First Time Home Buyer

The rule is that you might be able to qualify for the tax credit, even if your co-borrower or co-buyer does not. . And, in fact, the new tax credit is not just for first-time buyers, so a co-buyer who has owned before might also be eligible to receive the credit, although most co-borrowers are not on title, and so are not eligible to receive the credit themselves. The language of the credit states expressly that one buyer might be eligible, while their co-buyer is not. And the issue of a co-signer is simply not relevant to your eligibility at all, fortunately!

The ultimate authority is the IRS, so this is a tax issue much more than it is a mortgage issue. If you have problems determining your eligibility, speak to an Enrolled Agent or a CPA, not your mortgage broker. Most mortgage and real estate brokers will be very clear with you that they do not provide tax advice.

Finally, the National Association of Realtors has a bunch of very clear guides to this topic - here are the links. Be sure that you read BOTH the materials on the Expanded/Extended Tax credit AND the 2009 tax credit, because most of the materials on the Expanded/Extended Tax credit only deal with the changes to the credit. So you'll need to learn about the 2009 credit, too.

Good luck, and Happy House Hunting!

















http://www.realtor.org/home_buyers_and_sellers/2009_first_time_home_buyer_tax_credit

Marlena, you might want to check out the first link I posted - and forward it to the lender you work with. A co-signer's status doesn't rule it out.

-Tad

The IRS web page about the credit discusses the co-signer scenario:
http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=206294,00.html

Here's the IRS announcement of the extended credit, which describes the slight changes (other than the deadline):
http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=215791,00.html

-Tad

Hello

Your second question just came up for a client of mine the other day. He wanted his son to purchase a home, and he wanted to co-sign for his son. When the question was posed to a mortgage lender that I work with, she said that the son would not be able to get the tax credit... but that was because the father was already a home owner.

So 1st thing's first... the co-signer that you mention... do they already own a home?

The final authority would be a mortgage officer...and I always advocate you speaking to one before getting serious about looking for a home. You need to know what you're up against in terms of your credit, how much the lender will want you to come up with for down payment, etc, and what interest rate (and therefore, how much house you can afford to shop for) you qualify to purchase. They can also give you the final answer on your question about the tax credit and co-signer.

As for the link, I'm assuming you are wanting info on the link explaining the credit. Here you go:

http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=204671,00.html