First Time Home Buyer's Tax Credits Ending Soon: Now is the Time to Buy

If you happen to be a potential first time home buyer looking for a new house now, then you are likely aware of the credits available from the federal government that will help ease the costs of owning a new home. If you are not aware, here's some vital information that you will be glad to know.

The federal government has offered incentives for first time home buyers for quite some time now. The idea of the incentives is to spark the housing market and to create more sales. As the housing market has slumped, the economy has dwindled. In an effort to bring back the economy, the federal government has attempted, with some success, to boost the housing market.

In previous years, the federal government assisted home buyers by offering a first time home buyer loan. The loan was given out when you purchased a home and you would be obligate to pay the loan back over many years through a deduction in your income tax return or through scheduled payments. This loan was a way to give new homeowners additional money upfront to fix up their home or the help them purchase items for their new home.

However, the government soon realized that many new home buyers were not interested in additional loans and debt and many elected not to receive the loans. The government returned to the table and wrote up a new method for helping out first time home buyers and what they came up with has been a success.

The new program helps first time home buyers by offering an $8,000 grant to first time home buyers. The money comes with no strings attached and does not have to be paid back, ever. It's a free gift from the government to assist you in buying your first home. However, there is one catch, the program is ending soon. The program is officially scheduled to end this April.

To be eligible for the $8,000 credit, you must sign off on the mortgage of your potential new home by April of 2010. If you do, $8,000 is your to keep. If you are late, the money is gone.

The credit makes right now the best time ever to buy a new home if you are a first time homeowner. You can use the additional money for anything you choose though ideally it will go towards something related to your home. Now you can buy a home and have plenty of money to fix it up, decorate it as you please, and make it yours.