It isn’t only in Las Vegas where first-time home buyers were significantly influenced by the tax credits offered by the federal government.
In a tax credit survey commissioned by the California Association of Realtors (CAR), nearly forty percent of the respondents said that they would not have bought their first real properties if not for the tax credits.
The survey took 200 California first-time home buyers as respondents and was commissioned in order to understand the effects of the federal tax credit program on the nation’s first-time home buyers.
The survey clearly showed that the program is working, according to CAR President James Liptak. He said that the program is arguably one of the smartest strategies that the government employed to stimulate the ailing housing market.
Almost 70 percent of all respondents said that the tax credit program was either “important” or “very important” in their decision to purchase a home. Those who decided to make their first purchase using the federal tax credit gave the program 4.5 out of 5 stars, with 5 stars equivalent to “most important.”
Add this to the fact that California property prices dropped by as much as 59 percent from its peak, and you’re bound to see more and more home buyers purchasing homes. Note that, nationally, home prices have gone down by only 28 percent.
Thus, it is no more wonder why the CAR decided to call for the US Senate’s speedy adoption of the Dodd-Lieberman-Isakson amendment, which will allow the federal tax program to extend the current deadline to June 30, 2010. The amendment, once passed, would also every homebuyer to avail of the tax credit and not only the first-time home buyers, which is the case today.
The CAR stressed the importance of this amendment towards the further recovery of the California real estate market and the national market as a whole.
The California Association of Realtors is one of the country’s largest trade unions, with over 160,000 members dedicated to advancing the interests of realtors. It is based in Los Angeles.
