$8000 tax credit update...

Senate leaders of both parties, key Senate Finance Committee members and staff and Tax Credit Sponsors Sen. Chris Dodd (D-CT), Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) and Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-GA) have agreed on extending and expanding the housing tax credit.

However, there is no agreement on how to attach this tax credit to the pending Unemployment Insurance bill or whether to offer the tax credit agreement on another bill or whether to bring the agreement to the Senate floor and vote upon it as a separate, stand-alone bill.

After Senate action-if passed-the legislation must still go to the House of Representatives for consideration. There are still a number of steps to take before anything is final.

Below are the details of the provisions included in the Extended and Expanded Tax Credit agreement:

Amount: $8,000
Who: First-time homebuyers (same as current law)

Amount: $6,500
Who: Repeat purchasers who have used previous home as a principal residence for five of the eight previous years.

Income Limits: $125,000 for single filers/$225,000 for joint filers. Same for both first-time and repeat/move-up buyers

Limitation on cost of purchased home: $800,000

Time Frame: December 1, 2009 to April 30, 2010, plus 60-day extension if binding contract is in place by April 30, 2010

Anti-fraud measures have been added.

PLEASE NOTE: NO VOTE HAS BEEN TAKEN IN THE SENATE. IF VOTED ON AND PASSED IN THE SENATE, THE BILL THEN MUST GO TO THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES FOR CONSIDERATION.