Buyers Can Use the $8,000 Tax Credit At Closing, Take 2
HUD has released updated guidelines allowing for the use of the $8,000 tax credit for first time home buyers at the closing. Those guidelines are in Mortgagee Letter 2009-15 [which is as long and filled with governmentese as you expect]. Here is a brief summary.
FHA-approved organizations [which is just about all banks and mortgage lenders] are allowed to purchase your $8,000 tax credit. This will allow you to use the credit at closing to cover most of your closing costs. One major catch — you can not use the credit to cover a required downpayment So, if you have an FHA mortgage, you still have to bring 3.5% to the closing table, but you could use the credit for just about anything else — closing costs, prepaid taxes & insurance, and so on.
While this isn’t everything, it is still a great step forward. Knowing that the $8,000 will cover closing costs, buyers can be a bit more aggressive on the price they offer and get into their first home for a lot less.
If you are interested in looking for your first home, please email me and we’ll get started
Tags: first-time buyers, mortgage news
