Homebuyer Tax Credit Closing Deadline Extended to September 30

After a close brush with the deadline, Congress has passed an extension of the Homebuyer Tax Credit closing deadline, the Homebuyer Assistance and Improvement Act (H.R. 5623). The extension applies only to transactions that have ratified contracts in place as of April 30, 2010 that have not yet closed. The legislation is designed to create a seamless extension. The new closing deadline for eligible transactions is now September 30, 2010, pending the President’s signing the bill into law.

NAR worked closely with Congressional leaders on both sides of the aisle to enact this important legislation. Extending the Tax Credit Closing deadline will help provide additional stability to real estate markets across the nation.

National Flood Insurance Program Extended Once Again; Still No Long-Term Fix in Place

The U.S. Senate has passed the National Flood Insurance Program Extension Act of 2010 (H.R. 5569) an extension of the National Flood Insurance Program until September 30, 2010. The House already passed the legislation so this will allow transactions to move forward. The bill is retroactive and covers the lapse period from June 1, 2010 to the date of enactment of the extension. An estimated 14,000 transactions per day had been stalled because of the lack of availability of flood insurance under the program.

Mortgage Interest Rates Fall to Another All-Time Low

On another bright note, Freddie Mac announced this morning that the average 30-year fixed mortgage interest rate fell to a record low of 4.58%. In the prior week, the average was 4.69%. The year-ago average was 5.32%. Rates on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages also reached a new record low, averaging 4.04%, down from 4.13% in the prior week.