As April 30th Home Buyer Tax Credit Deadline Looms, Millions Scramble on Web for Last Minute Information

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According to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), interest in the federal home buyer tax credit dramatically surged in the first three months of 2010.

Spurred by a sense of urgency as the credit's April 30, 2010 expiration date approaches, the NAHB's website for tax credit information (FederalHousingTaxCredit.com) logged about a million visits each month in January, February and March. The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) created the site in July 2008.

(See related REAL ESTATE CHANNEL story: Speculation Heats Up on Home Buyer Tax Credit Extension  Posted April 12, 2010)

"FederalHousingTaxCredit.com provides authoritative, unbiased information about the home buyer tax credits and has proven to be a valuable resource for consumers, members of the housing industry and others," said NAHB Chairman Bob Jones, a builder and developer in Bloomfield Hills, Mich. "NAHB went live with the site the same day the credit was signed into law in 2008, and it quickly became the Internet's premier source of information about the credit."

The $8,000 first-time home buyer credit and the $6,500 repeat buyer credit will expire on April 30. However, if buyers sign a sales contract by April 30, the IRS gives them an additional two months--until June 30, 2010--to close the sale of the home.

The site has recently been updated with a new section on the special rules that apply to the military, the Foreign Service and members of the intelligence community. For qualified service members who are ordered on a period of official extended duty, the dates are extended for one year, through April 30, 2011.

"Home buyers need to remember, that even though the tax credit is about to expire, conditions remain ideal to buy a home," said Jones. "There are plenty of existing homes on the market, interest rates are at near-record lows, and prices are very competitive."

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