Housing Bailout Bill Offers Handouts to Most Homeowners
Housing legislation expected to be passed by the Senate next week and then signed by President George W. Bush is billed as an effort to rescue individuals struggling to pay their mortgages in a real estate meltdown.
But in fact it offers handouts to most homeowners, the New York Times reports.
Among them: $7,500 tax credits for first-time buyers who purchase between April 9, 2008 and June 30, 2009; increased standard tax deductions for homeowners who don’t itemize; new protections and increased lending limits for reverse mortgages; increased lending limits for jumbo mortgages; and a six-month extension in the amount of time that lenders have to wait before foreclosing on veterans, from 90 days to nine months.
But many of the changes are temporary, so those who are interested in taking advantage of these expected new provisions should watch the legislation closely, according to the newspaper.
