualifying by less than 2 months. It was difficult to tell them that. Who ever thought up these cut-off dates?

[kcjenkins]

I'm with Taxbilly on this. I'm sure the form will be available soon, but I have no problem at all with telling a client "this is an area where the law has just changed, and I need to take the time needed to be sure I give you the best tax treatment available in your specific set of circumstances". A few days taken to see what the options are, and what the IRS is going to say about how to apply it, is not going to harm anyone. And rushing in might. I do not believe any of my clients would object to that position, because they trust me to do the best job for them.

[Lion EA]

If they bought a house for purely tax reasons, they're just adding to the "housing crisis." If they bought a house for family reasons, because it fits within their budget and lifestyle, etc., then the fact that they get tax advantages from mortgage interest, property taxes, points, etc., should be icing on their cake.