Up to $8,000.00 in tax credit on your federal income tax can be give to first time home buyers.

Homes must be purchased between January 1, 2009 - Decemeber 1, 2009.

To qualify, the purchaser or his/her spouse, must not have owned a residence during the 3 year period prior to the purchase. Qualified properties include single family homes, townhomes, condo's and co-ops.

The maximum credit amount of $8,000.00 is determined by the price of the home. A credit of 10% of the pruchase price up to $8,000.00 is the max.

Buyer's income will also be a factor - for singles a max of $75,000 and for married couples, the max income is $150,000.00.

If the income exceeds these limits, some Buyers will still be eligible with limitations.

The tax credit does not need to be repaids if the home is occupied by the Buyer for at least 3 years or more. If the property is sold during the 3 year period, then the credit will be re-couped at the time of sale.

As always, check with your tax professional for your own personal situation.

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There is much talk about the coming crash in the commercial real estate arena.

Investors are lining up and waiting for great deals to happen.  Yet there is a "disconnect" between the lenders/note holders and the investors.

The true value of the property today will be based on the cash flow generated as well as the perceived value in the eye of the buyer...whether the value is in the cash flow, location and quality of the property or all of these factors.

What a Buyer feels that the property is worth in today's market...or even the value they feel it will be worth in 3 or 6 months is not the value the bank is holding on their books...most of them have values that were based on the high, speculative prices from the peak of the market.

Cash is king and there are a lot of buyers waiting to purchase. It will be interesting to see how the market aligns itself.

Bills are piling up in condo associations as many units are in foreclosure and/or unit owners become delinquent in their payments.

Basic association needs such as paying utilities, up-keep of common areas, cable tv services and more are being cut in order to make the dollars collected stretch out.

When units are foreclosed on, my lenders do not pay their fees until the unit is re-sold. In addition, as existing unit owners have their own financial troubles many are pressed to make their payments. If each unit does not pay their fare share, the remaining units owner have to either pick up the slack through special assessments, see services cut or a combination of both.

Some condo associations in Miami have already had their water turned off, others have had cable service cut off, some elevators and hallways have limited a/c service as well. 

Bankruptcy is an option some association have turned to since utilities cannot cut off power or turn off the water.

It can be costly for an association to file bankruptcy and finding a solution can be very challenging. Filing allows associations to renegotiate leases and contracts with vendors.

For 4 consecutive months, the Pending Homes Sales Report generated by the National Association of Realtors has shown a sustained increase.

The Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator based on contracts singed in May, increased 0.1 percent to 90.7 from an upwardly revised ready of 90.6 in April.  It is 6.7 percent higher than one year earlier when it was 85.0 in May, 2008.  The last time there were four consecutive monthly gains was in October, 2004.

Closed home sales have improved but are still lower than expected.  Some contracts either fall through or there is a delay in the closing process either through stricter loan standards or appraisal guidelines. 

Pending home sales are a great indicator of activity in the market.  It means prospective Buyers are stepping out, testing the waters and putting contracts on homes. 

Improved housing affordability and buyer tax credit of up to $8,000 is helping spur buying activity in many areas.