Are you renovating, repairing or painting a home, child care facility or school built before 1978?

Beginning April 22, 2010, federal law will require that contractors performing renovation, repair and painting projects that disturb more than six square feet of paint in homes, child care facilities, and schools built before 1978 must be certified and trained to follow specific work practices to prevent lead contamination.

Protect your family and make sure you only hire a contractor who is in a Lead-Safe Certified Firm. Find a Lead-Safe Certified Firm near you.

Read about EPA’s requirements for renovation, repair and painting.

Read EPA’s pamphlet on renovation, repair and painting:

• Renovate Right: Important Lead Hazard Information for Families, Child Care Providers and Schools (PDF) (20 pp, 3.7MB)

You’ve decided to purchase a home and take advantage of the Extended Home Buyer Tax Credit. Here’s what you have to do to get your benefit:

1. Close on your home purchase between November 7, 2009 and April 30, 2010, or have a binding written contract in place by April 30, 2010 with a closing date no later than June 30, 2010.
2.  Decide whether to: 
   • apply the credit to your 2009 tax return, filed on or before April 15, 2010;
   •  file an amended 2009 return; or, 
   • apply the credit on your 2010 return, filed on or before April 15, 2011.
3. Attach documentation of purchase to your return.

Documentation of Purchase

Details concerning the precise documents required to confirm your purchase have not yet been released. When this information becomes available, we will include instructions and links to the appropriate forms.

When to Apply the Credit

Buyers purchasing homes on or before December 31, 2009 may claim the credit on their 2009 tax returns.

Buyers purchasing in 2010 will have the option to:

•  Claim the credit on their 2009 return, even if the purchase is completed after December 31, 2009;
•  File an amended return for 2009 if their purchase is completed after April 15, 2010; or,
•  Claim the credit on their 2010 tax returns.

If you, or your client, purchased a home between January 1, 2009 and November 6, 2009, please see: How to Get the 2009 First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit.

Applying the Credit to Your 2009 Taxes

You will need to do three things to claim the credit on your 2009 tax return:

1. Fill out Form 5405 to determine the amount of your available credit;
2. Apply the credit when you file your 2009 tax return or file an amended return;
3. Attach documentation of purchase to your return or amended return.

Applying the Home Buyer Tax Credit to Your 2009 Tax Return

Bridge Loans: Using the Home Buyer Tax Credit Up-Front

Copyright NATIONAL ASSOCIATION of REALTORS® Reprinted with Permission

Reports are coming in from multiple sources regarding the Real Estate market.  Largely the reports cite increased sales in most areas of the country.  The Federal Tax Credit and low interest rates have contributed to the surge in sales.

Home Sales Rise on Tax Credit, Favorable Market

St. Louis home sales soar 22 percent in March

Find out if you qualify and ACT NOW to take advantage of the tax credit.

HUD announced that it has launched preventloanscams.org in conjunction with the Loan Modification Scam Prevention Network.  The site provides consumers with easy access to report a suspected scam, tips on avoiding a loan scam, and resources to help distressed homeowners.

Consumers are offered free counseling from well trained non-profit counselors as well as details on preventing foreclosure.

Since the beginning of the real estate “bubble” headlines much has been made of the “median Price”.  Could there be any other indicator that might help people understand what is actually happening in the real estate market?  You can find report after report citing the median price and it doesn’t seem to connect to the value trends that are reported.  
Bob Hunt explains: Focusing on the Median Price Can Be Misleading.